NEWS
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early 70 people attended July’s public meeting of the Herne Hill Forum at St Paul’s Church, Herne Hill. It was encouraging to be joined by six out of our nine newly-elected Councillors, as well as some local traders – although we would have liked to have seen more. The business side of the AGM was swiftly dealt with – I was one of a number of people re-elected to the committee. Chair Giles Gibson summarised some of the good work undertaken during the past year. In the wake – almost literally – of the Great Flood, markets, free films and street parties really help to bring the community together and support our shops, cafes and restaurants. While there are many ambitious projects on the go, including a new website, and funds to spend, such as £100,000 from Thames Water and the £93,000 High Street Renewal award, we have been short of people to help steer them through – especially since Charlotte Ashworth left. At last we have a new administrator, Tricia Keracher. I am sometimes asked ‘what’s the difference between the Society and the
View from the Chair
With Colin Wight Forum?’ While we are quite different types of organisation, we share the aim of making Herne Hill a better place.
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he Forum is funded by Lambeth Council, and brings together all interested parties: voluntary organisations, residents, traders, councillors, police etc. And it’s been a great success, with the Sunday Market, the People’s Piano, community events, bringing back into use empty shops, and more. We are closely involved with the Forum’s work, but we can do things that they don’t do – see this magazine for examples! Soapbox presentations on the Lost Effra Project, the University of the Third Age and Wheels for Wellbeing were followed
by an impassioned plea for support from Natasha of Boki’s Hair in Norwood Road. Traders and residents alike are frustrated by having to suffer unlicensed night-time events, drug-dealing, and criminal and anti-social behaviour of many kinds. The Society has worked hard to help combat the worst effects of the ‘night-time economy’, but it is a time-consuming task that never ends. What else do people feel strongly about? Empty shops. The noise, flytipping and squalid appearance generated by certain establishments – especially along Milkwood and Dulwich Roads (as well as Norwood Road). And the widespread lack of respect for traffic regulations. Another issue is the dearth of affordable housing in the area. It is perhaps ironic, as Giles said, that we have worked hard to improve the area – to the extent that fewer people can now afford to move into it! Yes, Herne Hill is a great place to live, and I have no doubt that it has got better over the last decade or so. But of course there is still room for improvement. For information, visit the Forum website http://www.hernehillforum.org.uk/
Meet my neighbour, an artist For 21 years now, the Dulwich Festival has provided an array of entertainment and cultural activity every May. A major feature for the past 10 of those years has been Artists’ Open House. Local painters, sculptors, photographers and other creative types invite the public in to see, and perhaps buy, their works. The event has expanded enormously, and now includes over 200 participants in eight postcodes. This year Herne Hill presented no fewer than 40 artists in 28 venues. Even spread over two weekends, it was impossible to visit more than a fraction; but it was inspiring to see the wealth of talent in a variety of media. In my
Fareena Hussain, Frankfurt Road street alone, eight artists exhibited in three houses: Anne Marie Mbondo, joined by Fareena, Nokie and Robert ‘Ninebobrob’, showed photographs of industrial spaces, south London portraits and pop art. Sally Ashworth displayed her
glass jewellery with visiting icon-painter Siobhan Fraser and young illustrator Eleanor Winter; Susanna hosted a Margate-based painter. Everywhere I went I was struck by the dedication and enthusiasm shown in welcoming visitors and
Herne Hill-Autumn 2014
discussing their work, which ranged from trompe l’oeil to prints, to ceramics and sculpture. Local scenes also inspire artists: e.g. Lucy Duke and Toni de Bromhead with paintings of Brockwell Park. Part of the fun is meeting neighbours and seeing a range of living spaces and studios, some in back gardens. Whether they have lived here only a few months or for many years, all expressed enthusiasm for the area. One couple moved to Herne Hill because friends spoke highly of it: “I never heard a bad word about it; and now I tell everyone how happy we are living here.” Jeff Doorn
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