Parkside - March 2025
Lewisham Local comes to Parkside!
Lewisham Local, a charity with more than two decades' history of working to make Lewisham a happier, healthier place, has moved into Parkside
With 19 project areas serving community meals through FoodCycle Lewisham, building beautiful natural green spaces with Wildcat Wilderness, supporting small community groups achieve big impact with volunteering and capacity-building support, and tackling elderly isolation at the Time Bank, it's hard to sum up exactly what they do in such a short space.
Gülen Petty, their CEO told us: “The best way to communicate our mission is to say that we believe Lewisham already has everything it needs to prosper. Our work is all about encouraging everyone to give and share what they can, be it time, skills, expertise, knowledge, resources or money. Across our work, we centre the importance of voices, and the right of everyone in a community to have their say, share their experience, and determine their own path forward. Through this, we can find the right solutions for the most pressing issues at the right time for the benefit of all of us.”
In December, Lewisham Local decided to move premises and are now fully settled into the Parkside Community Centre. They hope to build a relationships in the neighbourhood, and are looking forward to working with residents.
If you would like to find out more about their services and how you can get involved you can visit https://lewishamlocal.com/ or find them on social media: @lewishamlocal
Free tuition for Parkside pupils
Year 4 & 5 pupils from Parkside are invited to join fully-trained tutors for support with their Maths and English schoolwork
Tutors United is offering free weekly sessions to youngsters who may be looking for a helping hand with their studies.
With a small class size, the sessions aim to help children prepare for the transition from primary to secondary school.
Sessions will be taking place every Wednesday from 4-5pm at the community centre. To register your interest, visit https://tutorsunited.org/parentsfamilies/register-your-child/
Introducing your Community Safety team
Matt Coates is the Community Safety Manager for South London. Matt and his team work to support residents with cases of anti-social behaviour (ASB) within their neighbourhood. They also work with residents when domestic abuse is taking place, and work with our specialist team to protect and offer support.
What is ASB?
Anti-social behaviour covers many different types of activities including substance misuse, vandalism and fly tipping, as well as ongoing instances of intimidation, harassment and verbal abuse. It’s also useful to know what ASB isn’t. Everyday living noises like footsteps or children playing, cooking noises or one off parties are not usually ASB.
Supporting residents to resolve smaller issues and signposting to other resources means that the team can triage cases and dedicate the time needed to them. Having a conversation with your neighbour can be enough to find a resolution.
What do you do as a Community Safety Manager?
I oversee all cases of ASB raised across South London. My colleagues and I take a victim centred approach, while also checking if there are underlying reasons when it comes to the person causing the ASB. It’s important to us that people know we are here to support all residents with their tenancy, to help them feel safe. We are here to work with people. Sometimes that might involve mediation, or going through legal processes that lead to eviction or rehousing. However, sometimes it means getting the right help for someone struggling with unmet support needs.
How can residents get support?
Residents can visit peabody.org.uk/your-home/personal-safety/antisocial-behaviour/ and get in touch with our contact centre on 0300 123 3456 to find out more information and report ASB.
There are limits to what the team can do, and we advise residents to report instances of ASB to their local police force, especially when people may be in danger. We are here to help, but we need residents to be the voice of what is going on in their communities and take steps to inform the right people – we can’t help if we don’t know something is happening
What about criminal activity?
Sadly, criminal activity is all too often a part of modern life, and we know that this happens at Parkside While we can help support residents when crime takes place, we’re not able to react to emergency situations, or to investigate crimes We encourage every on report criminal activity, including theft, anything involving drugs, or any situation where a person or property may be in danger to the police by calling 999
Once the police are involved, residents can all us to let us know what has taken place. You can ask to speak to one of the Community Safety Team, and we’ll be able to offer you the relevant support
Looking for work in Lewisham?
Are you passionate about supporting young people? As a Housing Support Worker in Lewisham, you’ll provide practical and emotional support to young people aged 18-25, including care leavers, helping them develop independent living skills and secure long-term housing. This is a great opportunity to grow your career in a supportive and rewarding environment, with full training and development available. Salary is £26,513 per year.
Interested? Apply now or contact Julie-Ann.O’Malley@Peabody.org.uk for more details!
Resident Surgeries
Every Tuesday 10am to 4pm
Parkside Community Centre 1 Copperwood Place, London SE10 8GE
Your Neighbourhood Managers Bianca Wallace and Kerry-Ann Waldo hold a regular surgery to privately discuss any issues, concerns or support you are looking for
Just a quick reminder that Tuesdays are the best day to drop by the office without an appointment. You can make an appointment with Bianca or Kerry-Ann on other days through our booking system:
Kerry-Ann bit.ly/KerryAnnWaldo
Bianca bit.ly/BiancaWallace
Don’t get put in the dog house!
There’s a strong community of dog owners at Parkside, and we love seeing you and your canine friends walking around the development.
While dogs are welcome throughout Parkside, we do need to ask residents not to use the podium area to walk their dogs. We’ve noticed some residents using the podium for this, and it’s the one area of the estate where we have a strict “no animals” restriction
Most pet owners here are very responsible, and make an effort to clean up after their dog, but we have had an increase in animal waste being left Please, remember to bag it, and then bin it!
Be part of the Parkside steering group
In collaboration with Peabody and the Parkside Resident Collective, Lewisham Local is bringing together a Community Steering Group to help guide the Parkside Community Fund (section 106 funding).
The Community Steering Group is a decisionmaking panel made up of people living at Parkside. You will play a role in designing the fund, and in deciding which community-led projects to fund. Training and expenses will be provided.
If you wish to be part of the Steering Group, please fill in the Expression of Interest Form via this link. Alternatively, you can find paper copies at the reception area of Parkside Community Centre.
The deadline to submit your Expression of Interest is 5pm, Monday 16 March, 2025.
If you have any questions, please contact funding@lewishamlocal.com
Parking in the Centenary Car Park
We know that parking at Parkside causes concern for residents. With this in mind we’d like to remind you that from Monday 17 March, the Centenary car park will only be available to residents with an allocated permit for that area.
Residents who do not have a permit for the car park will not be able to park there.
Parking enforcement will be in place, and there is a risk that vehicles parked without a permit may be fined, or even towed away.
Get in touch
peabody.org.uk/contact-us 0300 123 3456 Parkside Concierge@peabody org uk