February 2014

Eltham SE9

www.senine.co.uk

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FEBRUARY 2014

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SEnine

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It is your community, you have the right to a say in what happens

SEnine ISSUE NUMBER 87 It slipped through my door and lay silent on the floor. Although it said they called, and I was not home, I did not hear the bell, perhaps my ears are not as good as they once were.

It was a local residents survey sheet seeking my opinion on matters local being circulated by the Eltham North Labour Party. Elections must be near, in fact they are in May, just 3 short months away.

Anyway, reading the survey I thought I would give you a hand to complete it, that is if you have the inclination to do so and are floundering to answer some of the questions. So here we go; Question 1: What three things are you most proud of in your local area?

An easy one to start with, but if you are struggling, in the number one spot you might put 'The SEnine Magazine'. If you still need some tips, you might include our award winning parks and Bob Hope Theatre as 2 & 3.

What would you like to change is the next question. The mind boggles, but high on my list would be the fee for CPZ's. What started as a nominal fee has escalated to the point of 'stupid'. In my view, resident parking permits should be issued free to residents. The council must make heaps from fining errant parkers at £110.00 a time (Before prompt payment discount).

FEBRUARY 2014 What else would I suggest you list to change?

The unsightly display of 3 rubbish bins in front of homes. I find it difficult to believe that there is not a better solution to waste disposal than three bins collected by three different teams (or the same teams covering the ground three times).

And in number three spot would be to change the councils ability to engineer the high street. I believe that the council should have the power to determine what business operate on the high street. Controversial?

Yes, but it is better than being overrun by gambling shops, pound type shops, and fly by night style shops, most who give very little back to the local community, and not to forget charity shops,which abound.

The next set of questions are pretty straight forward.

What interests you?

The problem here is you can only pick three, where all the suggested areas are of interest to most residents. So in order of how they appear: My opinion is; we want a reasonable council tax charge, it need not be the lowest as long as we are getting value for our money.

On crime and policing, simple, less and better, respectively.

For health services we want one that works.

Totally Independent Main Office:

Mark Wall

mark@senine.co.uk

Editor:

John Webb

editor@senine.co.uk

Advertising:

Mark Wall

mark@senine.co.uk

Phone: Web: Publisher:

020 8333 7493 (For all matters) www.senine.co.uk SEnine Ltd: PO Box 24290, Eltham, SE9 6ZP

Closing Dates. All copy must be received by about the 15th* of each month to appear in the next edition. Contributions and Stories are always welcome from the residents of Eltham. Submissions are subject to our overall editorial policy.

OPINION, FROM MY DESK On the subject of jobs and regeneration, my answer is move to Woolwich where most of the council attention centres.

Then there is affordable housing. This is a tough one for an established sexagenarian to answer.. Yes, we need it, but at what cost?

Next on the list is recycling & environment, refer to point two of things to change.

And on the subject of education, well I am in favour, it did not do me any harm. My friends and some readers might argue the level of my education.

And last on the list is transport. While it would be nice to have an underground or DLR station in Eltham, I think we are reasonably well served, especially if you have a 60+ card.

I think it is great that we are being asked our opinions, but the cynic in me wonders why we have to wait for an election for this level of interest to be shown. And perhaps it would be also great if those asking these question were to actually take some notice of the answers and act.

But that is politics for you.

Enjoy life: Enjoy Eltham.

Cover: Sutcliffe Park Cover photo by: John Webb Cameo: Frank Bond - story page 9

Friends Membership.

Support for the magazine is always appreciated. You can help the magazine with an annual Friends Membership The standard membership is £24.00 per year (in the delivery area) Royal Mail membership £36.00 per year (Outside the current delivery area and delivered by messenger or post)

Send your name, address and contact details along with payment to 'SEnine Friends' PO Box 24290 Eltham SE96ZP

*Some months do vary, check our web page www.senine.co.uk for exact dates.

We only use the very best industry standard vegetable oil based inks. We use environmentally friendly papers, from a sustainable source, with a chain of custody from well managed forests through the supply chain to our printer.

Or visit our web site www.senine.co.uk to pay on line.

We look forward to hearing from you.

This publication is subject to copyright - if you want to use something, ask we will usually grant permission

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HISTORY

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400 Years of History Some of Eltham’s oldest artefacts have left town, never to return. John Webb reports

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local interest necessary to make best use of them.

It brings to an end a local stewardship of the records dating back to the 16th century when formal recording of baptisms, burials and weddings first began.

As well as personal queries, Margaret has also dealt with academics on subjects as diverse as 16th century bell-ringing, maypole dancing, 17th century musicians, lawyers and writers working on subjects such as John Lilburne, Thomas Doggett and Christopher Marlowe.

rchives dating back more than 400 years, which have been kept in Eltham through numerous wars and social upheavals, have been taken into central storage.

The archive, containing books of registers, ledgers and maps, some of the oldest on parchment, were taken from the church to the London Metropolitan Archives at the invitation of the church as part of a centralisation of archive material.

Records dating back to 1868, which had been kept at Holy Trinity Church, Southend Crescent, and overseen by archivist Anthea Gent, were taken to the LMA earlier in the year.

The records also contain details of poor law assistance and the activities of local support services such as fire-fighting and education.

They have been stored in St John’s Church, Eltham, the church having a central role in local affairs in the centuries before local government and administration.

In recent years they have been kept by a church archivist. The latest incumbent, Margaret Taylor, has been responsible for their safe-keeping since 1964.

Margaret has taken on the role of replying to the many letters from relatives seeking information about their ancestors and local history.

She said: “I have been receiving about a letter a fortnight for almost 50 years, so I reckon I must have dealt with nearly 1,000.

“As I won’t have easy access to the antique books and documents in the future, I won’t be able to provide a response”, she said.

Margaret says that her ‘head’ tells her the records are best kept by professionals in an acceptable environment; but her ‘heart’ queries whether their storage will be accompanied by the knowledge and

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available over the coming year.”

The Archive would require three days’ notice for inspection by the public but welcomed visitors.

It was in the reign of Henry VIII, in 1538, that an act of Parliament came into force requiring Church of England parishes to keep detailed written records of the lives of local people. Early records were kept informally and in 1554 the first surviving Churchwardens’ Account book was begun, one of the oldest in the area.

Records

still

remain remai

Some of the records will be gradually digitised for internet access and will be kept in controlled atmosphere conditions nditions which the church believes will safeguard eguard them for future generations.

LMA Archivist Jeff Gerhardt said that correspondents, if possible, were ere welcome to visit the archives, in central London, to study the records. s.

He said that keeping them alongside the archives of other areas across London would allow better overall access for people seeking their family history.

However, he conceded that detailed ‘investigation’ work done on behalf ehalf of people unable to attend in person would have to be undertaken by private archivists for a fee.

He said: “We are planning further digitisation of our records although the timing hasn’t been decided yet. Once the records are put on line, it will allow people easy access and search.

“We are the central records office for London; our first task will be to update the catalogue of the archives, making that

in Eltham detailing the location of burials within the churchyard at St John’s. These were created by the Sexton in the 1920s and 1930s and enhanced by local volunteers in the 1980s. A member of the Woolwich and District Family History Society is working hard to ‘scan’ the index cards, which will be made available online.

Margaret Taylor can be contacted via the contact page on the Eltham Society’s website www.theelthamsociety.org.uk

Don't be a litter lout, find a bin

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1914 - 2014

100 years in Eltham.

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EDUCATION

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Celebration of Achievements E

ltham Hill School ran a successful celebration of achievement evening, among the award winners were Flora Hurault, Nicole Maworera, Emily Butler and Kayleigh Plummer won Woman of the Year 2013 awards, Gemma Harris, Karolina Bernadini, Ria Addison-Gayle and Yasmin Solomon won Perseverance Awards, Simi Aguda, Tiri Jele, Marina Wilson, Hannah Lamwon Student Leadership and Participation awards and Jessica Stalley, Demi Bayram and Kelsey Miles won Contribution to the Community awards; Deborah Fatunla, Tracy Ha, Samira Aoumeur, Blanche Kadj, Chawntell Kulkarni, Keziban Osmanogullari, Sarah Brundish, Mille Gray, Roxanne Kilic, Sylvia Nguyen, Rebecca Terry, Kristina Mihaylova and Olivia Veiga won outstanding Achievement awards.

Tales of Eltham Short Story E

ntrants to Eltham’s short story competition have until February 21 to submit their work.

Entries have been rolling in to Eltham Arts’ ‘Tales of Eltham’ short story competition, ‘Tales of Eltham’ is a short story competition, designed to showcase the best talent in the local area. Both adults and children are being encouraged to submit an entry with

the theme ‘Eltham Entertains’.

Free to enter, the winners will be announced on 23 April 2014 (World Book Night) at the The Eltham Centre.

Many of the entries will be exhibited locally and may be compiled into an anthology, similar to entries to last year’s poetry competition.

98 Riefield Road Eltham London SE9 T: 020 8333 0452 E: scott@londonandkent.co.uk

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Think you’ve got what it takes?

Visit; www.elthamarts.org for information on how how to enter.

Follow @ElthamArts and the hashtag #TalesofEltham on Twitter to keep up with the latest developments.

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Buy Local, Support the Town Centre

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Eltham in Pictures Saturday 15 February 2014 10.30am - 4pm St Mary’s Community Centre, Eltham High St

‘Eltham in Bloom’ and ‘200th anniversary of Eltham C of E School’ Admission free. Refreshments available

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JANE’S JOTTINGS

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Cabbie's View 'I

had that Jane Jottings in the back of my cab once’. Literally, as they say all the time these days but I hasten to add, not metaphorically.

On my occasional short taxi trips from Charing Cross to Theatreland, I like to get cabbies onto their favourite topic; that is, who exactly they’ve had in the back of their cabs.

The famous names are quickly followed by their views, over the squawk box, of the individuals in question.

Often it’s just ‘he’s a real gent’ or ‘she’s a lovely lady’ and the cynic in me wonders how closely the verdict is related to the size of the tip.

Despite their haughty image, however, about two characters known for their What’s surprising is that their opinions portrayals of the of ‘celebs’ are so often different from the ruling classes, highly polished public images. the cabbie folk have nothing but Bob Geldof for instance. He might have praise! Downton author Julian Fellowes been nominated for is ‘a good un’ having been transported the Nobel Peace Prize to an awards ceremony, fretting about and given an honorary whether he’d won or not (he had). And knighthood, but among Helen Mirren, aka The Queen, always the cab rank he’s known passes the time of day pleasantly with as a ‘rude ignoramus’ her subjects. who apparently doesn’t just, not like Mondays Maybe ‘old money’ knows its ps and qs but any other day of the better than the nouveau riche. week either. And as for that stuck-up daughter I hope the cabbies have no grumbles with the silly name! about me. Being brought up in a vicar’s family, we were welcomed by both the And Jeremy Clarkson squire in his manor house and the estate might be the nation’s workers in their cottages. We learned to favourite driver, but mix and talk to both. But did we ‘belong’ he’s one of the cabbies’ least favourite to either? Perhaps it was a case of being passengers, according to my source. neither fish nor foul.

Jane Webb has lived in Eltham since '85 with her husband and daughter. She has taught at several local primary schools

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Vote at elections, it is your right

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2 ) ) , & , $ / 6 72 & . , 6 7 2 )

War Heroes honoured in Russia A

Frank joined the Navy in 1939, joining as a ‘boy sailor’ before his 16th birthday, inspired by his time in the Sea Scouts as a youngster.

rctic veteran and Eltham resident, Frank Bond, has made a return trip to Russia, more than 70 years after taking part in convoys to supply the war stricken nation.

Frank was among a group of veterans who served on the convoys, called

by Winston Churchill ‘the worst journey in the world’ around the north coast of Norway.

The convoys, transporting arms and food, ran the gauntlet of German submarines and fighter planes, and merchant ships were protected by vessels from the Royal Navy.

Last spring, the British government eventually awarded the veterans the ‘Arctic Star’ medal and Frank received it in a ceremony at Downing Street. Afterwards, he was chosen to escort Prime Minister David Cameron around HMS Belfast, on which he also served and now visits each week as a volunteer.

Frank receiving his medal (photo Elena Protcheva, Mosphotocor) He and eight other survivors of the convoy have now travelled to Moscow where they also received the St Andrew’s Ushakov medal from the Russians. The award was conferred during a three day visit as guests of the Russian authorities and the ceremony was held at the Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War. While on his vessel, HMS Suffolk, he also witnessed the sinking of HMS Hood.

Don't wait for people to be friendly, show them how.

Since retiring, Frank and fellow members of the Russian Convoy Club have re-visited Russia, meeting their opposite numbers and talking to schoolchildren about their experiences. He featured towards the end of a recent BBC documentary on the convoys narrated by Jeremy Clarkson.

“I don’t think of myself as a hero, I just did my duty. As a youngster, it was an incredibly exciting time. It’s only looking back that you realise the terrible dangers”, he said.

Many vessels were sunk by enemy action, with the merchant ships themselves coming under close attention.

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NEWS

SEnine

Sign Saga Ends

Lost Giraffe

News in Brief A

happy ending to the saga of ‘The Sign That Went Missing’ has been celebrated on the Progress Estate.

Eltham Cinema Just Released 25/01/2014

P

ublic exhibitions on the proposals for a new cinema and restaurant development at the heart of Eltham town centre has just been announced and will be held in the Eltham Centre foyer on Friday 31st January (3-8pm) and Saturday 1st February (10am2pm). SEnine just found out about the exhibition as we went to press, but more information on the proposal is on page 23.

Leading cinema operators have already expressed an interest in the former Co-op department store, which was purchased by the Royal Borough in 2011. The building is situated in the middle of the High Street and is the focus of proposals to stimulate the local high-street economy and in particular to encourage more residents and visitors to the town during the evening.

The cinema proposal is part of a masterplan for Eltham town centre that aims to promote economic growth by developing key sites and making improvements to the area.

Councillor Chris Roberts, Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich said: "We've looked in detail at the proposal and are very confident that a new cinema at the heart of Eltham town centre will make a big difference to the town. It will be a great provision for local people and we know that cinemas attract people and attract spend in town centres, which can only be good news for Eltham."

Six months after disappearing from its moorings on Well Hall Road the sign, which lists the roads on the estate and dates back to the early years in its 99 year history, is back where it belongs.

It was ‘found missing’ by Progress Residents Association committee member Keith Billinghurst who feared it had become target for thieves and became resigned to it having disappeared for ever.

However, it turned out that a ‘Good Samaritan’ had rescued it with the intention of restoring it to peak condition.

A few weeks after an appeal was made for its return, the sign re-appeared, having been brought back by the anonymous stranger who had repainted it.

A

giraffe answering to the name 'Gilly' has been lost in the Greenvale Road, Eltham Rail Station and Well Hall Road area.

By now Gilly is probably sad, wet and forlorn. Her owner, Isla Pinnock, is missing her loved Gilly very much and would love to have her back at home.

If you have seen or found Gilly please phone or send an email to SEnine and we will arrange for Gilly to be united with Isla.

Now reinstalled by the council’s highways department, it has been returned to pride of place, in time for the Estate’s Centenary celebrations next year.

Pictured below are Allan Cooper (Treasurer), Rita Billinghurst (Chair), Margaret Oliver (Vice-chair and Secretary) and committee members Keith Billinghurst and Margaret Johnson.

Isla with Gilly prior to the loss

Have you some news that others might like to hear? Write and tell us.

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Join in a Community Activity

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ST MARY’S COMMUNITY COMPLEX A great venue!

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Our Private Hirers said: “Wonderful place”, “helpful staff ”, “made a real difference”, “extremely happy”, “lovely room”, “very well setup”, “say thanks very much”, “we will use you again”, “just wanted to say thanks”.

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020 8850 2040 Main Office 180 Eltham High St

Storm Downs Trees

Mark Wall writes

T

he strong winds and rain wreaked havoc across some parts of Eltham late in December and early January. Shouldering my camera I braved the winds and headed off to Avery Hill Park to have a look around. I felt a little silly sheltering from the winds and rain behind the trunks of trees when I had gone out to photograph fallen trees. My caution was wise, as I moved away from the big trees straining to stand in the wind, I heard the crack of wood and just a metre or two in front of me a branch came down across the path (Picture below) A little shocked, I beat a hasty retreat and headed home to the warmth and a coffee.

Mottingham Memorial in a narrow miss. Photo bt Ray Andrew

Branch fell across the path - Avery Hill

Don't be a Litter tosser, put it in a bin

Lightening strike? - Avery Hill

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WHAT'S ON

This page is sponsored by ElthamSE9 Limited

Saturday February 1

Wednesday 26 February

Alice in Wonderland

Tudor Barn Wine Club

Annual panto Bob Hope Theatre, Wythfield Road Tickets £10 and £8 8850 3702 or www.bobhopetheatre.co.uk 2.30pm, 5.30pm and7.30pm

A range of six wines plus three course meal £35 in advance only 0845 459 2351 - 8pm

Thursday 27 February Weds 12 February

‘Stand Up for Labour’

Quiz night at the White Hart On behalf of local charities Includes carvery meal and dessert £10 per ticket from 8850 1562 Kitchen open 6pm, quiz starts 8.30pm

Comedians Ian Stone Mary Bourke, Simon Clayton and Ayesha Hazarika. - 7.30pm, Eltham Hill Club & Institute.

Tickets £10 from www.elthamlaughs.eventbrite.co.uk, ambreenhisbani@yahoo.co.uk or call 07930397082 Special offer table for 10 for £85 booked before Feb 10th.

Wednesday 12 February

Wednesday 12 March

Jennifer Sims ‘Putting on a Show’ Talk at the Eltham Centre by local theatre director Organised by Eltham Arts. Eltham Centre Entry free. 7 – 9pm

Includes material on architecture, toys, furniture and art Organised by Eltham Arts. Eltham Centre. Entry free 7-9pm

Thur 13 – Sat 15 February ‘Joseph and His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ Eldorado Youth Productions Bob Hope Theatre, Wythfield Road. Tickets £10.50 - £13 www.bobhope theatre.co.uk or 020 8850 3702 7.30pm (plus 2.30pm Sat)

Saturday 15 February 2014 Eltham in Pictures ‘Eltham in Bloom’ and ‘200th anniversary of Eltham C of E School’ St Mary’s Community Centre, Eltham High Street 10.30am to 4pm - Admission free. Refreshments available

‘Russian Folk Art’; talk by Svetlana Quigley

Weds March 12 – Sat 15 ‘Pygmalion’ Classic play. Bob Hope Theatre £9 (£8 conc). 7.45pm

Sunday March 16 Jive Aces Top jive and swing band.

Bob Hope Theatre, Wythfield Road Tickets £15.50 (£14.50 conc). 2.30pm and 7.30pm

Elizabeth Dunn Academy Of Performingg Arts Fun dance classes at the Anstridge Hall, from om January Jaanu n aryy 23rd 2 Ballet, Disco Divas, Tap & Jazz. Ages 3-11years arrs Call Alex for more details & to book on: 07718903989 or edapa@live.co.uk

Tuesday 18 February Birdwatching in London The BBC’s ‘Urban Birder’ David Lindo - illustrated talk Eltham Nature Club St Mary’s Community Centre, Eltham High Street Tickets: £3 non-members, £1.50 non-members 7.30pm

Art Classes at Gerald Moore Gallery Eltham College

Saturday February 22

Saturday January 18 Paper cutting workshop Experiment with paper; cards, images, stencils etc £30.00 - 2-5pm

‘Swing Commanders’.

Band music from the 30s to the 50s Multiple instruments, vocal harmony and solos Bob Hope Theatre, Wythfield Road Tickets £13 from www.bobhopetheatre.co.uk or 8850 3702. 2.30pm and 7.30pm

Adults: Starting Wednesday January 15 Art skills classes - £70 for five classes - 7-9pm

Saturday January 11 Portfolio development for A-level students Free

Wednesday February 26 Quiz night at the White Hart On behalf of local charities Includes carvery meal and dessert £10 per ticket from 8850 1562 Doors open 6pm, quiz starts 8pm

Starting January 14, 15, 18 After school and Saturday art classes 7 – 11 and 11 – 15 years £50 for five sessions - 4pm – 5.30pm 17 – 20 February Range of half term classes for toddlers to 11 years 10am – 12.30pm

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2-6 Sherard Road Tuesday - 4th, 11th, 18th, & 25th February Exercise Class. 10am – 11am Sit & Get Fit - exercises to help keep you keep fit!

Info contact: Yvonne Conway on 020 8315 1850 fitforlife@ageukbandg.org.uk Tuesday - 4th, 11th, 18th, & 25th February French Group 2pm – 4pm Join other Francophiles and brush up your French.

Beginners and improvers welcome.

Contact: Community Volunteers Time Bank 020 8315 1883 communityvolunteerstb@ageukbandg.org.uk Tuesday - 18th February Nutritional Advice 10am – 1.00 pm 1 to 1 tailored advice from our nutritionist.

Contact: Wendy Smith on 020 8294 3013 wsmith@ageukbandg.org.uk Wednesday - 26th February History Group 10am – 12pm With different subjects each month there is something to interest everyone.

Contact The Community Volunteers Time Bank 020 8315 1883 communityvolunteerstb@ageukbandg.org.uk Thursday - 6th 20th February Craft Group 10am – 12pm Bring along your own craft project or try something new with fellow enthusiasts!

Contact: Community Volunteers Time Bank 020 8315 1883 communityvolunteerstb@ageukbandg.org.uk Thursday 6th, 13th, 20th, & 27th February Forget-me-not Singing 2pm – 3.30pm For older people, people with disabilities, those with Alzheimer's, dementia and their carers.

Contact: Rose Waghorn 0781 118 7490 info@forgetmenot-services.co.uk Friday - 7th, 14th, 21st, & 28th February Technology Club 10am – 11.30am We offer help and support on a range of subjects to help you Keep in Touch with Technology from mobile phones, tablets, cameras to laptops.

Contact: Louise Donovan on 020 8315 1850 ldonovan@ageukbandg.org.uk Saturday - 22nd February Men in Sheds Creative Workshop 1am – 3pm Make your own Bird Box in time for spring nesting men and women welcome!

Contact Steve Paxman on 020 8294 3011 spaxman@ageukbandg.org.uk

Eltham has something for everyone

PREVIEW by Beattie Slavin

SEnine

What's Coming to Bob Hope The line up for the first half of 2014

A

s we have come to expect, Bob Hope Theatre has many treats in store for us. Musical delights, romantic comedies, comedy and wonderful musical events.

Can Professor Higgins turn Eliza Doolittle into a lady capable of passing for a Duchess?

And did he expect her to have a mind of her own?

April starts with Imagine… The Beatles.

The top Beatles tribute band returns to Eltham to give us all the great hits in a magical mystery tour.

Eldorado Youth Productions are bringing Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat to Bob Hope Theatre in February.

This family favourite musical is packed full of catchy music, and group dance numbers.

Based on the bible story of Joseph it is a moral tale of forgiveness, that is just great to watch too.

Sunday 16th March sees the UK’s top Jive and Swing band return to Eltham. The Jive Aces reached the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent, and have since gone world-wide to bring many musical houses down. Joined

by Bob Hope favourite Shane Hampsheir this is sure to sell out very early, so get your jive on and swing yourself tickets.

Sidcup Operatic Society brings Oliver! to Bob Hope in April. This sweet tale of an orphan seeking a loving home, follows Oliver from workhouse to thieves’ den, and on to his heart’s desire. Can we have some more!

Saturday 22nd February sees the Swing Commanders return with their superb stage show of songs from the 30s to the 50s.

Sophisticated vocal blends and intricate arrangements bring their repertoire of novelty songs, swing songs and American songbook classics an energetic and enjoyable showmanship.

Also in March Eldorado Musical Productions present Thoroughly Modern Millie. 1922 New York and small-town Millie wants to marry for money and not love. A modern aim at the time. This comedy caper will lift your spirits. Don’t miss it.

In March George Bernard Shaw’s barbed attack on the British class system – Pygmalion – comes to Bob Hope Theatre.

At the end of March, the second evening of the new comedy club comes to the bar at Bob Hope. This much needed event is bound to be oversubscribed. Don’t delay book tickets today.

19th April is a fundraiser for Help for Heroes.

The Magic of the Musicals will be jam packed with songs from all your favourite shows.

Featuring special guest stars from some of the most iconic West End shows Shane Hampsheir and The Glenlyn Academy.

So many treats to look forward to, as usual Bob Hope Theatre is spoiling us for choice.

Don't forget, the White Hart is the ideal place for a pre-show meal or a pre and post show drink.

COMIN G AT T R AC T IO N S B O B

H O P E T H E A T R E Be a good neighbour

See What's On 13th - 15 February for details 13

SEnine

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EDUCATION

SEnine

BBC Moves Crown Woods to Bromley SEnine's John Webb took a look at a new TV reality programme that placed Crown Woods School in Bromley.

I

t could have been worse. Benefits Street it was not. It could have been better. Educating Eltham hasn’t thrown up the celebrity ‘sirs’ of Educating Yorkshire yet.

Our two contestants were Claudenia, a multi-talented youngster and University of Birmingham graduate who decided to throw it all away, according to her folks, to become a teacher.

The auspices weren’t great. BBC iPlayer warns viewers to tick the parental guidance box. ‘Contains Some Strong Language’ it further warned. That wouldn’t be French, German or Latin.

And Oliver, who aimed to impress by playing Bach as his new pupils walked into class and inspiring them with a quote from Marilyn Monroe, apparently unaware the dizzy blonde overdosed some 50 years ago. ‘I’ll find out who she is by tomorrow’ he promised his year 10 business studies BTEC group.

The programmes, which started in early January are following the fortunes of six academic high achievers who have decided to sacrifice lucrative career possibilities to ‘put something back’, training to become classroom teachers after just six weeks.

To compound their trial by teaching, these youngsters agreed to allow BBC3 to film their progress for a six part series ‘Tough Young Teachers’.

Nor did they mention Eltham. Funny that. Unlike the other two schools, Archbishop Lanfranc, which they said was in Croydon and Harefield Academy which one assumes is in Harefield. And apparently Crown Woods is in an ‘area of deprivation’. But hey, this is television.

Let’s not try to psychoanalyse the BBC.

Make a difference in your community

Mind you, she seemed to handle doodling Alfie quite nicely, the young lad having scrawled a picture of a fat lady with boobies during her lesson.

But enough carping. Never let the facts get in the way of a good story, I say.

It was a good story, following Claudenia and Oliver through the predictable ups and downs of swimming in the deep end.

As for Oliver, in Sherwood, it all ended with a rush to the toilet in tears after a mega scolding. That was himself, after receiving feedback from Head of Arden Maurice Hartnett. ”I feel I’ve failed”, he sobbed. Black mark for Mr Hartnett too, therefore. Nobody’s meant to feel a failure in education; nor in television

Why people submit themselves to this ordeal (television) is only a little more puzzling than their career choices, two of the recruits deciding to pray each morning before being tossed before the lions as we all watch on. Why schools want to take the televisual risk of hosting them also puzzles.

An alarming homework failure by the programme’s researchers produced some exam howlers of the ‘Chicago’s at the bottom of Lake Michigan’-type.

A funky map of London showed the big dot of ‘Crown Woods College’ somewhere in Bromley borough, about 10 miles off target.

Can’t teachers just tell the kids that sound vibrates through particles in the air, without spending ten minutes getting them all to stand up and pretend to be molecules? Sorry, Lucas and I are Old School.

Claudenia, in Delamere, had her first match with Year 7, staging a mock children’s party with balloons and magic tricks, the better to illustrate a point of basic science. Her second was, in her own words ‘diabolical’. ‘I didn’t know what I was doing’, she wept, leading established colleague James Cowie to risk a possible future charge of inappropriate behaviour by placing a fraternal arm around her shoulder. Her self-analysis was confirmed with brutal frankness by 12 year old pupil Lucas.

‘She made us look like idiots and didn’t explain what it was all about’, he said.

So the advice he received worked a treat.

Instead of telling them five concepts in 25 minutes and then expecting them to run Microsoft, he re-booted, giving them one and telling them how to research it.

Red hoodie topped Daniel, 16 marked his work for him. “He got it right this time” All harmless fun for the spectator, a change from the Bake Off and Master Chef but more episodes upcoming in which I want more tears and a cloying denouement or my licence fee refunding.

15

NEWS

SEnine

Christmas Floods Did a serious blunder by the Environment Agency lead to a Christmas flooding nightmare for more than 30 families in Eltham?

W

ater, up to two feet deep, poured into their homes in the early hours of Christmas Eve after a flood defence grille became blocked with accumulated debris from the river Quaggy in Westhorne Avenue.

Residents were forced to spend the holiday period staying with relatives or in hotels and were faced with organising a clear-up of their entire ground floor.

Now their insurance premiums could see a ten-fold increase, to £8,000 a year or more, and their houses lose tens of thousands in value, as they are placed in a higher flood-risk category.

One family had to cancel a £3,000 ‘trip of a life-time’ to New York and several will have to spend up to six months in rented accommodation while their houses are refurbished.

uncontrollably rising and that they left the site without warning residents of the impending inundation of their houses.

Eltham MP Clive Efford said: “The Environment Agency needs to 'fess up' to this. This was a Flood victum, Fred Seago with local MP Clive Effort man-made flood As water coming down the swollen river caused by them.

All those millions spent on the Sutcliffe was unable to escape, it spilled over Park flood defence scheme and these into the back gardens of the homes in houses get affected by a grille costing Westhorne Avenue, gradually rising up a few thousand, on Christmas Eve of all and swamping their ground floors. times.”

Residents are demanding to know why He is leading the demands of a regular inspection and clearance residents for the Agency to accept regime was not in place to prevent its responsibility and make the blockage to the grille and asking whether its design and placing was necessary financial amends. properly thought-through.

The nightmare began when the Quaggy, which flows through Sutcliffe Park, became dammed at the point it enters a gully leading under Westhorne Avenue and Eltham Road.

All will be forced into protracted legal wrangles with insurers, the Environment Agency and Greenwich Council over who was to blame, who should pick up the bill and their future insurance liabilities.

The Environment Agency has admitted that they became unable to unclog the grille, that flood water was

16

A new grille, installed by the Environment Agency to prevent debris blocking the gully and giving an early warning of peak flows, had become clogged, leading to water backing up onto the playing fields of Cray Valley Football club in Middle Park Avenue.

Carpets, kitchen equipment and furniture were all ruined, and some will lose the Jacobean oak panelling which forms an attractive feature of the 1930s housing.

The ‘trash screen’ grille was put in place as part of the overall Sutcliffe Park scheme to protect houses in Lee Green and Lewisham from flash flooding. Its siting and construction was subject to consultation with engineers from Greenwich Council whose planning permission was required.

Shattered dreams Ruined household items piled up for disposal

Take a walk in the Tarn

NEWS

SEnine

A snapshot of some of the flood victums attending the second meeting which was addressed by the Environmental Agency

But instead of providing extra security it led to disaster for residents in Westhorne Avenue.

Ron Newman, an 85 year old widower, was awakened in the night by police to alert him to six inches of water on his ground floor. He spent Christmas in a hotel and will be staying with relatives for months while his home dries out.

Helen and Michael Roscoe will also be sending months elsewhere and say that the wooden panelling of their home is irretrievably damaged because of sewage contamination of the water.

“We feel we did as much as we could under the circumstances”, he said.

Residents in Eltham Palace Road were also threatened when gardens flooded, but fortunately for them the water eased before it got Hand Rail showing debris build up into any of their homes.

Left, how it should look .

Above, the blocked grill, with water over the hand rail, the following morning

Alice Foster points to the water level (rust on the firegrate)

Jane and Neil Foster had been booked on a six day holiday to New York with their daughter Alice, but had to spend the week organising a clear-up after two feet of water cascaded into their home.

“You think there would be some agency to help. In fact, you’re left on your own to sort it out", said Jane, who with her family will be spending up to six months in rented accommodation while their house is repaired.

Join a local community group

Addressing a public meeting, Tim Connell, operations manager for the Environment Agency in this area said that lessons would be learned and a review undertaken of the arrangements.

The Agency had been aware of the threat posed by grilles becoming blocked and that the one at Westhorne Avenue had been cleared twice on the day before the flood. But the weight of water and debris had meant further clearance had become impossible.

Games at the 'Badgers' (Cray Valley (PM) Football Club) had to be cancelled due to the flooding on the pitches.

(See page 22)

Houses Flooded

Existing Grill Location

Better Grill Location to allow flooding into fields

17

BOOKS

SEnine

Books About Eltham T

here is a wide range of books on local history available, some new but most second-hand, on the internet.

Many contain old pictures, others written descriptions of buildings, spaces and people.

‘Eltham: A Pictorial History’ by John Kennett, published 1995. 66 pages of old pictures and descriptions of Eltham.

From £33.60 new and up to £79.95 second hand plus p and p.

‘Eltham in the Making’: Volume One from Roman Times until 1939’. Published 1990 by the Eltham Society. 128 pages.

Contributions from local historians.

‘Eltham in Old Photographs’ by John Kennett. Published 1991. Used from £21 plus p and p.

‘Eltham and Woolwich Tramways’ by Robert Hartley. Published 1996 Used from £20 plus p and p.

‘Old Eltham including Mottingham and ‘London Volume 2, The Shooters Hill: A Pictorial Miscellany’ The Buildings of England,

by Gus White and others.

Architectural Published 1985. Contains

by Nikolaus 37 monochrome pictures and Bridget plus descriptions. £20 used. published

These are the among the most commonly found: ‘Images of London: Eltham’

by David Sleep, published 2004.

128 pages of old photographs.

From £2 new and £1.35 second hand plus p and p.

‘Discover Eltham and Its Environs’ by Darrell Spurgeon.

A comprehensive guide to Eltham, New Eltham, Mottingham, Grove Park, Kidbrooke and Shooters Hill, published 1992. 96 pages featuring walks of the area and detailed descriptions of the buildings. From £20 new and £2 second hand plus p and p.

18

‘Old Eltham: A selection of the sketches by Llywd Roberts 1875-1940’.

Published 1966. 28 pages of monochrome line drawings with text. From £15 - £175 used, softback and hardback editions.

‘Eltham Palace’ by John Priestley. Published 2008.

180 pages of details about the history of the Royal site.

Paperback edition published 2013 available new from £8.91 plus p and p. Hardback new from £20 (Barnes and Noble) or from £30 up to £210 used on the internet.

‘The Story of Royal Eltham’ by R R C Gregory. Published 1909 350 pages, considered the standard historical work on the area. Available free online, for £5.38 softback reproduction or upwards from £30 plus p and p second-hand.

South’: Pevsner Guides, Pevsner Cherry, 1983.

800 pages (includes Eltham). £35 new or from £10 used.

A paperback published last year, ‘Eltham through Time’ by Kristina Bedford, contains 180 wellpresented illustrations and descriptions. It is published by Amberley Books at £14.99 and is available post free through www. amberleybooks.com In addition, the Eltham Society has published a series of booklets on different aspects the of area including E Nesbit, Richard Jefferies, Rex Whistler, Severndroog Castle, Trams in Eltham, the Bexleyheath Railway 1895 – 1995, Eltham Writers and ‘Eltham Palace and Eltham People’. Most are available from w w w. t h e e l t h a m s o c i e t y. o r g . u k / publications.php from £3-5, discounts for members.

Be active in your community

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HISTORIC ELTHAM

SEnine

The Swinging Sixties John Kennett considers a different take on the usual meaning of this catchphrase.

D

ocumentaries of the so-called ‘Swinging Sixties’ often refer to filmed events from the 1960s showing trendy dressers parading along Carnaby Street in London implying that everyone had bitten this fashion bullet; perhaps some of us lived in another world!

In addition to the Strictly for the Birds boutique (now Scope) which opened in the high street in the ‘Swinging Sixties’, Eltham was to see more of the swinging demolition contractor’s sledgehammer as parts of Eltham’s surviving Victorian heritage were reduced to dust. When familiar buildings are removed, or a long-established shop closes we may feel that part of our comfort zone has also been demolished.

Fifteen Penny Fields almshouses in Blunts Road behind the cleared site. She had moved from a Victorian cottage at Court Grove, off Court Yard, where the The school was a good place to start as Grove Market Place development was an earlier headmaster, Mr RRC Gregory proposed and at one time accompanied had written The Story of Royal Eltham Mr Gregory as a note taker when he which was, and still is, the basic ‘Bible’ was collecting historical information at for anyone studying the subject; I soon archive depositories. Having drooled bought a second hand copy at the over the village Eltham pictures in The Blackheath Bookshop for fifty shillings Story of Royal Eltham I realised that (£2.50) and started my quest. Elderly taking pictures was essential to record school workers were quizzed, as were today’s Eltham for tomorrow’s historians. family members, friends and those of long residence in the district. I was At Court Grove I photographed, and to learn from Gregory’s book that the where possible wandered over, the demolished almshouses had been built vacant properties and shops, which as the Eltham Workhouse in 1738 at a were reaching the end of their days cost of £313; in the mid nineteenth awaiting the swing of the demolition century, when these facilities were ball. I made a few notes and a plan of one terrace cottage on the south side which had a token front garden, front room with internal shuttered sash windows, kitchen, pantry and a toilet entered from the garden. Upstairs were three bedrooms and a spare room but no bathroom. In the garden was a small conservatory/workshop. demise and this loss set me on the path to discover more about Eltham and its history, which continues today.

I photographed one of the last grand Victorian properties being demolished for terrace houses at the corner of North Park near the new flats Victor of Woodington Close and houses in Messeter Place – on this latter spot stood some stable properties one of which was used by builder Harry Gove where as part of a scout badge The high street almshouses before demolition in 1964 One morning in February 1964, as I made my way by car to work at Eltham C of E School accompanied by my sister who worked at Eltham Library, I noticed on reaching Eltham High Street at Footscray Road that the old almshouses next to Christchurch had been demolished over the weekend. I was unaware of the buildings impending

20

transferred to Lewisham, the building was adapted for almshouses.

Through a scouting connection I interviewed retired cubmistress Miss Ethel Clark who lived in one of the replacement

Shops being demolished, Court Yard

The la

HISTORIC ELTHAM

SEnine I fixed a puttied window onto a metal frame being reminded to put a small fillet of putty onto the frame before inserting the window.

The loss of these large Victorian houses was due to the expiry of their 99 year Crown leases, which also occurred at the corner of Footscray Road where a

small parade of shops next to the fire station was demolished together with a building used from 1865 to 1939 as the first purpose-built Eltham Police station.

On removal of the police to their present site in Well Hall Road the building was used as government offices, to the rear was a detached house where a local carter exercised his horse in the garden.

church authorities were reluctant to sell so the site was bought compulsorily by the local authority who built the three tower blocks of flats named after the Rev Walter Sowerby, vicar from 18691895, who instigated the rebuilding of the church and was the first resident of the former vicarage; a new vicarage was built in a corner of the development.

In 1963 Woolwich Borough Council was actively suggesting that the Tudor wall at the front of Well Hall Pleasaunce should be removed to ‘improve the view into the formal garden for Well Hall Road pedestrians.’ This wall formed part of the ancient walled kitchen garden associated with former times at this historic site. There were local protests and letters to the Eltham Times and fortunately wiser counsels prevailed and we can now enjoy this historical gem in a peaceful setting.

The former police station and shops by Footscray Road, 1964

Prompted by a changing environment coupled with an interest in local history, saw the formation of local societies to monitor new developments and research and record the past and present times of their own neighbourhood. Thus it was, after some preliminary meetings

ctorian cottages at Court Grove south side

he last Victorian property at 61 North Park

Another demolished Victorian building was the vicarage of St John’s Church which stood at the junction of Eltham High Street and Sherard Road surrounded by a number of trees and edged by a former health centre run as the Victorians Club for pensioners. The

St John’s Vicarage of interested parties, that the Eltham Society was established in November 1965 at Eltham C of E School initially ‘to further the knowledge of our historic neighbourhood’ – a mission it carries on today.

All pictures are from the John Kennett collection

21

SPORT

SEnine

Badgers Sports Club

Home of Cray Valley (pm) FC & Erith Town FC For Cray Valley: Contact Dave Wilson (Secretary) 07715 961886 wilson433@ntlworld.com or Frank May (Chairman) 07778 987579 frankmay.cvpmfc@hotmail.com

For Erith Town: Contact James Davie (Secretary) 077807 712149 jamesdavie@ntlworld.com or Ian Birrell (Chairman) 07956 291274 ibirrell@hotmail.co.uk

For fixtures, results and an up to date table go to; www.cray-valley.co.uk.

The Badgers pitch - Christmas flood

Next game The Millers Vs Whyteleafe 25-01-2014

The storms that have battered Britain during December and January caused the cancellation of many fixtures for ourselves and Erith Town as well as causing us some problems with our pitch when it was flooded on Christmas Eve. The River Quaggy burst its banks overnight and water covered nearly three quarters of the pitch at Badgers and it has taken a tremendous amount of hard work from our ground staff to get the pitch back into a playable condition.

Of course, this is only a minor irritation compared to some of our neighbours who were woken by the police in the early hours advising them to evacuate their homes because of the flooding.

Our thoughts are with those affected.

On the pitch, the Millers gained a creditable result in the London Senior Cup when we travelled to Ryman League Division One side Tooting & Mitcham United and following a 1-1 draw, we held our nerve to win 8-7 after a penalty shoot out. This now puts us into the Semi-Finals where we will host Cray Wanderers, AFC Wimbledon or Bromley on a date to yet be confirmed. February

Set in the grounds of Cray Valley & Erith Town Football Clubs, Badgers Sports Club is the ideal venue for a variety of functions & events. Our professional catering & hospitality team

will see us take on Beckenham Town in the ¼ Finals of the League Cup while by the time you read this, Erith Town will know if they’ve made it into the semis as they go into their second leg tie with a one goal advantage over current League leaders Ashford Town.

In the League, just a couple of fixtures have been played recently due to the weather, but the Millers beat Beckenham Town by 3 goals to 2 after trailing 2-0 before we travelled to Whyteleafe only to be on the end of a 6-2 defeat. Meanwhile, the Dockers have also only played two League fixtures during December and January and narrowly won both games by the odd goal against Phoenix Sports and Greenwich Borough, With the weather now improving, (he says hopefully) let’s hope we can get back out on the pitch and see both clubs make steady progress up the League table and I hope to see some of you at a match at Badgers soon. And for up to date fixture info, visit www.scefl.com Frank May - Chairman - Cray Valley (PM) FC

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Cinema Plans O

utline plans for a cinema in Eltham High Street have been released for consultation by Greenwich Council.

If plans go ahead, they would see cinema returning to the town for the first time since the Coronet at Well Hall closed in 1999.

The development is expected also to see new food outlets aimed at boosting the evening economy in the town.

These sketches form part of the exercise to gain views from the public on the proposals.

The new building, housing a multiscreen picturehouse, would replace the old Co-op department store, currently occupied on a short lease by Poundland until 2015.

At least one of the major operators has expressed an interest in running the cinema, according to the council. Filmgoers are currently faced with trips of at least three miles to see the latest releases.

Take an interest in local events

Plans for the development have been subject to an exhibition at the Eltham Centre and are also available for viewing on the council’s website.

Grove Market Place As SEnine went to press, the borough’s planning board was expected to give the go-ahead to plans for 144 apartments on the Grove Market Place site; demolition of the old buildings on the site has now been completed.

23

FEATURE

SEnine

Eltham Through Time A timely advert led Canadian expat Kristina Bedford to write ‘Eltham Through Time’ – a new book dedicated to the history of our beloved town.

Amy Duffin caught up with her on a cold winter’s day.

K

ristina Bedford arrived in London to study for her master’s degree almost 30 years ago. Little did she know that she would end up becoming an expert on her adopted area.

After a 10-year career backstage at the National Theatre, she freelanced by reading scripts for several London theatres.

“Family history research has always been a hobby of mine,” said Bedford, “but as the internet developed, I found I was applying my skills to do other kinds of research.”

A member of several professional genealogy organisations, Bedford came across an advertisement looking for local people to author books about the history of Greenwich, Eltham and Woolwich.

“I was keen to do something myself, since I’ve always been researching for others,” said Bedford. So she took the plunge and applied.

Amberley then commissioned Bedford with the Eltham book, and work swiftly began on Eltham Through Time, which compares current views with those from past times.

“Eltham is young as a suburban place and it’s special because there are places that are so identifiable – Eltham Palace, for example,” said Bedford. “What is surprising from the book, is that Eltham has only really become suburbanised in the last 100 or so years; it was mainly farmland before that,” said Bedford.

24

“I spent a year collecting old images for the book, which was mostly driven by what I was able to source from people,” she continued. Bedford traded with antique dealers and other specialists online to source her documents and images. “I didn’t use anything that was less than 75 years old, due to copyright, and had to restore a lot of what I’d bought,” she said.

Her real eureka moment came when she discovered an archive of pictures taken by R. R. C. Gregory, the head master at Eltham National School and the standard text for ‘old hand’ local historians on the town.

Gregory took and recorded pictures of the local area in his 'The Story of Royal Eltham' published in 1909.

“When you research the history of local areas, you usually find pictures of key local buildings, and not the things that aren’t celebrated” she said. “But what was amazing about Gregory, is that he took other pictures, including pubs and the workhouse on Eltham High Street. His archive was a great find.”

Armed with these pictures, Bedford went out to identify the exact locations of Gregory’s shots. “Identifying exact spots was difficult,” said Bedford, “I had to keep revisiting.

But once one was found, everything else seemed to fall into place and I could take the new pictures.”

When taking new pictures of the locations for the book, Bedford was approached by curious residents who wanted to know what she was up to. “Some people recommended places to me and others had seen much of Eltham’s suburban development over time,” she said. “I had so much material – too much for the book – and it was hard to edit because everything I had found was so

good.”

So what’s Bedford’s top Eltham attraction?

“Eltham Palace’s medieval Great Hall. It’s amazing how it works in contrast with the Art Deco features. It’s mad, but it works.”

Bedford was “delighted” to hear about the restoration of Severndroog Castle and has followed its story for many years.

“Severndroog Castle shows the wheel of fortune, high status with

melancholy attached because it is, in effect, a giant memorial. It became derelict, was bought and sold and is now being restored again. It’s a wonderful story.”

Eltham Palace and Severndroog Castle are just two of the features mentioned in Eltham Through Time. The book contains pictures and details about a multitude of local buildings, roads and landmarks, and gives a fantastic ‘then and now’ contrast in all cases.

So what’s next for Bedford? Hot on the heels of Eltham Through Time’s publication, she was asked to do the same for Woolwich, to be published in February.

“The last year has been all-consuming,” said Bedford. “It helped that I’d learned about Eltham and Woolwich in advance, and after authoring the books, I really came to care for both places very much.

Local Business - use it or lose it

SEnine

Welling

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90 Eltham High Street SE9 1BW 020 8294 0303 or 07899 078 686 Hair & Beauty

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25

PERSONAL ELTHAM

SEnine

Keen Volunteers Needed This spring, Severndroog Castle on Shooters Hill will re-open to the public after a gap of 25 years. Laura Allan will be its manager.

She spoke to John Webb.

What will the volunteers do?

There will be a wide range of roles, from people who take the tickets to those who want to act as guides and also there are administrative and managerial roles.

What kind of people are you looking for?

No one type. There will be roles for everybody, according to their skills and preferences. We’ll be matching people to posts; it partly depends how much time people are able to give and how regularly.

Have you experience of running teams like this?

Yes, my previous role was at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich and the Discover Greenwich information centre. I built up a team of 60 volunteers over two years.

What’s your role?

I will be managing Severndroog Castle as a visitor attraction and community resource.

When will the Castle be open?

We hope to have it open before Easter for visitors.

Who’s we?

Members of the Severndroog Castle Building Preservation Trust have been working for years to raise the money for its restoration and planning what work needed to be done. My job is to prepare for the opening.

What does this involve?

Well, we need to appoint people to run the café on the ground floor; then we’re working hard on the exhibition material which will occupy the second floor. And we need to assemble a team of keen volunteers.

26

What’s the attraction of volunteering at Severndroog?

It’s a way of becoming involved in the community and its history. It will be a very attractive place to work and people will be part of a team. Also, starting now they will be there at the from the beginning of something new and important for the area.

How should people get in touch?

Send me an email at info@severndroogcastle.org.uk Are you from these parts?

No, I’m originally from County Durham and have gradually worked my way south through my studies and the jobs I’ve taken.

What do you like about this part of the world?

There’s history around every corner.

There are so many eras of historical activity and it’s concentrated in a small area. I live not far from Blackheath where I can imagine the Peasants Revolt taking place back in the 14th century Have you always been interested in history?

Yes, from 14 when I did a school work experience placement at Beamish museum, I knew it’s what I wanted to do for a living.

What attracted you to Severndroog?

I enjoy both the historical side to the job and the interaction with the public and volunteers. The role gives me the chance to do both. Also, Severndroog is such a great historical story. It is a love story, having been built by Lady James in honour of her departed husband.

Will it be open everyday?

Certainly every weekend and a few days each week. We need to learn from experience. It might depend on the seasons as well.

What will visitors find?

There will be the café on the ground floor. Then up the spiral staircase to the first floor with its magnificent cornice work, wood floors and panelling. On the second floor will be the exhibitions and interpretive material. Then up on to the roof platform. Visitors will be able to see out across London and the south east with six counties on a clear day. It’s one of the highest points in the capital.

Is it just for visitors?

There will be a function room as well, which will be suitable for meetings or small functions, which will be available for booking.

Help keep Eltham tidy! Put your litter in bins.

SEnine

Straight talking offers from Your Move

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27

FEATURE

SEnine

Ancestry Search On Line A new service to help friends and family find out about loved ones who have died in the area is now available online.

R

ecords of people who have died and either been buried or cremated in the area are being digitised and made accessible via the internet. This is useful not just to local people but globally for those researching their ancestors and family history.

It will mean that records from Eltham Crematorium and Cemetery and the four other cemeteries in the borough will be open for viewing. Basic details will be free with further information available to view and download for a small fee.

Records from Eltham Crematorium were the first to be entered on the site, administered by the company Deceased Online, which has been working with Greenwich Council in recent months to ‘scan’ and digitize its database and make it accessible for on-line searches.

More than 210,000 cremations have been carried out at the Crematorium since it opened on 15 August 1956 and the names and dates of all the people who have been cremated there were the first to be included on the database.

They were followed by information about burials at the five local authority cemeteries in the borough including Eltham, which opened in 1933 and the older cemeteries on Well Hall Road, officially Greenwich Cemetery, and those at Woolwich and Plumstead, including the oldest, at Charlton, which dates back to 1855.

The borough was the eighth in London to sign up with Deceased Online, which has been rapidly expanding its coverage across the country since its inception two years ago.

It gives boroughs the advantage of a modern and safe records system, which is accessible by the public with the minimum of administration, and a share of the proceeds generated by on-line searches.

Deceased Online is currently concentrating its expansion on the major municipal cemeteries for inclusion; a second phase, will include the thousands of Church graveyards across the country where records tend to be smaller and more fragmented.

In Eltham, St John’s Churchyard contains the graves of many local people dating back to the 18th century, including that of Yemmerrawanyea Kebbarah, one of the first aborigines to come to Britain.

Eltham Cemetery (also known as ‘Falconwood) includes the grave of Richmal Crompton, the woman who wrote the hugely popular ‘Just William’ books and short stories.

Using the information on the Deceased Online database, the names of deceased and their dates of burial or cremation and location of their graves will be available.

Full information available from the database includes:

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28

• Computerised cremation and burial records • Digital scans of cremation and burial registers • Digital scans of books of remembrance • Photographs of graves and memorials • Cemetery maps showing grave locations • Other occupants in the same grave The 210,000 records from the cremation register at Falconwood contains scanned copies of pages of the cremation register up to 1996.

Thereafter information is available as computerised data only.

The data typically includes name of deceased, address, marital status, cremation number, date of cremation, date of death, age, sex, denomination, occupation, applicant and death registration details.

Information on the disposal of ashes is also available.

Data protection implications are minor, as the records have always been open for public inspection. However, cremation applicants and the addresses of the deceased during the last 15 years have been withheld from publication.

More information is available from www.deceasedonline.co.uk

Come & meet our friendly team in our 97th Anniversary year

OAP special offers - Tue or Wed Trims £10.00 - Perms from £36.00 all inclusive We do Men's Hairdressing

OAPs Tue & Wed £7.00 Cuts Tue to Sat from £9.00

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Smile , it feels good

YOUNG ELTHAM

SEnine

Christmas Hampers S

tudents, Staff and Parents at St Thomas More School have created and delivered hampers for almost as long as the school has been open and this year the school will celebrate its 50th birthday.

During October organisations are contacted in order to determine how many hampers will be required Students actually start the process of bringing in items for the hampers immediately following Advent.

This year students made 9 hampers per form group totalling 180 hampers. Form tutors bring in items to supplement the hampers in their forms. Support staff and teaching staff with no form group bring in items that are then made up into bigger family hampers for delivery to Christchurch for families recommended by the St Vincent de Paul Society representative from Christchurch and any extra hampers are send to the Welcare Charity. The final

total of hampers produced this year was 203. Students also delivered gift bags of toiletries to two wards of elderly patients’ at the Queen Elizabeth hospital on hamper deliver day.

33 Hampers - Conniffe Court, Glenure Rd 6 Hampers - Abbeyfield House, Westmount Rd 63 Hampers - Garnett Close, Grangehill Rd 8 Hampers - Southend House, Footscray Rd 36 Hampers - The Almshouses, Philipot Path 8 Hampers - St John Fisher & St Thomas More 21 Hampers - Welcare Charity 8 Hampers - Eltham Baptist Church 8 Hampers - Christchurch 12 Mini Hampers plus £360 worth of food.

Total = 203 (180 from students + 23 from staff )

This year students also donated food items to the Greenwich Foodbank.

Anne Hitchens (Garnet Close) contacted SEnine to express thanks from all the residents and to say that it was wonderful to have the children deliver the hampers and to sing Christmas Carols.

"My eyes were welling up with tears, it is wonderful what the students have done for us, I’m tickled pink.” said Anne "The residents of Garnet Close plan to have a mass said for the students as a thank you", said Anne.

Hampers are decorated to look beautiful and festive, one group decided to make all their hampers look like reindeer.)

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29

NATURAL ELTHAM

SEnine

Winter Flowers D

espite being one of the gloomiest months, February produces some of the brightest flowers. However, beautiful is often small in the coldest months.

Most familiar is the snowdrop, the rockery favourite, which can be difficult to establish, but a welcome sight. For gardeners, they can be fussy, needing good drainage, moisture through the year and shady conditions. Without the right conditions, your likely just to get leaves from your bulbs or probably never see them again, once planted!

The most vivid of the early spring colour comes in the female flowers of

the hazel bush. Difficult to spot at first, they stand out like deep pink stars on the bare stems. It’s from these flowers, pollinated by the bush’s own catkins, that the cobnuts develop.

Sadly these are usually devoured by squirrels before becoming edible.

Winter Poem by Claire McLaughlin Bare boughs wave wildly in a cold pale sky; relentless heavy rain darkens a day that’s hardly seen the light; the sodden clay of empty plots in windswept gardens lies compacted, cold. The self-sufficiency of Nature, who goes her sullen winter way not caring if we carp at her, and say Why can’t we have some sun, some nice blue sky? inspires a new determinedness in me to be my difficult self: though you may find me not entirely to your taste, I’ll be true to my heart, secure in my own mind.

So I pull on my boots, pocket my key, step boldly out into the rain and wind.

Along with those bright winter flowers can come scent. The small straggly yellow flowers of the wintersweet are attractive enough, justifying the name of ‘ice flower’, often peeping through frost and snow.

But its fragrance would match that of any rose, the reason why it is often the mainstay of winter flower arrangements brought into people’s homes where it can be savoured away from the blast of a cold wind.

Less well known, with even smaller flowers, is the sarcoccoca, whose perfume link scent emantes from its green leaves as if by magic. More commonly called the ‘Christmas Box’, its name derives not from any premonition of death but from the Greek for ‘fleshy berry’, the Bible

black fruits appearing, also in low-key form against its dark green leaves.

More showy are the icing-pink and white flower clusters of the vibernum tinus (picture left) which emerge midwinter and only gradually yield to the cold and frost. A good workhorse in the shrubbery, its leaves are a solid green, the only downside being a need to keep its size under control if space is an issue.

Nature watchers keep their eyes to the ground in February for signs of the butter yellow celandine flowers, showing themselves before the daffodils, truly a first sign of spring in the garden.

it s i V

T

he BBC’s s e l f styled ‘Urban Birder’ David Lindo will be giving an illustrated talk in E l t h a m this month about his birdwatching experiences across the capital.

30

A familiar face on nature programmes such as Countryfile, Countrywise, Springwatch and Birds Britannia, David brings a fresh, urban perspective to modern birding.

He will explain how nature is all around us in the capital and the city can be just as exciting as the country.

The talk, hosted by Eltham Nature Club, will be at St Mary’s Community Centre, Eltham High Street on Tuesday February 18th at 7.30pm.

Entry £1.50 members, £3 non-members, membership £5 a year. More details at www.elthamnatureclub.org.uk.

In March, the club will be having its first coach outing, to the Wildwood Conservation Trust near Canterbury, on Saturday March 22. This will be £18 for adults and £10 for under 16s, including entrance and two hour guided tour.

Booking required in advance.

Take a walk in the Pleasaunce

NEWS

SEnine

Young Cadet Hero Q

uick thinking from a 15 year old has helped to save the life of an Eltham resident.

were taken to hospital suffering from smoke inhalation, but were both discharged later that day.

Fifteen-year-old Joshua Robertson saw smoke coming from the address in Alderwood Road, as he was delivering Sunday newspapers.

Joshua cited the skills that he has learned as a Police Cadet, his experiences on the Duke of Edinburgh Awards and his work as a volunteer at a care home in Abbey Wood all helped him to remain calm in the situation.

He heard the smoke alarm going off and banged on the door to check if anybody was inside. An elderly woman answered the door, but refused to leave the house, which was now full of smoke and had flames engulfing the kitchen.

Joshua said: "Looking back I feel very happy and proud that I was able to help save her life. I don’t think she would have left her house without my help.”

Left to right, Josua's mother, Mrs J Robertson, Assistant Commissioner Simon Byrne, Volunteer Police Cadet Joshua Robertson, Deputy head of Joshua's school Mr Tony Ring and Supt Parm Sandhu, Greenwich Borough. (Photo from Met Police web site)

Joshua alerted neighbours, who called the emergency services and, covering his face, he went back into the house, where he talked to the woman and eventually managed to persuade her to get out of the house.

Now Joshua, who is a Volunteer Police Cadet, has been awarded an Assistant Commissioner’s Commendation for his gallant deeds.

He said: "She was very shocked and distressed and as I rushed into the house I saw that the kitchen and parts of the floor were on fire. It seemed that the fire had started from the toaster. I told the woman that she had to get out right away but at first she wouldn’t leave.”

"After informing neighbours of the fire, I returned to escort the disorientated woman from the house".

Emergency services arrived shortly after and both Joshua and the woman - in her 70s - who did not wish to be named

Photo Joshua was recognised for his heroic efforts and received the award from Assistant Commissioner Simon Byrne for his ‘bravery, tenacity and maturity' at a ceremony held on 10 January.

He attended the ceremony, held at Scotland Yard, accompanied by his mother, Judith Robertson and the Deputy Head Teacher from Saint Paul’s Academy, Tony Ring.

It's Time A

bill which will limit the publication of local authority news-sheets is a welcome boost for local newspapers, says the Chartered Institute of Journalists.

The Local Audit and Accountability Bill cleared its last Parliamentary hurdle this week and puts onto the statute book measures to protect the local press, including limiting council run newspapers to publication four times a year and clamping down on content which is too political or biased.

Your Community is what you make it

Amanda Brodie, chairman of the Institute’s Professional Practices Board, said: “We are delighted that the Publicity Code is now on the statute book, which will mean that councils can no longer ignore it".

newspaper industry from tax-payer subsidised attacks on their advertising revenue and circulation.

"Most of these so-called newspapers lack balance and are full of council propaganda", Said Brodie.

The CIoJ has watched in anger as council after council has flouted the guidelines which were put forward to protect the flagging local

31

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32

OPEN 7 DA DAYS YS A WEEK

SEnine

Spybet SPYbet is back for the New Year, offering starting prices to interested punters on the various fictional developments in Eltham High Street. For years, we gave odds on which supermarket group was being lined up to occupy the Grove Market Place.

However, all monies had to be refunded when it became apparent that no retailer wanted to touch the site with a bargepole.

Not to be put off, however, we’re proud to offer the following odds on the possible occupants of the Poundland Cinema project, greatly helped by the fact that only a limited number of picture house chains appear capable of theoretically mounting such an initiative. These include market leaders, the Odeon group (2-1 against), with a mighty 113 multi-screens around the country. Already operating from the Greenwich Peninsula and Beckenham, the group is also looking to open a seven screen complex in Orpington this year or next. Are these too close for comfort, SPY wonders?

Rapidly expanding chain Cineworld (11-8 favourites), is opening new outlets at around six a year, having only come into existence in 1995 and recently having taken over the upmarket bijou Greenwich Picturehouse group. They already run the mega-screen O2 cinema and the complex at Bexleyheath, also both nearby. An interesting possibility is, therefore, that the 80 site Vue group (100-30 against) will seek its first outlet in south east London, it is currently only in Croydon, Dagenham and central London.

A possible outsider is the Showcase group (20-1 against), currently with 14 screens at Bluewater and 13 at Newham. Seem a bit too big for Eltham, which SPY understands is being lined up for the standard eight screen treatment. Also in the field are the Empire group (10-1 against), 16 sites overall, but already in Bromley and Sutton. Must be a contender. Always keen on including a rank outsider, SPYbet offers at 1,000 – 1 against the Palace cinema at Broadstairs, the charming 111 seat single screen emporium by the seaside. And why not, as Barry Norman used to say? And that was the name of the cinema that used to be on the corner of Passey Place and the High Street so the odds might be better!

Taking a punt…

Perhaps the aforementioned is a bit frivolous, given a peculiar piece of silly season PR over Christmas which saw SE9 cast as the Las Vegas of south east London, thanks to Royal Greenwich. It was portrayed as a town of betting shops, due to a pretty

Have your say, your opinion counts

daft piece of addition, which lumped together all the bookies in Avery Hill, New Eltham, Mottingham, Middle Park and Eltham to make 13, whereas Woolwich’s 35 were sub-divided between Woolwich itself, Plumstead, Abbey Wood and Charlton. Apparently, the council wants powers to limit their number and keep them from ‘areas of deprivation’. Never mind that, thanks to the lottery, every newsagents is now a de facto betting shop, also everybody’s lap top, mobile phone and PC in the age of internet. Or that the council’s best friends, Charlton Athletic, play in the Sky Bet championship?

Lidl change…

SPY has been playing ‘spot the difference’ on Lidl’s submitted plans for a store in Mottingham, comparing it with their earlier sketches presented to the public meeting in the village in August. Little change is apparent, despite widespread concerns that the project doesn’t seem to sit too happily with the current street scene. SPY notices a promise to replace two trees in the Porcupine’s garden which will be turned to sawdust in the re-development and treats this promise with a pinch of salt.

The German group, which only reached these shores 20 years ago and now boasts around 600 outlets, said the planting would be similar for their store in Eltham High Street. Having planted two replacements, at their entrance to Orangery Lane, it let one die, a fact which went under the radar of town centre bosses in Eltham and the planning department. SPY understands a guerrilla gardener has recently replaced the missing tree, shaming the aforementioned.

Uncontrolled parking zone…

A heavy thumbs down appears to have sent to the council in response to its attempts to milk householders in Eltham Park for car parking charges for the pavement space outside their homes. Just before Christmas, leaflets were sent out in the hope that locals would back a massive expansion to the current controlled parking zones for Eltham Station and the town centre. However, SPY understands that the ‘vast majority’ of respondents have expressed varying degrees of outrage at the idea, not least the risk that the current cost of a permit, £57, may well go up further in this year’s budget round. Or, more likely after the next council elections, as they did after the ballot in 2010. No word of that possibility in the consultation documents, of course.

Yalways newsy, sometimes inaccurate or irreverent, often controversial or gossip, but never the opinion of SEnine.

Not fine….

The current zones are designed to deter shoppers and commuters from snagging up local streets and perform a useful function. But is SPY the only resident to be aghast at receiving a £110.00 fine (prior to discount) for a minor contravention of the rules when parking outside his own home?

As the zones are clearly aimed at outsiders, rather than residents, the fact that these fines are not always rescinded on appeal suggest that fund-raising is high on the council’s agenda.

Closing the floodgates….

Unedifying to see Greenwich Council using its propaganda sheet to argue the blame to the Environment Agency for terrible flooding of homes in Westhorne Avenue.

The questions are; who approved the debris grille being placed at the end of residents’ gardens, instead of 200 yards away at Eltham Palace Road, where an overspill wouldn’t have mattered? Who failed to ensure there was a proper maintenance programme in place? Who’s threatening to charge council tax for homes that are empty awaiting repair, while the residents have to live elsewhere in rented accommodation? No mention in Pravda of these things, of course, which suggested ‘blocked drains’ rather than a flood caused by lack of maintenance on the grille.

Public announcement…

It has come to SPY’s attention that some of the people who run Greenwich Council believe the scrutiny which SEnine Magazine and this column undertakes on behalf of its readership is in some way politically motivated! This kind of fundamental misunderstanding of the role of a free press in a democratic society is usually fostered in the fevered minds of a propaganda publishing authority operating in a one party state. So no surprise there perhaps.

33

MAILBOX ....... Have your say CPZ

SEnine

CPZ

Either go to the SEnine web site at

www.senine.co.uk I read in the latest edition of the Greenwich Spin paper that the Council has been awarded £4m from TfL for "traffic improvements" within the Borough, and a list is provided of it's intended use. This includes £230,000 to be spent on parking controls. Surely to goodness the Council has enough control over almost every aspect of our lives already without introducing yet more ways of filching money from the local residents and visitors. Has there been any consultation with local people to see if more controls are required, or is it yet another set of schemes that are to be imposed by people who think they know what is good for us? Just for once, wouldn't it be great if the Council put the residents first, and took away some of the interference rather than adding to it. Great news that the Council has been awarded the money, but why can't it be spent on something more useful?

E Wood

Asking people if they would like more controlled parking.

It makes them think they will have their own dedicated space, 'but no' as by the time you have put lines all over the road, there is not enough space for each house to have one. So we have to pave over the garden, and we get flooding and less road parking. It's just the council interfering costing business and residents more. Permits started at a reasonable rate of £11.00 p.a. but each year it increases, now it's about to be £57.00 p.a. A parking fine £110.00 don't get caught. Why not put 50 pence p .a on every ones council tax it's a more honest way of solving the finance problem.

J Nock p.p K E Willison

CPZ

Having just read another interesting copy of your magazine, I thought I would drop a line from across the pond and congratulate you on such an interesting and well put together magazine.

Myself and my husband live just outside Washington DC in Virginia. A good friend of ours travels to Eltham several times a year to visit her elderly mother still living in Eltham.

Each time she comes back with the latest issues for us to read and read them we do! We are both ex-Londoners from over 43 years ago but feel a real connection to your magazine though we have never lived in Eltham we have visited often.

So, just to let you know how far your enjoyable magazine travels! Well done!

Paula and Robert Earp

I write concerning the article in January's SE9 magazine regarding the Council’s consultation on Parking in the Eltham.

I think it is important to recognise that the Council states clearly that "Any decision to extend or amend the parking controls will be based on the response received" and that "once residents have responded ... plans will be ... sent out for further comment ... before any decisions are made".

It is therefore up to us, the residents of Eltham, what, if any, changes are to be made to Parking provision in Eltham.

It is important that, if new proposals are made, as many people as possible respond to them and comment on them. We must encourage all of our neighbours to respond. That way we will ensure that we get the scheme that the majority of local people want.

Wynn Davies

Clocked C l k dA Another th h Thank you very much for including the article on the Clock Repair evening class in the SEnine issue for January 2014, it is very much appreciated. I have met so many people who have mentioned the article, it is obvious that your magazine is very popular and widely read.

Happy New Year to you and the team at SEnine!

David Hemingway

34

USA Connections

All In The Numbers A Article re- The White Hart and PUB1 Stan Elliot purchased PUB 1 in 1972, the plate was attached to a rusty Triumph convertible.

Stan paid £1750.00 for the car and the plate.The car was worth a few hundred pounds.The plate was placed on a new white Daimler Sovereign in 1972 and subsequently to a blue Mercedesbenz. It ended up in the late 80,s on the car in the photo (SEnine Jan 2014), which was Margeret's car. The plate changed hands a couple of years ago for £45,000.00.

Bob Gillespie

or write to the Editor at:

SEnine, PO Box 24290 Eltham SE9 6ZP

Prickley Sir, having been a Mottingham resident for 53 yyears and an Eltham resident for the last 10, I feel I am in a position to comment about the Porcupine situation.

AAs a young man the pub was well patronised every evening and well looked after by the ppublicans. Over the last thirty years it has been allowed to become run down and finally closed due to lack of interest by the owners and customers.

Instead of the local residents, the MP and others shouting about saving the pub, sorry they really mean, WE DON'T WANT LIDL, why don't they take a leaf out of the villagers of Bamford in Derbyshire and put their money where their mouths are and buy the Porcupine and run it.

The villagers of Bamford raised £ 263,500.00 to buy the Anglers Rest and have it professionally run.

So how about it then those who obviously didn't drink regularly in the Porcupine doing something practical instead of whinging.

Leslie Sullivan

Park Cycling With regard to the letter 'Park Path' in the December issue of SEnine I would like to add that the path round the park should be completed but for the use of cyclists as well.

Living where I do I find cycling on the roads very dangerous and have had a few near misses with vehicles and would prefer to be able to cycle around the park in safety. I know the arguments regarding cyclists, pedestrians and young mums with pushchairs but in my regular visits to the park in the summer the existing path is never really busy and I do not believe that if cycling were allowed on a path around the park it would suddenly be taken over by hundreds of cyclists.

Perhaps the café would also have more trade if the park was open to cyclists.

Leslie Sullivan

What is your opinion?

SEnine does not necessarily agree with or support any letters published.

SEnine

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on properties are broken into timed slots so everyone has a fair chance to view the property and make an informed decision, rather than an ‘open door- free for all‘ that can later lead to an aborted sale after the applicants go back for a more leisurely look.

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Even if you are only considering the option of selling and would like a no obligation free valuation and to discuss your property then please call the office on 020 8859 4419 and ask for Christine or Paul Harrison, or Jackie or Philip Ingram

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Pick up litter and bin it

SEnine

Look out for you neighbour

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NEWS

SEnine

Just a Lidl More News Supermarket giants Lidl are pushing ahead with their proposal for an outlet in Mottingham, SEnine understands.

D

etailed plans have been lodged with Bromley Council for the shop, which will be a smaller version of their unit in Eltham High Street.

It will mean demolition of the Porcupine pub, a version of which has stood in Mottingham village for centuries, the current incarnation having been there since 1922.

Lidl are standing by their plans, believing there will be a strong demand from the local community, which currently has to travel elsewhere to access a range of grocery products.

They acknowledge that their proposals received an overwhelming ‘thumbs down’ during an open day held in August in the village, at which residents mounted a protest stall.

Of the 230 attendees registering an opinion, 207 were against.

But Lidl say that an online petition attracted 185 messages of support, which demonstrated an

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A spokesman said: “it is apparent that the majority of people who attended the public exhibition were those who had latent concerns and so the feedback from the consultation event is predominantly negative.

“However, it is clear that there is also a groundswell of local support for the proposed scheme, as registered on the online petition and through individual letters and emails.”

If turned down by Bromley Council, the supermarket would be expected to win on appeal, a process that might delay it for up to two years.

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SEnine

Grockle Gardeners I

n his distant days of paid employment, working as a gardener in a public park, Herbaceous had a love-hate relationship with the visitors or ‘grockles’ as he liked to call them.

the space, displaying their spring-like and autumnal charms year upon year; a symbol of the majesty and longevity of nature set against the transitory nature of an individual’s lifespan and frailties.

The difference in perception between the ‘people that did the work’ and the ‘amateurs’ was at its starkest when it came to the trees which stood on ‘his’ patch.

To the professional, they were relatives who’d out-stayed their welcome and whose routines had long since become boring.

It would serve the grockles right if one of their charming branches blew off and banged them firmly on the head, Herbs always thought.

After all, it wasn’t them that had to pick up all those soggy disgusting leaves every autumn, no sooner one lot bagged up and cleared away than another lot coming tumbling down.

Then there was the over-sized black poplar, whose main achievement was to sprinkle fluff on the flower beds every spring. The stuff obscured the pansies he’d spent hours planting out and was a blatant fire risk.

To the grockles, these were things of natural varied beauty and character, a unique contribution to the structure of

Fruit trees deposited rotting material worthy only of the compost heap, chestnut trees their spiky cases with shiny bullets which the grockles’ kids occasionally lobbed in his direction, usually accompanied by shouts of ‘take that grandpa’. The cherry tree blossom they all drooled over always ended up

in drifts on the ground, another time consuming clear-up operation to be mounted.

Then they also played host to the irritating squirrel population which could always escape into the branches when being attacked by a gardener’s rake, lobbing nuts down on people’s heads from on high. The strawberry tree shed noxious red fruits and the mulberry’s black mush that was impossible to remove from clothing.

In all, his dream job was to be gardener at Blackheath, whose treeless extremities were joyfully unencumbered by these inconveniences. However, the ‘grockles’ suggested his next career move might be the Gobi desert.

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