25th November 2021

Issue 1558

Established: 1987

50p

November 25 2021

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hOW GREEN IS SOUTHWARK?

FORMER TEACHER JAILED FOR SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP WITH PUPIL

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Brothers rush to help fitting girl in road EXCLUSIVE

Page 4

Page 5 MILLWALL EXCLUSIVE

Why Benno won’t change style

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2 NEWS

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Contents NEWS Pages 2-23 OPINION Pages 24-25 family announcements Page 26 Arts Page 27 History Page 28 food & drink Page 29

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

nunhead’s reema wins headteacher of the year

By Charles Harrison

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A Nunhead teacher has been named as one of Britain’s most inspirational educators on BBC One’s The One Show.

The prestigious Gold Teaching Award for Headteacher of the Year in a Primary School in the Pearson National Teaching Awards has gone to Reema Reid of Hollydale Primary School.

The award is part of a week-long teaching celebration which ends this Sunday at a prestigious ceremony.

“It’s a little bit overwhelming!” said Reema. “No one goes into teaching to win awards, but it is lovely to have all your hard work recognised like this.

“Teaching is hard at times but it is a fantastic job, and is so rewarding. We don’t just work with the children but with their families and the wider community, and this award shows how well we have brought our community into our school.

“I want to thank everyone who has helped me, all the staff at Hollydale and all of our incredible children, for their support. This really is an achievement for them as much as me.”

and mentor ethnic minority teachers to take up leadership roles in their schools and has empowered many BAME educators and pupils to follow in her footsteps.

Paul Mattias, National Director of Hays Education, supporter of The Award for Headteacher of the Year in a Primary School, said: “We work with thousands of schools across the country and know too well the impact of a truly inspirational leader.

“Reema Reid is clearly that, and her story shows us how respected they are by everyone who comes into contact with them. She is a thoroughly deserving winner of this award, and we wish her all the best for her future career.”

The Pearson National Teaching Awards is an annual celebration of excellence in education, founded in 1998 by Lord Puttnam to recognise the life-changing impact an inspirational teacher can have on the lives of the young people they work with. The 2022 Pearson National Teaching Awards open for entry on Friday 26 November 2021.

Sir Michael Morpurgo, celebrated author and former Children’s laureate, and President of the Teaching Awards Trust, said: “People of all ages will always remember that wonderful teacher

who made such a difference in their lives.

“The teacher will never know how many lives they have changed, or the impact they have made on so many families, but our hope is that these awards help show our gratitude.”

There are 15 categories in total in the teaching awards. The other winners will be announced as the week progresses.

Coyle hits out over Afghan refugees

Public notices Pages 32-34

Exclusive

SPORT Pages 35-40

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk Neil Coyle has hit out at the government for its “incompetent” handling of the Afghan refugee situation, which he claimed resulted in the deaths of constituents’ family members.

Contact us if you have a story on 07973175511 or email

The MP for Bermondsey and Old Southwark told the News that he had received applications from 106 constituents for help getting family members from Afghanistan to the UK, but that just six people had been successfully repatriated. Some more may be en route.

He criticised the Foreign Office and the Home Office for their “incompetence and neglect”, claiming that staff did not even open correspondence on some vital cases, which, he added, resulted in some constituents’ family

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Issue 1557

Editor: Kevin Quinn Deputy Editor: Katherine Johnston Reporters: Kit Heren, Charles Harrison Sports Editor: John Kelly Arts Correspondent: Michael Holland Magazine Editor: Laura Burgoine Media Partnerships: Anthony Phillips Sales Manager: Tammy Jukes Advertising: Clarry Frewin, Sophie Ali Design: Dan Martin, Aurelio Medina Finance: Em Zeki - Tel: 0779 883 3758 Subscriptions/Announcements: Katie Boyd Managing & Commercial Director: Chris Mullany Managing & Editorial Director: Kevin Quinn Published weekly on a Thursday at: Unit A202, The Biscuit Factory, Drummond Road, Bermondsey, London SE16 4DG. News and Sport: 020 7231 5258 Advertising: 0792 203 4598 News: news@southwarknews.co.uk Advertising: ads@southwarknews.co.uk Finance: em@southwarknews.co.uk Printed by Iliffe Print. Tel: 01223 656500 www.iliffeprint.co.uk

The daughter of a Windrush immigrant, Reema first joined education as a lunchtime supervisor and a teaching assistant in Lambeth, before eventually becoming Head of School.

She has worked in Southwark as a substantive headteacher since 2013.

A fellow teacher nominated Reema, saying that it was her story that had inspired her to do so.

“Being a single mother, starting as a school dinner lady, working her way up: that in itself is so inspirational,” said the teacher on the BBC show. “She’s used her drive to inspire the teachers that she works with, the parents, and the students.”

Other members of staff on the show said of Reema: “Academically, socially, emotionally, she’s always caring for the children.”

Another added: “Whatever opportunities are available for the school to deliver more to the children, Ms Reid will be there for that.”

Reema greets students at the school gates every day in order to see how they are feeling. In the past, she has crowdsourced laptops to help students who struggle to access online education, and put on language classes to support parents.

Additionally, as part of Southwark’s Teaching School Alliance, Reema has helped to coach

Established: 1987

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November 18 2021

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members being “murdered by the Taliban”.

Coyle said: “Southwark has a global reach and it doesn’t surprise me for a second that events in Afghanistan have local ramifications. The UK Government’s humiliating capitulation to the Taliban has already affected people in Southwark and their families, often those who protected or worked for our armed forces, diplomats and charities.

“They are very fearful [of] what the Taliban will do now and we must all be mindful of the reemergence of organisations like Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Daesh in Afghanistan and their global reach as we have seen internationally and at London Bridge previously.”

The government has promised to open a formal resettlement scheme for Afghans in the UK, but has failed to provide an update on when it will start. The plan was announced as the Taliban took control of the country in August, but last week Home Office minister Victoria Atkins could still not confirm when it would be ready.

The government has said it would take 20,000 refugees from Afghanistan, including 5,000 in the first year.

Coyle added: “The Government is just one bad con

after another but this one has contributed to lives being lost and our armed forces being put in great and avoidable danger. In normal times, Ministers would resign in shame but this is a shameless administration of utter charlatans.”

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We undertook the UK’s biggest and fastest emergency evacuation in recent history, helping over 15,000 people to safety from Afghanistan who we are continuing to support.

“The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme is one of the most generous schemes in our country’s history and will give up to 20,000 further people at risk a new life in the UK. “We continue to work at pace to open the scheme amid a complex and changing picture, working across government and with partners such as United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to design the scheme.”

The Foreign Office was also contacted for comment but did not respond in time for publication.

Some Afghan refugees have been settled in Southwark, with the News reporting on a Covid outbreak at one centre in September.

Meanwhile Coyle has a special surgery with Afghan people this Friday (November 23).

The Southwark News is proud to be the only independent, paid for newspaper in London Southwark News started life as the Bermondsey News in 1987, as an A-4 photocopied sheet of paper and rapidly grew to cover the entire borough and the surrounding area. As the borough grew, so did the newspaper.

It is owned and run by Chris Mullany and Kevin Quinn.

Former reporters for Southwark News, they bought the title in 2002, after the founder Dave Clark died suddenly from cancer four years earlier.

Both directors live in the borough. A dedicated team of staff work tirelessly to cover as much of what is going on as possible and strive to ensure that a community-led, independent newspaper can survive and excel in a market dominated by national and multinational media groups.

Follow our social media to be updated on local news

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Southwark News is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (which regulates the UK’s magazine and newspaper industry).

We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact 0207 231 5258.

If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors’ Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

But while she was lying on the road, people of Dulwich who were on their way to work stopped to help her.

“I really want to thank everyone,” said Kate.

“The community was just fantastic. The road was extremely cold and my leg was completely mangled - I wasn’t going anywhere.

“People who were walking past stopped and brought me blankets, pillows, a hat. An Australian chap gave me a hot water bottle. It was really amazing.

“The person I especially want to thank was a radiographer from King’s. She held my hand and said: ‘I’m not leaving you until the ambulance comes', and gave me her gloves.

“She came to see me in the hospital but I don’t know what department she’s in. I profusely thanked her at the time, but I’d love to be able to give her her gloves back.”

Kate was in King’s College Hospital for a week with multiple fractures to her tibia and fibula, as well as a

teacher ‘run over’ by truck thanks the good people of Dulwich

By Charles Harrison

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A Dulwich teacher who was ‘run over’ by a truck is thanking the community after being overwhelmed by their support.

Kate Weatherell was cycling on her normal route to her job as a secondary school teacher at Charter School North Dulwich, when all of a

sudden, a truck turned onto a junction and ran her over, she says.

“It happened in seconds,” recalled Kate. “I’ve been cycling for over thirty years in London and nothing like this has happened. I didn’t stand a chance.

“The side of the truck hit me and my leg went under his back wheel, while I banged my face on the handlebars.”

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fracture to her left eye socket which is causing some disturbance in vision. She has now had a cage fitted to her leg with ten pins, which will stay on for at least six months.

Kate was keen to thank the staff at King’s College Hospital, as well as emphasise the importance of wearing a helmet.

“I don’t think I could have avoided that accident,” she said, “and I was shocked because I thought I’d taken all the precautions necessary.

“King’s have been amazing. It was a massive adventure, that whole day, from seven in the morning until I was on the ward by early evening.

“I saw so many layers of expertise - they were just fantastic. So caring.”

The driver of the truck that struck Kate stopped and exchanged insurance details. The incident is the subject of an ongoing police investigation.

Anyone who was a witness of the event is encouraged to call 020 7230 7650.

4 NEWS

www.southwarknews.co.uk/news

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

bacon’s boys to the rescue Exclusive

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk Three young Bermondsey brothers have been congratulated on their "courage, respect and compassion" after they stopped to help a young girl who was having a fit on the street and prevented her going into a coma.

Alfie, Harry and Georgie Blackwell, aged 13, 12 and 11, found the girl who was having the seizure on November 9 and sprang into action. They rolled her onto her side, supported her head with one of their jackets and called an ambulance, waiting with the girl for the ambulance crew to arrive. The girl's mother later wrote a letter to Bacon's College in Rotherhithe,

where the boys go to school, to thank them.

She added that she thought her daughter would have gone into a coma without the boys' help.

The school wrote a letter to the boys' mother Clara to tell them about her sons' kind actions. Bacon's principal James Wilson later added: "“It’s wonderful to receive calls like these, it generates such a feeling of pride across the College community. The action of the boys embodies the College values of courage, respect and compassion and they an example to their fellow students. We will be acknowledging their actions in assemblies with the whole year group.”

Clara said the boys told her they just "had to do what they had to do", as adults were walking past the poor young girl. “I'm very proud," she added. "But it's in character for them, they're such good boys."

Coroner: ‘Police missed FIVE opportunities to save vulnerable teen before her death’

By Charles Harrison charles@southwarknews.co.uk A coroner has ruled that the Met police missed five opportunities to save a vulnerable 17-year-old from an abusive relationship, before she died after falling on a knife during an altercation.

Katrina Makunova, 17, died outside a block of flats on Brisbane Street, Camberwell on July 12, 2018. An argument with her then-partner, Oluwaseyi Dada, had ended in her ‘falling on a knife’ concealed in her handbag during the confrontation, the court heard she was keeping in her handbag for protection.

The knife stabbed Katrina in the chest, leading to her death. Dada, 21, was later convicted of manslaughter and jailed for two years three months.

The report highlighted ‘a pattern of abuse’ Katrina had suffered at the hand of her ex-boyfriend, which included him 'carrying and displaying a knife to control her'.

The report says this abuse and intimidation is what led to Katrina carrying the knife that would tragically lead to her death when she went to see Oluwaseyi.

Senior Coroner for the London Inner South jurisdiction Andrew Harris’ latest report highlights five instances where he says police should have been alerted to the abuse Katrina was suffering and responded accordingly, but failed to do so.

This is partly because the police were unaware of Katrina’s ‘vulnerability as a victim of trauma’, after they did not attend the Merton Child Protection Conference.

The highlighted instances in the report include failing to recognise the significance of Oluwaseyi stealing her phone, taking no safeguarding actions after Katrina described clear examples of coercion to the police, and failing to provide proper risk assessments after being called to her home multiple times in the months leading up to her death.

He said: “Whilst significant steps have been taken to recognise contextual abuse by all the organisations since the death, there remains a concern.

“Those around Katrina, knew of her past and present association with gang members; yet this too never seems to have been investigated and identified by police as a risk factor.

“Evidence was heard from her brother and another witness that her fear of what

Brunel Road, where the incident took place

harm he might do led her not to make a full disclosure of his controlling behaviour to the police.”

Harris also raised the question of whether the Met’s Child Safety Units were sufficiently staffed to correctly investigate these kinds of cases.

He called for the Met to use the expert advice of university academics on when gang affiliation and knife-carrying should be considered a risk.

Police have previously apologised for failings in the case. Last year, a police constable involved in the case was found guilty of gross misconduct for not filling out a mandatory safeguarding report after speaking to the teenager.

Commander Melanie Dales, the Met's lead officer for public protection, said: "When completing risk assessments in domestic abuse cases, Met officers follow the nationally-recognised guidance, which does take into account the carrying of weapons and a question is included which asks whether the weapons or objects could cause harm to the person in question.

"We will engage positively with any evidence-based academic research to help further understand how knife-carrying and gang association are risk factors in domestic abuse as our priority is to tackle violence against women and girls. We want to learn from this case and protect Londoners further.

"The Met continually evaluates where to place its workforce. A review is ingoing and due to report later this year and is actively considering placing additional officers into Child Safety Units.”

The full list of Harris’ highlighted incidents of failures to respond appropriately by police are listed as: :

“Incident 1: On February 6 2018 the significance of the theft of the phone which led to the perpetrator controlling Katrina’s communications was not recognised.

“Incident 2: On February 13 2018 police were called to Katrina’s work address. At the scene, she described, and the police identified, clear examples of coercion and controlling behaviour, but when the suspect was released from custody, police didn’t take any mitigating safeguarding actions. Oluwaseyi’s knife carrying history was also not recorded or questioned.

“Incident 3: On July 11 2018 police were called to Katrina’s home. The following were admitted failures of MPS officers: A failure to assess and manage risk; A failure to investigate the allegations of victim of domestic abuse; A failure to provide effective safeguarding.

“Incident 4: On June 23 2018 police were called to Katrina’s home. The following were admitted failures of MPS officers: A failure to acknowledge that there was a report of criminal allegations of harassment and record incident as a crime; A failure to properly assess and manage and record risk as misleading information was entered on the crime report; A failure to safeguard a child.

“Incident 5: On June 27 2018 Katrina and the perpetrator attended Walworth Police Station following a dispute. High case loads contributed to the delay in implementing Child Safety Unit supervisor directions.

This incident wasn’t considered urgent, because it was viewed as an isolated incident. Met officers failed to conduct proper and diligent intelligence checks, to investigate allegation of domestic abuse, and to provide adequate safeguarding.”

82-year-old man whose leg was broken in Rotherhithe ‘hit-and-run’ thanks Good Samaritan Exclusive

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk An 82-year-old Rotherhithe man who spent a week in hospital after his leg was snapped by a moped rider in a ‘hit-and-run’ incident has publicly thanked the “kind” young woman who waited with him for the ambulance to arrive.

The man, who asked not to be named, was cycling along Brunel Road near Rotherhithe Tube station on November 12 when he signalled to turn right into Swan Road. As he waited to turn he says he was hit by a moped and knocked over.

“The motorbike didn’t stop, I only saw it out of the corner of my eye as I hit the ground,” the man said. His bike landed on him as he fell - and snapped his femur.

While he was in “quite some pain” on the ground, a young woman saw what happened and called the police and the ambulance service. “She kindly propped my leg up for quite a while until my ambulance was able to hold it into position,” the man said.

“I would really like to thank her for what she did for me - it made a huge difference,” he added. She stayed with him for about half an hour, until the ambulance took him away to St

Thomas’ hospital.

Police have not found the culprit but they fetched the man’s wife from their home nearby in Rotherhithe. She was able to speak to him and comfort him in the ambulance, although Covid-19 rules meant she could not come to the hospital.

The morning after arriving at St Thomas’ surgeons put operated on his leg and inserted a screw. He spent the next week resting in hospital and came back home to Rotherhithe last Thursday November 18. He praised the staff at St Thomas’, whom he said did an excellent job.

The man is still recovering but has begun walking again in near Russia Dock Woodland with his wife, following his physiotherapist’s advice to keep busy.

Despite the traumatic incident on Brunel Road, he has no plans to stop cycling and aims to get back in the saddle early next year.

A closer social engagement is the Surrey Docks Farm Christmas Festival on December 4, where he will be playing the concertina.

Earlier this month police appealed for witnesses asking anyone with information to contact police on 101 or tweet @MetCC and quote CAD 3818/11NOV. Alternatively, call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.southwarknews.co.uk/news

Former teacher jailed for sexual relationship with 16-year-old pupil

By Charles Harrison

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A former Southwark science teacher has been sentenced to three years in prison for being in a sexual relationship with a sixteen-year-old whom he helped to achieve better grades in physics.

Robert Hanna, 43, was jailed on Tuesday, November 23 for six counts of sexual activity with a child while in a position of trust.

Detective Constable Erica Slater, from Central South Command, said: “This was a complex case where Hanna denied everything from the beginning and lied continuously throughout the case. However, the victim courageously remained steadfast in her evidence and following a thorough investigation his accounts were disproved.

“Today’s sentence highlights the severity of this case and I would encourage anyone who is a victim of or victim to sexual abuse in any context to contact police. We have specially trained officers to investigate as well as ensuring there is ongoing support provided to the victims.”

Hanna had previously been found guilty after a twelve-day trial which culminated on Tuesday, October 19. In addition to the prison sentence, he has been issued with a Sexual Harm Prevention Order,

Robert Hanna

which will prevent him from having any unsupervised contact with anyone under eighteen. He will be on the Sex Offenders’ Register for life.

The court heard how Hanna was a teacher in Southwark from 2015 until May 2019, when he was dismissed. While he was a teacher, he began having a sexual relationship with the sixteen-year-old pupil.

During a school prom he asked a group of pupils to meet up with him, before purchasing alcohol and meeting with a few of the girls. A sexual relationship began with the victim, over a fourmonth period. The court heard that the victim told Hanna that she wanted the relationship to end but he persuaded her to meet with him one more time, before breaking up with her.

On Monday, April 1 2019 the victim told a teacher what had been happening and the school immediately suspended him.

Police were alerted and an investigation began, led by specialist officers from Central South Child Abuse Investigation Team.

Officers interviewed him the following day and he denied the relationship. A subsequent investigation found hotel check in and check out confirmation, banks statements and phone download evidence that corroborated the account given by the victim.

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

row over historic Walworth church slated for demolition

The church wants to knock down its existing building Exclusive

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk A Walworth community group is protesting against plans by a local church in the area to knock down their historic place of worship for flats and a new church.

The East Street Baptist Church submitted a planning application to demolish its nineteenth-century building earlier this month. As things stand, because the church is not listed and not part of a conservation area, it can be knocked down without a plan submitted for its replacement.

But Southwark Council planners have now recommended that the nearby Walworth Road conservation area be expanded "with immediate effect" to include the "recognised local landmarks" - which would mean that the church would have to get full planning permission to go ahead with the demolition.

If the conservation area were not extended, the council would have just 28 days to consider the application

from the time it went in - November 9 - after which the church could be knocked down if the local authority had not made a decision.

Tim Whitton, the pastor of the East Street Baptist Church, told the News that the money that goes on the upkeep of the old building would be better spent on its outreach programmes in the local community.

He added that the "austere" church was not welcoming to outsiders.

"The building is very old and swallows money," he said. "The roof is leaky, there are damp issues... we had a service a few years ago when I was preaching and we had a power cut in the middle of the service. All of these big problems swallow a lot of our time and a lot of money.

"We could use that money to serve in the local community, rather than trying to sustain an old building.

"The second thing is this building is not the most welcoming place - it's kind of dark and austere. We want to be a church where anyone from any background feels like they can be welcomed - we want to be warm and friendly, instead of this intimidating and scary place, which it can be unless you are used to coming into a church."

But the Walworth Society, which promotes the heritage of the local area, objects to the plans and has submitted an application to Historic England to get the building listed - which could prevent the church from being knocked down. Historic England said it could not provide an exact timeframe for when a decision would be made on the listing.

The society said that the church

The building is very old and it swallows money. The roof is leaky, there are damp issues

The church building has an amazing history originally as the home for one of the earliest ragged schools in the area

contained "a wealth of social, cultural and architectural significance".

They said it was a strong example of a nineteenth-century inner city Christian mission outpost that didn't belong to an existing parish, and is one of two that still survive in the area, alongside the younger Pembroke College Mission.

Jeremy Leach, the society's chair, said that the group was "extremely supportive" of the church's community work in Walworth and that they understood the church's need for a suitable building. No one in the Walworth Society is a member of the church's congregation, two society members said.

Mr Leach added: "The church building has an amazing history originally as the home for one of earliest ragged schools in the area and later as the Mission and Church.

This history is coupled with its important location as a landmark that has stood at the corner of East Street and Portland Street for almost 150 years.

"There are a number of examples in our area of updating and refurbishing historic buildings so that they can

there could be as many as 80 new flats on site. The exact mix of housing tenure is also still to be decided, but Pastor Whitton said it was very likely to include at least some private homes to make the plan viable for a developer.

He added: "We’re a church in the heart of the community, we’re all local people. I grew up the other side of Burgess Park, we’re concerned about gentrification in the area. We don’t want to be in a situation where we’re relegating poorer people to the sidelines... We’re Christians, we want to do the right thing legally as much as anything else."

The church's planning application says that demolition would be scheduled from January 3 next year.

But Pastor Whitton said this was just to secure the right to knock down the building.

"It's not just unlikely we would be able to demolish it then, there's no chance - unless the Lord answers our prayers," he said.

To have your say by commenting on the application, search on the council's planning website and enter application number 21/AP/3888.

Pastor Tim Whitton work well for the organisations that use them and retain the history and character that so benefits the local area. We hope that this can be the future for this historic building too."

Society members added that the church was intact and repairable, inside and out. But Pastor Whitton said the cost of refurbishment would likely stretch to hundreds of thousands of pounds - far out of reach of the church's budget.

The Walworth Society said they also objected to the fact that the church had not submitted detailed plans for what it would do with the site after it demolished the church - which is within its rights, given that the church is not currently listed or in a conservation area.

Pastor Whitton said that details had not been fully fleshed out, but

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Council calls for government help with high rise survey

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk Southwark Council has called on the government to help with the huge cost of the pilot surveys that it needs to undertake on its 172 high rises, under a proposed new law currently making its way through parliament.

The council will need to fork out £18m on these surveys under the new bill, on top of the many other building safety costs it faces on its housing stock. None of the council’s high rises have cladding now, as we reported in September.

An extract from a Southwark report seen by the News reads: “Our Surveying programme has been developed as a response to the Building Safety Bill, the Fire Safety Act, and the Duty of Care that we have towards our residents, Southwark have not received any funding to undertake these surveys.”

Southwark’s housing chief Stephanie Cryan said earlier this month that the council would be lobbying the government’s housing department for help paying the mammoth bill.

“My view is the government are going to have to [give some money],” she said “Resident safety is the most important thing. We’re waiting to see what comes out of the bill, but there’s probably going to have to be some lobbying.

“Funding is always piece-meal, we need a sustainable funding programme.

It’s a small amount of money, and everyone is bidding. That’s not sustainable.

“People’s safety is of paramount importance - I do worry.”

Cryan pointed to the recent change in the department’s name from housing, communities and local government to housing, levelling up and communities, asking “Where does local government sit then?”

The Building Safety Bill, which aims to create an all-encompassing set of building safety standards, is still being debated at the report stage in the House of Commons, and still needs to go to the House of Lords before it is passed into law.

These surveys are not for the costly and time-consuming EWS1 forms that buildings over eighteen metres with cladding need to get in order to be sold.

The council said that although it wanted these to be done, they were not a regulatory or legal requirement and so the cost would be shouldered by leaseholders.

EWS1 forms can only be provided by qualified surveyors who confirm all remedial fire safety work needed has been completed.

After years of confusion and changing regulations after the Grenfell tower tragedy, delays in cladding removal, and a shortage of specialists to clear the backlog, a huge number of properties – including entire tower blocks in Southwark – have been left essentially unsellable and therefore worthless without these forms. Buildings under eighteen metres do not need an EWS1 form, the government announced in August.

The government’s department for housing, levelling up and communities was contacted for comment but did not respond in time for publication.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

the Mould is still there!

James Gillespie, 56, first discovered the mould in his Camberwell flat on October 6, when he happened to move a picture in his sitting room and found mould growing behind it.

Despite multiple emails from James to the council, the problem remains unfixed. After various visits from council officers, the problem has been confirmed as the symptoms of a broken mains pipe leaking into the walls. It is also affecting the flat below James.

He is particularly concerned about the impact the mould is having on his health.

He said: “I am working from home so I have all the windows open and heat on to mitigate the mould, but I still have eye problems. I can feel it in my chest.

“It’s a question of power dynamics.

I’m fairly savvy with trying to get things done, but even I’m exhausted.

It’s chaos.”

A video, available on the News website, shows the extent of the damage to James’ kitchen.

A council spokesperson said: “We are getting closer to resolving this complex issue, with some repairs having taken place, and we are grateful for the cooperation of all residents in assisting with that.

"Some additional works have happened in a neighbouring property to ensure spillage is not a problem going forward. The main issue of a broken pipe is currently being resolved by our engineering team.

“We still wish to schedule some reinstatement works once the leak is fixed and we have agreement with the resident to do so.”

Members of the public saw Zaheid Ali, a student at Ark Globe Academy near Elephant and Castle, after he got off the bus early on the way to school on April 20.

Eyewitnesses tried to get Year 8 student Zaheid out of the water but were unable to save him. He was only retrieved from the river eight days later.

Coroner Julian Morris told Southwark Coroner's Court on Tuesday November 23: "Mr Ali was reported missing after not attending school on April 20. He was travelling to school by bus with a friend and got off one stop early and made his way to Tower Bridge.

"He entered the bridge from the south side before being seen to climb over a barrier and jumping. Members of the public threw life support rings and jumped into the river, but were unable to retrieve him.

"City of London Police and a marine unit then attended reports of a body

recovered on the surface south side of the river.

"Officers attended and retrieved an Oyster card with Zaheid's name in it. He was also wearing the school uniform of Ark Globe when he jumped in."

A full coroner's hearing is expected at a later date.

meet the planning rules.

Objectors from the estate said at the meeting, alongside other concerns, that consultation had not been at all effective - which appears to be a running theme in the council's plans

for new social housing across the borough. Southwark's housing team admitted that some consultation meetings had attracted as few as two or three people, in an estate of 241 homes.

Councillors at the meeting said that although it was "quite sad" that the new build did not appear to have the approval of people on the estate, it was clear that the housing team tried to get people involved through various forms of online and physical newsletters.

Cllr Martin Seaton, chairing the meeting, said the "responsibility is on us to make sure residents are fully aware" of plans on their estate, and added that "we need to be better". Lib Dem committee member Cllr David Noakes said that the council needs to be "the gold standard" for resident engagement.

It came before the Southwark Group of Tenants’ Organisation (SGTO),

an umbrella group for tenants’ and residents’ associations in the borough, was due to speak at the council assembly on Wednesday (November 24) about the consultation on proposed council new builds.

"High standards of consultation are required to establish genuine consent from existing residents to new housing developments within their estate," a statement submitted ahead of the assembly reads.

"The residents on estates where infill and/or rooftop homes are proposed have been poorly consulted on these developments - consultations have been ill-attended, questions have been leading and in many cases, widespread resident objections to proposed new homes developments have been ignored."

As with Slippers Place, the council has always maintained that it has carried out the correct level of consultation.

By Charles Harrison charles@southwarknews.co.uk A council flat resident is concerned for health as his kitchen is still inundated with mould nearly two months after he raised the issue.

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk A 13-year-old boy who died after ‘jumping’ into the Thames in April was seen by eyewitnesses climbing over a barrier on Tower Bridge, an inquest has heard.

Inquest opens on schoolboy who drowned in the Thames

Controversial Bermondsey social housing block gets unanimous approval

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk A controversial Bermondsey infill block that will provide eighteen council flats was voted through unanimously at a planning meeting on Monday night, November 22.

The decision came after a late intervention from the Southwark Law Centre's planning team, who said that the proposed new eightstorey building on Southwark Park Road went against rules for density, urban greening and privacy and light, and also raised concerns about the impact of construction on the existing residents.

Speaking at the meeting, Tooley Street planners told the committee that the density requirements in Southwark's new housing plan would be lower, meaning the new build on the Matson

House car park would comply. The greenery is below requirements but an improvement on the current situation, they said. Although the light coming into some neighbouring windows will be affected by the new build, it will still

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Below: Killer Imran Boudjellel

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Walworth man jailed for murdering a child

Above: victim Joseph Marafini

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk A Walworth man has been sent to prison for life, with a minimum term of 22 years, for murdering a teenage boy.

Imran Boudjellel, 20, stabbed fifteenyear-old Joseph Marafini to death in Wandsworth last October on a busy shopping street.

Boudjellel was convicted of murder, possession of a knife in a public place and causing grievous bodily harm with intent against another fifteen-year-old, who was also stabbed during the same incident. Boudjellel got an extra six years in prison for these charges, to be served at the same time.

He was found guilty after an eight-week trial on November 5 and sentenced on November 18.

The court heard that Boudjellel was part of a group of five young males who confronted Joseph and two of his friends outside Sainsbury’s in Garratt Lane, on October 29 last year.

Boudjellel killed Joseph by stabbing him in the shoulder and in the neck. He also

seriously injured another fifteen-year-old by stabbing him in the chest and arm.

The attack was captured on CCTV and also on the body-worn camera of an officer in a police van, who happened to be passing at the time.

The officers in the van immediately ran to the scene when they saw what was happening and tried to save Joseph. He was then taken to hospital, but died soon afterwards.

Boudjellel was chased and arrested by officers in a nearby graveyard. A witness told police they had seen Boudjellel throw something over a wall.

Officers found a large knife and sheath in a car park nearby. They had blood on them that matched Joseph’s DNA. Boudjellel’s DNA was also found on the sheath of the knife.

Boudjellel was charged on October 31 and remanded in custody until his trial.

Four other men, aged 18 and 19, were charged with Joseph’s murder, but their cases were dismissed during the trial after a ruling by the judge.

The grieving mother of victim Joseph said she was proud of her son. “He was full of love, a good friend, and protective

towards those in society who were vulnerable.”

Detective Chief Inspector Vicky Tunstall, the lead investigator, said: “I know this incident caused a great deal of public concern as it happened outside a supermarket at a busy time of the day with people going about their lives in an ordinary way. Nobody should expect to witness such an incident.

“This was a completely unprovoked attack by a man who was a habitual knife carrier and it is sadly another example of the senseless violence that has resulted in the death of a 15-year-old boy, who was a beloved son and brother. His family have been left devastated by their loss and we continue to support them through this ordeal.

“I would like to praise the police officers who, despite being very young in service, were first on scene, chased and detained the suspect and provided CPR to try and save Joseph’s life. It is important for public safety that Imran Boudjellel has now been brought to justice and will no longer be able to inflict violence to anyone else on the streets of London for a considerable time.”

Museum apologises for ‘woke’ Remembrance Sunday rap

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk The Imperial War Museum has apologised for a ‘woke’ Remembrance Sunday rap performance that allegedly insulted Winston Churchill.

The Borough museum holds an annual programme called Breaking the Silence, which is aimed at “exploring the relevance of Remembrance” today. Breaking the Silence gives 11-18 year-olds a chance to “share their perspectives on war and conflict.”

This year the performance was run by a Deptford organisation called the Midi Music Group. The group said on their website that their young people were to “premiere brand-new performances exploring what contemporary Remembrance means to them” at the end of a two-minute silence.

But not everyone appreciated the new perspective on what is usually a solemn and formal occasion to remember and celebrate people who made sacrifices in war, no matter their background.

One commenter on the museum’s TripAdvisor account said they would not be coming back after the performance.

They said: “Sad event at the war museum.

Was supposed to be remembering the fallen yet the museum made it woke, disgraceful disrespect to who was once a great leader, Churchill.”

Another added: “The entire event became horrendous with the inclusion of a Rap which was nothing more than a vile attack on (among others) Churchill and a rant

about race. Both are legitimate subjects for debate, but NOT on Remembrance Sunday.

My wife who served in the RAF was deeply upset by such a disrespectful charade.”

A spokesperson for the museum said: “Presenting the cause, course and consequence of war from the First World War to the present day, IWM’s challenging remit attracts multiple view points and opinions. We do, however, recognise that Remembrance Sunday at IWM London, with the meaning it holds for different people, was not the moment to share this particular iteration of Breaking the Silence.

We apologise to anyone who attended who was offended or upset by the performance in any way.

“As an organisation founded during the First World War, IWM has always dealt with difficult subjects relating to war and conflict, and we continue to do so to this day. By working with young people on performances like Breaking the Silence, we ensure that different perspectives on Remembrance are shared, helping both participants and visitors to explore their own attitudes towards Remembrance today. By offering this prominent platform to young people we hope to remove and reduce barriers to make the museum, and the important stories it holds, open to everyone.

“We will continue to ensure that IWM remains a space where important debates and discussions can take place, and we continue to be committed to sharing perspectives, as well as hearing different viewpoints from multiple voices.”

Midi Music Group has been approached for comment.

Three women punched by lone man on Jamaica Road in Bermondsey Exclusive

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk Three women by a lone man on Bermondsey last November 18, in series of assaults.

Near where the attacks are said to have happened

were attacked Jamaica Road in Thursday night, an unexplained

The assaults happened around 6.45pm near Bartons coffee shop on Dockhead.

One woman was punched in the face, leaving her bruised, while two more were punched in the arm. The motive for the attacks is unclear - the woman who was punched in the face told the News that the man did not steal anything from her.

The man is described by this woman as black, in his late teens or early 20s, wearing

a balaclava, a black zip-up jumper, a grey and black tracksuit and trainers. He was of medium height and a slim build, she added.

The woman, who did not want to be named, added that she felt unsafe in the area even before the attack - despite living in Bermondsey for a decade - and said she wanted to warn other women to be careful after the attack.

She added that she felt so uncomfortable after dark that she got her husband to walk with her if she was out in the evening. The situation has become so difficult for them that they are considering leaving the UK to move to her husband’s home country. The woman said that the man jogged up to her and punched her in the face before running away. She managed to duck partially out of the way but he still struck a glancing blow that left her face bruised and swollen.

Police said they have yet to catch the man but the woman added that they were quickly on the scene, and treated her with kindness and understanding.

Chief Inspector Annmarie Cowley, aid: “Everyone has the right to feel safe in our city and this type of behaviour is completely unacceptable.

“These women did the right thing by reporting the assaults to police and we will now look closely at this location to assess whether any further safety measures need to be put in place.”

After reading on the News website of the attacks, Michael Jarman, landlord of a nearby pub, offered sanctuary to anyone feeling threatened, posting on Facebook: “Anyone around dockhead if u fill threatened or unsafe come into Ship Aground and we will get u home safely.”

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021 ADVERTORIAL

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

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NEWS 15

195 capacity Mega-nursery approved

By Charles Harrison

Aerial view of the site

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A new mega-nursery was approved to be built in East Dulwich Grove last week in a fiery planning meeting.

Despite receiving over 139 objections to the proposal and only 14 letters in support, Southwark Council’s planning committee unanimously approved the 195-capacity nursery development in the meeting on Tuesday, November 16.

The meeting saw residents voice their concerns about damage to the local area in terms of noise pollution and increased traffic, as well as lamenting the loss of the East Dulwich Constitutional Club, a function space which the nursery will take over.

The space dates back to the 1880s and has been used variously as a first aid depot during the Second World War, and as an events and function space.

There was some dispute over how much the space was actually used by the community, however, and nursery company responsible N Family Club argued that the new nursery would bring jobs to the area, as well as affordable childcare.

The council’s development team also stated that the changes to the building would largely be on the interior, with the exterior actually intruding less onto the street as a result of the development.

They argued that the overall visual appearance of the building would remain in keeping with the road’s aesthetic.

Planning consultant Ian Coomber spoke at the meeting, representing EDG nursery, a small independent nursery located directly next to the nowapproved mega-nursery.

"This is a mega nursery proposal. Your childcare sufficiency statement shows that you have ample childcare provision within the borough”, he argued.

“There are 43 other nurseries within three miles of the site, and no existing demand. The need for the application seems questionable.

“There is not a burning need for additional childcare in the borough.”

A councillor responded to his

New LGBTQ+ Centre in Bankside

By Charles Harrison argument, however, by asking why N Family Club would choose to invest in the nursery if there was no demand for it. She added that the planing committee was not responsible for assessing business interests, but the impact of planning applications to the community.

He responded by saying that he was simply using the council’s own statistics.

Another councillor highlighted his connection to EDG Nursery, a rival business. Coomber insisted, however, that the independent nursery’s objection to the mega-nursery was out of concern for the community and for the street, rather than purely financial.

Much of the debate came down to disagreements over the impact nurseries can have on the surrounding environment. One such concern raised was the level of noise created by the development, with residents arguing that such a high number of children in the garden will cause disturbances to the local area - especially with so many people now working from home.

This included resident Diana, citing the residents’ own noise study which found that the noise created by children outside would be 66 decibels on average - a number they argued was “unacceptable.”

Claims that noise would be a problem were disputed by the developers, who argued that while there might be some “low-level” noise from children, it would

be “minimal” thanks to acoustic fencing that would surround the development.

The residents present questioned what acoustic fencing was, and were assured that it did help to reduce noise.

The planning committee itself was more swayed by this point, however despite one council member stating that he actually “quite enjoys” the sound of children playing - and this discussion led to one of the conditions of the planning approval being that the business will not operate on weekends.

Another key point of debate surrounded the availability of car parking spaces and traffic during peak times.

Ian Coomber said: “There’s no assessment, particularly of the impact of child pick up and drop off times.

“This nursery will equate to 1 child every 20 seconds.”

The committee, however, said they believed that people would be inclined to walk their children to nursery, as it fell within the Ultra Low Emission Zone and so fewer residents were driving as a regular means of transport. They added that the site was within a Controlled Parking Zone, which would ease the flow of traffic.

Mr. Coomber responded, however, by admitting that while it was a lovely idea, “the practical reality is that, if it’s a rainy day, many people will want to drive.”

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A new community centre for LGBTQ+ people is opening early next month in Bankside.

Funded by a crowdfunding and the National Lottery, the space will by sober, intergenerational and informed by research which found that 42 per cent of LGBT people would like to access support for their mental health at this time.

In a recent study by Stonewall, one in eight LGBT people aged 18-24 said they’ve attempted to take their own life in the last year, while almost half of trans people have thought about taking their own life in the last year.

The centre will be coming to London after 60 per cent of LGBT community centres have closed down in the last decade.

Matthew Riley, Communications and Marketing Manager for LGBTQ+ charity Tonic Housing, which will be making use of the new space, said: “From experience, we know how crucial LGBTQ+ affirming spaces are to our community’s safety and quality of life.

“We’re super excited to see the London LGBTQ+ Community Centre pop-up open, and can’t wait to see how this much-needed project grows!”

Queer architect Martha Summers, who was heavily involved in the creation of the Feminist Library’s new

space in Peckham, helped design the space.

She said: “It’s so exciting to take part in the creation of this much-needed space, in such a central location. The pop-up is a great opportunity to test things out in real space and real time and hopefully take lessons forward into a permanent venue.

“We want to make a space that the community can make their own.”

The Centre will provide a cafe, lounge space, social space for events, and LGBTQ+ specific service provision including mental health, sexual health, and services supporting trans, youth and older LGBTQ+ people, and has been supported by Southwark Council in finding a location.

The space has also seen support from Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who said: “The loss of so many of our LGBTQ+ venues means that it has never been more important to have a safe, inclusive, all-day space for all LGBTQ+ communities to be themselves, reduce isolation and improve wellbeing.

“I will do all I can to transform it into a permanent space.”

The new community centre aims to be a place where LGBTQ+ Londoners and visitors of any age or identity can relax, be themselves, and feel safe.

Opening near the Tate Modern on December 1, the space will operate for six months in a trial period. It will be mostly run by volunteers.

Covid-19 cases continue to rise in Southwark Weekly Covid-19 Cases (10s) in SE London, November 16-22 Cases

100

50

Southwark

kit@southwarknews.co.uk Covid-19 cases have risen by more than 14 per cent across south-east London this week, according to NHS figures analysed by the News.

Change (%)

150

0

By Kit Heren

Lambeth

Lewisham

Greenwich

Bexley

Bromley

Some 5,425 people tested positive for Covid in Southwark, Lambeth, Lewisham, Greenwich, Bexley and Bromley in the seven days from November 16-22 - up from 4,742 the week before.

That's the second week in a row that cases have risen across the south-east, with infections increasing by more than 21 per cent the week before that.

Cases are up more than 20 per cent UK-wide over the week, with more than 292,000 new cases reported in the week to November 22. In London as a whole cases were at more than 27,000 over the past week.

Although Southwark continued to have the lowest case numbers out of the six south-east London boroughs with 735, infections still rose by more than 13 per cent.

Cases rose by nearly 20 per cent week-to-week in Lewisham to 832, while Lambeth saw infection numbers grow by more than 14 per cent to 891.

In Greenwich 779 more people tested positive across the week - an increase of nearly 17 per cent from the previous seven days - while in Bexley cases rose by nearly 11 per cent to 882.

Bromley again had the highest number of cases, with 1,306 in the same period. That was an increase of just over 13 per cent for the period.

Although still relatively low, deaths linked to Covid-19 in south-east London continued to rise slightly, to fourteen over the week - up from nine the week before.

It comes as fears grow that the UK may have to undergo yet another lockdown this winter, as several western European countries reintroduce Covid restrictions amid protests.

Meanwhile the vaccine drive continues across London, with more than 5.6m residents double-jabbed and over 1.5m people having had a booster or third jab.

16 NEWS

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

how green is southwark council?

Exclusive

Protesters against the Dulwich LTN

By Charles Harrison and Kit Heren charles@southwarknews.co.uk Southwark Council’s efforts to cut fossil fuel investments have slowed dramatically over the past two years.

The council set out to cut its £1.5b pension fund’s fossil fuel investments in September 2017. By the end of 2019 the fund had brought down these investments by 38 per cent. Nearly two years later that figure was only at 43 per cent.

The council has cut direct investments - putting money straight into a business that deals directly with fossil fuels - by 100 per cent since 2017. Indirect investments - when the final destination of the money is less clear - are now the challenge.

The council, which declared a ‘climate emergency’ in 2019, aims for the borough to be ‘carbon neutral’ by 2030. While a huge part of this is covered by housing, the investments made by the council’s pension fund are important because they represent a sizeable amount of employee money.

Cllr Helen Dennis, the council’s cabinet member for climate change, said the slowdown was because the easy wins came at the beginning of the divestment push. The more fossil fuel investments are cut, the harder it is to cut further, she added.

However, in August of this year the council was criticised for being found to have invested £10 million in Shell since 2016 - seemingly going back on its own commitment. The council argued that investments were necessary to mitigate risk to pension holders, and that they have now been sold.

It also said that the investments made up a very small percentage – around 0.5 per cent – of the fund. Since March 2021 the council has had no active investments in oil and gas companies.

However, the controversy highlighted an issue recently suggested to the News by local Extinction Rebellion coordinator Eloise Waldon-Day - that the council is suffering from a lack of clarity on its response to the climate crisis.

“The plan needs to be clear on prioritising,” she said. “If there are gaps in funding, it needs to be clear what’s being prioritised. There should be time deadlines. It’s hard to know how much [of the carbon neutral goal] will be reliant on offsets. It’s hard to know how they’re going to measure it - they’ve set the overall goal, but not a set of steps to get there. That kind of clarity is lacking.

“We don’t have the data to hold them to account.”

Cllr Dennis said in response that the council’s climate strategy was “underpinned by detailed technical analysis” and “sets out pathways” to get to carbon neutrality.

She added: “The document identifies 85 priority actions and we will be reporting on progress on an annual basis, updating our plans to take account of further input from our Southwark Citizens’ Jury and our continued engagement with residents, businesses and community groups, like XR.” Cllr Dennis said that a lack of climatespecific funding from the government was a problem for local authorities, especially on housing and public transport.

It comes after Southwark Council unveiled its climate strategy and action plan in July and came in for fierce criticism

from environmental campaigners for not going far enough. One activist told a council meeting the plan was “unclear” and “unambitious”.

Ahead of the council assembly yesterday (Wednesday, November 24), Cllr Dennis spoke to the News about Southwark’s wide-ranging efforts to become carbonneutral by 2030, including initiatives in housing and transport, as well as a wide variety of other areas - in which it has promised to invest £3.92b.

The council estimates that redoing the costly and unreliable district heating systems across its estates will cost £350m. Some £6.95m is being spent on a water heat source pump that will provide heating and hot water for about 2,000 properties on the Newington, Wyndham and Consort estates in central Southwark.

Elsewhere the council is consulting on expanding its rubbish-fuelled south east London combined heat and power network (SELCHP) to another 3,000 homes in Peckham.

Meanwhile in Rotherhithe, the new homes team are preparing a possible new development on Ann Moss Way that would provide sixteen new council

flats built to a carbon-neutral standard - although no planning application has been submitted yet.

One of the main criticisms of the council over the past year has been the infill debate, with Southwark choosing to build blocks on existing estates, often to the displeasure of people who already live there. Sometimes, as is proposed in the case of the Dodson and Amigo estate in Borough, that involves knocking down a building to build a bigger one. But several studies suggest that demolition is a big driver of carbon emissions. Cllr Dennis argued that sometimes this was unavoidable or, as in the case of Peckham’s Ledbury Estate regeneration, the residents themselves wanted a new start.

“It’s all about getting a balance,” she said.

The Tustin Estate [in south Bermondsey] has been retrofitted to a really high standard, that’s fantastic. There are some estates where residents have opted for demolition because challenges with the buildings are insurmountable.”

The council is also trying to take a tougher stance with private developers, by ordering them to pay into a fund that

finances green community projects if their own schemes do not meet carbon emissions standards. To date £2m has been collected - but Cllr Dennis said she would rather the housebuilders just met the right standards.

Transport accounts for fifteen per cent of emissions in Southwark and the council is trying to promote walking, cycling and public transport. But despite plans to extend the Bakerloo Line from Elephant and Castle down the Old Kent Road shelved indefinitely, Cllr Dennis refused to comment on the Lib Dems’ proposal for a new tram network as a renewable alternative, other than to say that trams are an option the council is looking at.

“The gains that [the Bakerloo Line Extension] would have brought, in terms of capacity, speed, more housing, would have been enormous,” she said. “I don’t feel we are at the point where we should be giving up on that.”

As we have previously reported, Southwark is getting a few more TfL bike docking stations soon, although the council has still not confirmed where these are going. The existing bikes are mostly concentrated in the north-west

of the borough around Borough and Bankside, which broadly tends to be the wealthiest.

More diverse and deprived areas like Peckham and Camberwell, meanwhile, still don’t have any docking stations, although Cllr Dennis pointed out that there are e-scooters available for hire.

Southwark’s low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) and school street schemes have also proved controversial, with one recent protest in Dulwich attracting about 1,000 people. Some people have said they are in favour.

Cllr Dennis said any project that affects people’s way of life would be “challenging” but that there is a “positive picture” that the council wants to paint. “Any changes that we are asking people to make to their lifestyle, we may run into difficulties.

Clearly there have been changes we have had to make, but the broader principle is encouraging more active travel.”

The council’s pledges for the next decade are focused on five thematic areas; greener buildings; active and sustainable travel; a circular economy with green jobs; thriving natural environment and renewable energy. It has estimated 5,000 green jobs will be created in this timeframe.

The council has also confirmed it plans to hold an annual conference, share yearly progress reports and be held to account by a citizens’ jury as it decarbonises Southwark.

Cllr Helen Dennis

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0800 061 4770

Drop-in session

Saturday 11 December 10:00 – 13:00 at the Unwin and Friary Community Hall, Off Frensham St, Peckham Park Rd, London SE15 6TH (This will be conducted in line with Covid-19 guidelines and best practice)

hello@mstcommunity.co.uk

www.mstcommunity.co.uk

Unfortunatley the Southwark People Care Association will not be able to host the Christmas Day Party at Bacon’s College senior citizens & anyone feeling alone Christmas Day Party at Bacon’s College due to the ongoing concerns with Covid 19 and of course the need to protect our local citizen from any risk.

The Christmas party has been a feature at Bacon’s College for a number of years ,and in recent years has held up to 300 guests, so it is disappointing to have to cancel the event especially after last year’s government Lockdown.

Danny Walters of Southwark People Care Association said “sadly the decision was made mainly due to the worry of potential spread of virus infection which could occurred with large gatherings of vulnerable people, particularly the elderly, many who are strangers to each other. It is there for disappointing to have to cancel the annual event for this as we know the party helps to relieve loneliness and social isolation at Christmas time and especially on Christmas Day.

www.southwarkpca.org.uk We acknowledge the generous assistance of Southwark Council, Local Businesses and Trusts.

People Care Association Ltd.is Registered Charity No. 1077651

18 NEWS

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

increased calls for money for tram as tfl say they are broke Exclusive

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk Southwark's Liberal Democrats have redoubled their calls for the £63m that the council is spending on the Elephant and Castle Tube station upgrade to go on a tram network instead - after Transport for London (TfL) confirmed the new station will not be made "operational" as things stand.

TfL will have to cut spending massively on infrastructure, like stations and train stock, as well as bus and Tube services, without a secure, long-term funding deal from the government after the current shortterm deal runs out on December 11, it said in a report to City Hall this week.

The cuts are needed to make up a gap in the agency’s budget that could stretch to nearly £3b, with TfL’s budget decimated by the pandemic.

We reported earlier this month on Southwark Lib Dems' call for the council's money that is earmarked for the station upgrade to be reclaimed and funnelled into a tram network in the borough.

TfL previously maintained that the station upgrade would happen, only its part of the funding would be secured at a later date. The latest report from the transport agency appears to acknowledge more clearly that the upgrade is not going to happen in the current scenario.

Cllr Damian O'Brien reiterated his earlier calls, telling the News: "This is a not an unexpected revelation from TfL given the financial position they face and the fact that the much-heralded Bakerloo Line Extension has been put back by a generation.

"Southwark Council have committed £63m of Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding to the ticket hall upgrade and there is no reason this can’t be provided as future developments on the Old Kent Road progress.

"But this will all take time and there is no excuse for TfL to sit on Southwark money while they twiddled their thumbs. That money can be used for improvements within our borough right now.”

Southwark Council again did not provide a comment on the call for trams - more than two weeks since our

Sadiq Khan original report.

But the council did condemn the government in response to the report, with the Labour leader Kieron Williams saying that the lack of longterm funding for TfL was driving a “wedge” between the capital’s “haves and have nots”.

TfL said in the report it will have to slash 100 bus routes and reduce another 200. Some nine per cent of Tube services would be cut to make up the budget shortfall. TfL is more heavily reliant on fare income than transport agencies in many other major cities around the world, meaning the lockdowns hit it particularly hard.

The cuts are part of TfL’s 'managed decline' scenario for infrastructure and operations, meaning as well as services being heavily reduced, trains, buses and stations will be allowed to age instead of being replaced or upgraded.

The agency said its 'funding gap' the difference between its budget and outgoings - would be £1.7b in the next financial year, rising to £2.7b the year after that and falling again to £2.4b the following year. Switching to a 'managed decline' or even 'lower than managed decline' spending regime would be

inquest iinto the death of hero jimi opens

Cllr Damian O'Brien

necessary to cut the gap.

Alongside the bus and tube service cuts, many infrastructure projects would be dropped to lower costs, including the Bakerloo Line Extension being suspended "with no long-term likelihood of restarting", while the Rotherhithe Tunnel might also be forced to close.

Planned upgrades to the Bakerloo Line and Jubilee Line trains would be pushed back to the 2030s and 2040s respectively, making them among the

oldest trains in the country.

TfL would not be able to fund more 'step-free access' schemes to make trains and stations easier to use for disabled people. Expansion of the cycle hire scheme would be paused and funding for other active travel measures would be paused.

All of these measures would be likely to drive people away from public transport and into cars, the report said - undermining the commitment to tackle carbon emissions.

He jumped into the Thames to save woman

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk An inquest has opened into the death of Folajimi OlubunmiAdewole, the 20-year-old man from Bermondsey's Neckinger Estate who jumped into the Thames to save a drowning woman in April - only to lose his own life.

Folajimi, known as Jimi, was walking home over London Bridge from his job as a waiter in the early hours of April 24 this year when he heard a woman scream from the Thames that she couldn't swim. He and another young man, Joaquin Garcia, decided to jump in to try to save her.

Speaking at the inquest this Tuesday, November 23, at Inner South London Coroners Court, assistant coroner

But the money TfL gives to London boroughs for road upgrades would also be cut, which could have a big impact on road surface quality.

Khan said: “Transport for London is dealing with an unprecedented financial crisis caused by the pandemic.

We are now less than a month away from TfL’s emergency funding deal expiring on 11 December. Unless the Government provides the long-term funding needed to maintain our public transport network, there will be no choice but to make significant cuts to services just as demand is growing again.

"This would mean fewer, less frequent and more run-down bus and tube services for Londoners, making it more difficult to travel around the city. It would also mean more road and tunnel closures due to a lack of funding to maintain key transport infrastructure.

The widespread disruption and gridlock all these changes would cause would not only unfairly punish millions of Londoners for the impact of the pandemic on TfL's finances, but would put the national economic recovery at risk. I support greater transport investment in regions across the country, but levelling up Britain must not come at the expense of levelling down London. There can no London recovery without a properly funded public transport network in the capital, and there can be no national recovery without a London recovery.

Our city contributes £36.1bn net to the Treasury each year. TfL contracts contribute around £7bn to the UK economy, and its supply chain supports 43,000 jobs around the country, which could be at risk.

"If the Government fails to work with us to protect London's transport network, the capital and the whole country will pay the price for decades to come.”

A government spokesperson said: "We have repeatedly shown our commitment to supporting London's transport network through the pandemic, providing more than £4bn in emergency funding to Transport for London. We will continue to discuss any further funding requirements with TfL and the mayor, and any support provided will focus on getting TfL back onto a sustainable financial footing in a way that is fair to taxpayers across the country."

Julian Morris said: "The boys ran down the steps to the river bank. They were talking to each other and were partially undressed.

"They [the witnesses] could hear people saying not to jump in. They saw one man jump in and swim out and [he] appeared to be a good swimmer.

The second jumped down five to ten seconds after and then began asking for assistance himself.”

The coroner said that the woman and Joaquin were rescued from the river, but Jimi's body was found by the river police six hours later.

Tributes poured in to the former Harris Academy Peckham student Jimi earlier this year after his heroic efforts, with calls made for him to be given the George Cross - the highest civilian honour in the UK. Jimi’s mother Olusankami Adewole called her son “a special, loving young man.” She told the News after his death: “He was a very good person and had a very good heart."

20 NEWS

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

two charged after Machine gun find

By Kit Heren

kit@southwarknews.co.uk

Bermondsey block blaze

Two men have been charged after police found a machine gun in a Camberwell traffic stop last Monday, November 15.

Thomas Burke, 53, of London Road, Croydon, and Brian Divengele, 31, of Brookhill Road, Greenwich, were charged last Tuesday, (November 16) with possession of a prohibited automatic weapon.

Specialist officers stopped two cars driving in convoy on Monday.

It comes after detectives seized a fully automatic submachine gun in Camberwell, after finding it hidden in a car speaker.

Led by intelligence, detectives from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, with armed officers, stopped two cars driving in convoy in Crossthwaite Avenue, near Green Dale Fields..

Officers found a PM63 RAK machine pistol, capable of fully automatic fire, hidden within a speaker on the rear seat of one of the cars. The firearm was made safe and has been sent off for testing.

The drivers of the vehicles were arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent. They were taken to a south London police station where they remain in custody.

Detective Chief Inspector Victoria Sullivan, from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command, said: “We remain

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk A fire in a block of flats on Grange Walk in Bermondsey needed 25 firefighters and four fire engines to put out.

dedicated to making London a safer place for everyone by carrying out operations such as this one. We will continue to disrupt those intent on committing violent crime on our streets.”

Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Smith, from the Central South Command which covers Southwark and Lambeth, said: “I know this lethal

weapon being recovered on the streets of Southwark will cause concern for local residents. But let me assure you that firearms have no place on our streets and we are doing everything in our power to arrest those who carry and supply guns.

“However, we cannot tackle this issue alone and we rely on information from the public to help us to robustly tackle

gun crime. Any information you have, no matter how small, can really help our investigations.”

Anyone with any information should contact police on 101 or Tweet @ MetCC. To give information but remain anonymous call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.

By Kit Heren

her. When she turned round to confront him he is said to have said “sorry” and laughed.

Police officers think the man in the image they have released may have information that can help them with their enquiries.

If you recognise him, or have any information, please contact British Transport Police by texting 61016 or calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 413 of 20/10/21. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Police appeal: do you know this man? kit@southwarknews.co.uk

Police officers investigating a case of sexual assault of a woman in Canada Water Tube station have released a photo of a man they want to identify.

The alleged attack happened on Wednesday, October 20 at about 4pm when a woman was coming down an escalator towards the platforms.

A man coming down the same escalator allegedly sexually assaulted

The fire, on Thursday, November 18, left part of a maisonette on the ground floor of the seven-storey block damaged, although there were no reports of any injuries. Firefighters were called at 1pm and the fire was under control by 1.30pm. Fire crews from Dockhead, Old Kent Road, Dowgate and Whitechapel fire stations were at the scene.

The cause of the fire is still unknown and the fire brigade is investigating.

Forest Hill flat gutted by fire

By Kit Heren kit@southwarknews.co.uk

A flat in Forest Hill was completely destroyed in a fire in the early hours of last Tuesday morning, November 16.

Some 25 firefighters in four fire engines rushed to tackle the blaze on Dartmouth Street at half-past midnight, putting it out finally by about 1.10am.

Firefighters said they thought the fire was caused by a halogen heater sitting too close to materials that catch fire easily.

Crews from Forest Hill, Beckenham, and West Norwood fire stations attended the incident at the second floor studio flat.

There were no reports of any injuries.

Dentist defrauds NHS - claiming up to 45 treatments in one day

By Charles Harrison

charles@southwarknews.co.uk A dentist has been sentenced for defrauding the NHS out of £74,000 including claiming to have performed 45 treatments in one day.

Dr Sheena Lalani, 46, of Kennington Road, defrauded the NHS for thousands by fabricating claims in order to increase the money she was paid by the NHS, as well as backdating claims.

Lalani held contracts with the NHS to provide dental services from her two practices: Gentle Dental Care, Chapter Street, Westminster, and Maycroft Dental Centre, Chobham Road, Woking, Surrey. After the fraud investigation started, she relinquished the Maycroft contract.

She has been sentenced to 20 months’ imprisonment suspended for two years, as well as carrying out 250 hours of unpaid work, given a 20 day rehabilitation order and ordered to pay £662 of NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA) costs within three months.

She had pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. She was charged with fraud by abuse of position under the Fraud Act 2006.

Investigation into Lalani began following a call to the NHSCFA’s Fraud and Corruption Reporting Line (FCRL), run by Crimestoppers. She was reported as only attending her Westminster surgery Gentle Dental for two days a week, despite advertising dental services as five days a week.

When interviewed by NHS investigators, she argued that if she owed the NHS money it was only due to poor administrative practices, and her record-keeping being in ‘confusion and disarray’ - not dishonesty.

However, when the investigation compared payments data with patient records from Gentle Dental, it showed Lalani had submitted 378 fraudulent claims over three financial years (April 2014 to March 2017). She therefore gained over £74,000 from the NHS that she was not entitled to.

The majority of her false claims were for

procedures that attract the top rate of payment to a dentist from the NHS. The investigation further turned against her when investigators gathered evidence such as witness statements from patients who never received claimed treatments, dental laboratories that were unable to provide evidence of making devices Lalani claimed for, and five times the normal number of top-rate claims for payment from NHS. She also claimed to have performed 45 treatments in just one day.

Dr Lalani paid back the money shortly before sentencing, and only when the NHSCFA was about to start a confiscation investigation under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) 2002. The payback figure was raised to £87,298.37 to account for inflation. She would have had to be pay this amount under POCA, but that process is no longer necessary - a saving to the public purse.

Richard Rippin, Head of Operations at the NHSCFA, said: “The great majority of dentists

are skilled, honest, hardworking professionals who put their patients first. When Dr Lalani abused her trusted position by falsifying claims and claiming for work not done, she not only defrauded the NHS but let down the dental profession.

“It is quite possible that, had she not been caught, the scale of the debt and the crime would have increased exponentially.

“Over the last 18 months, the NHS has been under unprecedented pressure, with resources being stretched to the limit. We and our partners in the NHS work hard to ensure that these NHS resources are protected. Today’s result shows the dedication of the NHSCFA’s National Investigations Service, bringing those who abuse the NHS to justice. We are here to detect and investigate those who commit fraud and will seek all forms of redress. We urge anyone who suspects someone of defrauding the NHS to report them to us.”

The sentencing judge, HHJ Perrins said: “Lalani’s fraud was sophisticated, well thought out and well executed”.

Lambeth Children’s Homes Redress Scheme Deadline: Applications for compensation open until 1 January 2022 Lambeth Council has set up a Redress Scheme for people who, as children, were abused or feared abuse at a Lambeth Children’s Home and/or Shirley Oaks Primary School.

There are two types of compensation payment available: n Harm’s Way Payment n Individual Redress Payment To find out more about the Scheme, eligibility and to make a claim, visit lambeth.gov.uk/redress or email redress@lambeth.gov.uk

Below is a list of children’s homes that were run by Lambeth or its predecessor authority (and which subsequently transferred to Lambeth), either within or outside of their area, that provided accommodation for children in care.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

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8.

9.

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Almond House Hostel Angell Road Calais Street Chestnut Road / Robson Road Chevington House Cumberlow Lodge Garrads Road Gresham Place Highland Road Ingleton House Ivy House / Warham Road

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Knowle Close Lancester Avenue Lancaster Road Leigham Court Road Lorn Road Monkton Street Mount Villas Nottingham Road Rathmell Drive Rectory Grove / Elaine Claire House Samuel House

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Shirley Oaks South Vale Southwood Southwood Discharge Hostel St Saviours Stephany House Stockwell Park The Elms Thornwick Nursery Tivoli Road Woodvale

102092 (10.21)

102092 redress scheme 345x268mm Southwark News.indd 1

12/10/2021 11:49

22 NEWS

www.southwarknews.co.uk/news

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

southwark angels

leading the way on young mental health Southwark Council is the first council to join Stephen Fry in backing a national mental health campaign which builds on Southwark’s success in this area.

Cllr Ali with Coin Street Young Leaders who helped co-design The Nest

Fund the Hubs calls on government to fund a network of early support hubs across the UK, such as The Nest in Southwark. These hubs would aim to provide young people with mental health support when problems first emerge - before they hit crisis point.

Southwark’s exciting mental health hub, The Nest, shows how effective these early support hubs can be. Of the young people accessing support through The Nest, 73 per cent feel happier, and 78 per cent feel they have an increased sense of wellbeing.

Trust plays a major role in its success – the majority of referrals to the hub come from young people themselves.

This campaign aims to expand on these hubs and bring them in across the country. It is supported by a coalition of mental health and children’s charities, including the Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition, Mind, YoungMinds and The Children’s Society. They are joined by Stephen Fry, Love Island’s Dr Alex George and former Lib Dem MP Sir Norman Lamb.

Cllr Jasmine Ali, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Children, Young People & Education, said: "Children and young people continue to bear the brunt of the pandemic’s devastating

impact on mental health. They deserve to get support as soon as they need it, on demand, without a referral or long wait.

“We have accepted nothing less for those in our borough.

"We are incredibly proud of The Nest as a trusted early support hub.

We are acting as early as possible to meet the mental health needs of all our children and young people. But our ambition and that of our fellow Fund The Hub campaigners needs to be met by consistent, long-term funding from government."

In 2018, Southwark Clinical Commissioning Group and the council undertook a review of mental health

services for children and young people aged 0-25 in Southwark. This highlighted a gap for those who need extra support for their mental health and emotional wellbeing, but do not meet the criteria for more specialist services.

The review also showed that mental ill-health was more prevalent among Southwark’s young people than the national average.

The Nest was created in response to these challenging statistics, and represents part of the council’s commitment that 100 per cent of children and young people have access to mental health support - the first council to make such a commitment.

‘Forrest Gump of Herne Hill’ wins award from Cancer Research UK

The “Forrest Gump of Herne Hill” has won a prestigious award for the money he’s raised for charity through completing extreme marathons, twenty years after he started running in memory of his father.

Gower Tan has officially received Cancer Research UK’s “Flame of Hope” award, which celebrates its most outstanding volunteers.

Gower started training to run his first marathon after his father passed away.

“I ran a lot when I was a kid,” he said.

“I was the sporty one at school and all that.

“When I was thirteen I started smoking, amongst other things. I became unfit, and spend the next 25 years trying to stop.

“My father died of lung cancer in 2001 at 66, after being a lifelong smoker.

“I said, I’ve got to quit. I vowed to run the London marathon, which my dad had run - in the very first one, in 1981.

“I quit smoking, finally, and got fit again. I raised about two and a half thousand pounds for Cancer Research UK for the marathon.

“I remember crossing the line and swearing never to do anything so stupid again - and I’ve been doing it ever since.

The latest in Gower’s series of ever more crazy events was completing the Marathon des Sables, a six-day, 251km ultramarathon - roughly the distance of six regular marathons - across the Sahara Desert in southern Morocco. It is widely regarded as the most difficult foot race in the world.

“It’s going to be hard to top, because it was so extraordinarily hot. Only three out of eight of my sand brothers managed to get to the end.”

“But there’s an endless list of just amazing events and challenges out in the world. There’s no limit.

“To receive the Flame of Hope was very humbling, and just incredible to be amongst such committed supporters.

“There were all sorts of different ages and people - it was very very inspirational.”

Gower isn’t entirely sure where the “Forrest Gump of Herne Hill” nickname comes from.

“Before the Marathon des Sables I had a year’s worth of sheep-like hair,” he said. “I had it shaved off and livestreamed it. It was long enough that I could donate it to the Little Prince Trust.

“The nickname was probably more appropriate back then, when I looked more like Forrest Gump.”

“I’ve been in Herne Hill for 30 years,” he added, “and my kids were born here.

“I absolutely love it here. I’m a member of Dulwich runners and I do a lot with them. I’m also a vaccinator in Dulwich - I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve done. Probably hundreds."

Gower is now gearing up to run the Boston marathon, the last of the six World Marathon Majors for the runner to complete.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Herne Hill’s Kid Literary fest is returning in 2022

A literary festival in Herne Hill has been confirmed for 2022, and is calling for children to submit to a short story competition.

Called “Stepping Into Stories”, the festival calls on children of all ages to tell their own story, in any format, using the theme ‘Bouncing Back!’.

They will be judged by celebrated children’s author and illustrator, Chloë Inkpen, Chloë will present the prizes, which are book tokens: £25 for first place, £15 for second place and £10 for third place.

As an extra prize, the winner of each age group will also be given a bundle of books for their school.

Submissions are open now, and will close on Friday January 14, 2022.

Chloë says she is especially pleased that the competition is “open to lots of different kinds of storytelling media, including pictures, comics and songs - not only writing”.

A series of world-class writers and artists have also been announced to take part in the festival, including Catherine Millar and Emily Drabble (Life-Changing Libraries with Cressida Cowell), Loretta Schauer (Cinder Gorilla), and Jackie Marchant (A Girl Called Tom).

The festival will run from February 1-6 2022, and will include various inspirational events with the guests.

Multi award winning children’s bookshop, Tales On Moon Lane from Herne Hill, will provide book signings and a festival shop.

Leading up to this will be a week long Kids’ Lit Fest, with a packed programme for schools and the general public.

Full information about the competition, including entry instructions, is available at www. stationhallhernehill.org/steppinginto-stories.

There were 70 competition entries in 2019, with 17 prizes awarded.

Toys for Christmas

Bermondsey and Rotherhithe charities are teaming up again this year to give Christmas presents to kids in need.

Food pantry and community group Love North Southwark CIC are running a toy drive for children at local primary schools St James's and St Joseph's, as well as other local children.

Charity head Kathleen Heather has already collected dozens of new toys for young boys and girls at the charity's base in Cherry Garden Hall on Southwark Park Road all donated by local people from Bermondsey and Rotherhithe - but would still like people to give more if they can.

Love North Southwark is also running a fundraiser alongside the toy drive, with the money to be used for more gifts - and Bermondsey and Rotherhithe mental health charity the Proper Blokes Club have decided to pitch in.

The group, which aims to support local men's mental health by running regular walks in the area and further

afield, is taking a group down to the south coast this Saturday (November 27) for a fifteen-mile trek from Eastbourne to Hastings.

Scott Oughton-Johnson, who founded the group, told the News: "We do these walks anyway and we thought it would be a great cause to help support.

"We've got so many families and kids in the area who might be struggling, there'll be so many kids who are excited for Christmas and we wanted to do something to help."

Kathleen said that the toy drive would probably get toys for about 40 more children this year than in 2020, its first year - a sign of the generosity of local people but also perhaps the growing hardship amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

If you want to donate a new toy, please take it to the Cherry Garden Hall at the corner of Southwark Park Road and Jamaica Road by December 14.

If you would like to donate money, search online for 'Love North Southwark toy drive'.

www.southwarknews.co.uk/news

NEWS 23

Engineering young minds at new Rotherhithe university More than 100 children from a Rotherhithe primary school learned about engineering on a tour of a local university earlier this month.

Year 5 and 6 pupils from Alfred Salter Primary were given a tour of TEDI-London, a small specialist engineering university that only opened in September.

Upon arrival, the pupils were given a brief presentation to learn about what the term ‘engineering’ means and learned about how engineers have improved everyone's lives.

Children also shared their own thoughts on other ways in which engineering might have shaped the way that they live as well as considering current problems that future engineers may be able to help solve.

Children got to meet staff and see

how machines like 3-D printers and laser cutters work. Pupils were enthusiastic about what they saw, and a couple even asked if they could study at TEDI-London in future.

Eleanor Prestage, Headteacher at Alfred Salter Primary School; “The visit to TEDI-London's campus was a fantastic opportunity for our Year Five and Six students. As well as thoroughly enjoying their visit, speaking to the TEDI-London team and learning about the equipment on-site helped them to broaden their learning and start thinking about their futures. Many of our pupils saw the campus gradually being built during the earlier months of this year, so to be able to visit and gain a better understanding of why it is there and how it is used was particularly exciting for them.”

24 OPINION

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Comment

READERS’ VIEWS Helen Hayes MP ‘Our councils are doing a better job on climate change than the government’

Moving to the winter Solstice

A

typical pattern of autumn weather settled over October – bringing heavy showers and blustery winds with fine sunny days in between.

And as November began high pressure moved in with colder, brighter conditions – perfect gardening weather. We are quickly moving to the start of winter - the Solstice is just over five weeks away.

Tree shapes and the colours of bark and stems are beginning to reveal themselves as the leaves fall and the winter garden begins to take shape.

Cornus alba (Dogwood), now without leaves, has become very noticeable providing a flash of colour and shiny, smooth red stems. The Silver birch always has a luminosity, with leaves that shimmer in summer breezes; but in winter with the foliage gone the bark and branches seem almost transparent. The unscented winter Jasmine starts flowering in November on bare stems; some of the Witch Hazels can begin flowering this month.

Evergreen shrubs provide contrast and a backdrop to the winter garden - and some flower, many like the Hebe will flower throughout the season. Elaeagnus has tiny white flowers, almost invisible, but the perfume is sweet and fills the air with spicy aroma.

There are about five months over autumn and winter (November to March) when fruit trees can be planted. Even if you have a small garden - or none - it is possible to grow an apple or pear, perhaps a cherry, plum or peach tree. There are many dwarf varieties available now specifically developed for small gardens, patios and containers. It is rewarding to grow fruit trees; and depending on where they are planted, requirements

Closing roads under the name of Ltns, and pushing traffic down other roads causing more congestion and pollution in other areas is not the way to do it Terry Blackley, via Facebook

Yet more #BlahBlahBlah and #WilfulBlindness here - #Southwark and #Lambeth demolition trajectory is off the scale and everyone knows it. Someone needs to get some backbone and challenge this #Climatedisaster policy DemolitionWatchLd, via Twitter

Three women punched by lone man on Jamaica Road in Bermondsey in series of unexplained attacks Anyone around dockhead if u fill threatened or unsafe come into ship aground and we will get u home safely XX Michael Jarman, via Facebook

Bridget, via Twitter

can be simple with specific needs - regular watering in summer, feeding in spring, light seasonal pruning (dependent on type of tree).

So, as winter closes in and less time is spent outside, think about choosing your fruit trees, redesigning or adding plants to the borders or preparing seasonal window boxes. This year I planted a collection of colourful miniature Thymes including ‘Doone Valley’ which has green and gold variegated foliage, and ‘Hartington Silver’ a little creeping Thyme with cream leaves (white flowers in spring); I also added alpine Sisyrinchiums – a simple, but attractive window box display.

Work in the garden varies at this time and is dependent on the weather; leaf clearing will be at the top of the list until December, maybe later as the trees are still holding their leaves.

If you have a greenhouse, clearing and tidying is a job for a bad weather day.

Remove dead blooms from the container grown Violas, Pansies and Primroses to encourage continued flowering.

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Except.. southwark council are building over parks and green spaces .. maybe it was just a top priority for the headlines The Ingented, via Twitter

Would watch the series...

Chris Vallance, via Twitter

Secrets of Elephant and Castle's notorious all-women gang revealed in new book Should make a film about these ladies…..

Bill Dixson, via Facebook

52 new Southwark Council homes voted through in planning meeting rocked by interruptions and arguments Council are a joke!!…..no one voted for it but they still going ahead with it!!! They need to first maintain the estate and building already there before planning to add more!!!

Ibrahim Meme, via Facebook

Coming to every council estate in Southwark eventually Rita Beales-Welch, via Facebook

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LPs AND SINGLES - WHOLE COLLECTIONS WELCOME

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No joined up thinking. Displaced traffic has to drive further in jams created by LTNs causing pollution and creating terrible air quality issues that break the WHO regulations.

Classified and community notices

Please contact us and let us help you

Building on a car park or garages is fair enough but the loss of green space is nothing short of scandalous.

47 Ridley Road, Dalston E8 2NP

Call: 07956 832314 / 020 8677 6907 Or Email: vinylwanted@aol.com ALSO INTERESTED IN NON CHART CD COLLECTIONS

'Radical but peaceful': former Southwark Mayor Bill Skelly dies aged 89 Rest in peace Bill Skelly what a lovely man everyone that I know who knows Bill would say he was kind generous with his time to talk to people special about the old times it was a down-to-earth man he would spend time in Southwark pension centre in Camberwell also you would find him in Ruskin Park in the summer listening to the music from the bandstand Tony Squires, via Facebook

A great man and a great Mayor of our borough.

It will be a privilege to join the memorial service for him on 25th November.

Simon Hughes, via Twitter

Our key activities helping local people make life better: Bede Learning Disabilities Service, Bede Youth Adventure Project, Bede Starfish Domestic Violence Project.

www.bedehouse.org , tel: 0207 237 3881

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.southwarknews.co.uk/letters

OPINION 25

Can Southwark truly achieve climate justice?

Y

esterday’s council assembly, when all 63 councillors gathered together, took ‘climate justice’ for its theme, in the wake of COP 26 meeting in Glasgow earlier in the month.

Justice is a loaded word that can mean different things to different people. Generally, climate justice means that addressing climate change and cutting carbon emissions will help people in their day-to-day lives right now, rather than just ‘saving the world’, in an abstract, future sense.

This could mean lowering air pollution by promoting active travel, which aims to reduce the risk of people inhaling poisonous fumes, and also help us get healthier by exercising more through walking and cycling, for example.

Or it could mean cutting the risk of flooding people out of their homes, which the council says it has done in various places across the borough - although Extinction Rebellion campaigners warn the problem is still there.

Most people can agree these are great things. But on more specific, more controversial questions, does the definition of ‘climate justice’ still have to be agreed upon by everyone?

Cllr Helen Dennis, who leads the council’s efforts on climate change, said this week that councillors were committed to “leading by example” in the borough and bringing businesses and community groups with them.

When asked about the protests against the borough’s low traffic neighbourhoods, such as the recent event in Dulwich that gathered about 1,000 people, she said that any time people were asked to make changes to their lifestyles there would be “challenges”.

This raises a difficult question. The vast majority of people can agree that the climate crisis needs to be tackled now, and, laudably, Southwark Council has set out a wide range of measures in a variety of areas to get started. But should the council be trying harder to get Southwark residents to buy into these schemes, to truly achieve ‘climate justice’?

Redriff Primary School Salter Road, London SE16 5LQ www.redriff.southwark.sch.uk 020 7237 4272

After School Club Play Worker Would you like to join an exciting and enthusiastic primary school and After School Club, providing support and leading activities after school?

Would you like to work with a highly skilled team that provides outstanding education to its children and invests in their staff?

This role will provide support and assistance in the day to day operation of the After School Club, delivering programmes of activities and contributing to the smooth running of our wrap-around care.

• • • •

We are looking for someone with experience in:

Working with 3 to 11 year olds • Delivering equal opportunities in a play setting Understanding the varied needs of children and families Providing and facilitating safe, stimulating play Working in a childcare or play-based situation

Redriff Primary School (City of London Academy) is an outstanding school and as such we are looking to ensure our After School Club provision is interesting, valuable and appropriate to the children using the facility. This role will provide a variety of play, sports and learning opportunities and a key responsibility will be to maximise the learning value of the activities through planning and evaluation. The role also requires some food preparation and cleaning of equipment. Working hours 15:00 – 18:00 Monday – Friday.

You will work closely in a collaborative team led by the After School Club Manager and receive a full induction. We are an enthusiastic and friendly team and part of an outstanding school. This post is suitable for those pursuing a career in working with children and families, aspiring teachers or future school direct candidates.

Starting salary will be on City of London Academies Trust JE2, scale point 1-5. FTE salary of £21,815 - £23,425. Actual salary is £8,138 - £8,739 The successful candidate will have a minimum of a C grade in GCSE Maths and English and good IT skills. Training in Food Hygiene is desirable, although not essential.

If you are interested in an informal discussion about the post, please email Jodie Marvin via vacancies@redriff.southwark.sch.uk For more information about the school and to download an application pack, please see our website www.redriff.southwark.sch.co.uk

City of London Academies Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff to share this commitment and to undergo appropriate checks, including enhanced DBS checks and a willingness to demonstrate commitment to the standards which flows from City of London Academies Trust vision and values.

The role is covered by part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 and therefore the ability to speak fluent spoken English is an essential requirement for this role.

City of London Academies Trust supports Equal Opportunities Employment.

City of London Academies Trust Company Registration No. 04504128.

Closing date for applications: 30th November 2021 Interviews will take place during week commencing 6th December 2021cl

CRYPTIC PUZZLE Clues Across 1 Do such people never take a quick look? (4 7) 9 It should look well ahead (3) 10 Shrimps? She’ll try to catch her own (9) 11 Places where the collection is brought back (5) 13 The chief one in charge is old fashioned (7) 14 They just don’t have winning ways (6) 16 Struggle to bring the rest round about four (6) 18 Hesitate to speak? (7) 19 If such a cap fits, the dunce should wear it (5) 20 In debt finished, even? (9) 21 How to find the person (3) 22 This slyness has up to date good looks (11)

Clues Down

2 You think it’s in but it’s not (3) 3 They are simply breathtaking (5) 4 Might it get ahead of the polar explorer? (6) 5 Pluto’s pet is a real hag (7) 6 No plait, ie the result of a close shave (9) 7 Card game the French prevent in small US town (7,4) 8 Smart little Kenneth gets the company to work (on egg production?) (7,4) 12 It’s made by willing people (9) 15 Change can make me older (7) 17 They sound good men in the kitchen (6) 19 A big shot in the church? (5) 21 Is no longer (3)

QUICK PUZZLE Clues Across

Clues Down

1 Superficially emotional (11) 9 Eccentric (3) 10 Instruction (9) 11 Brazilian dance (5) 13 Oozing (7) 14 Whimsical (6) 16 Struggle (6) 18 Tolerates (7) 19 Principle (5) 20 Salt of carbonic acid (9) 21 Sickly pale (3) 22 Searchers for oil or gold (11)

2 Terminate (3) 3 Greek letter (5) 4 Type of dessert (6) 5 Closest (7) 6 Violent motion (9) 7 Effect (11) 8 Exciting curiosity (11) 12 Wanderer (9) 15 Decreases in width (7) 17 Get free (6) 19 Robbery (5) 21 Conflict (3)

Solutions to last week’s crossword Cryptic

ACROSS: 1 Refrain 5 Casts 8 Trip 9 Envisage 10 Proliferating 13 Herb 14 Urge 17 Feather duster 19 Rehearse 20 Upas 21 Surge 22 Adverse DOWN: 2 Errors 3 Repulse 4 Ineffable 5 China 6 Seaside 7 Sleight 11 Roundhead 12 Informs 13 Heather 15 Gesture 16 Relays 18 Heave

Quick

ACROSS: 1 Caustic 1 Recur 8 Ache 9 Dumbbell 10 Horse chestnut 13 Gnat 14 Ever 17 Interrogation 19 Eyesight 20 Exit 21 Tests 22 Schemer DOWN: 2 Anchor 3 Stepson 4 Indicator 5 Robes 6 Cleaner 7 Related 11 Energetic 12 Trident 13 Gathers 15 Extreme 16 Polite 18 Ruins

26 FAMILY ANNOUNCEMENTS

www.southwarknews.co.uk

Family ANNOUNCEMENTS

Memorial

Death Announcement

Madeleine Drayton BerylJoyce Pamela formerly Russell, born 1/11/1923 died at home Seton 29 Upland Road SE22 25th November 1938 - 23rd July 2015 on the 9/6/2020 age 97.

Born to the late Edward and Norah Russell.

Married to the late Victor Drayton.

No children. Legal secretary, correspondent to many, a lifelong supporter of Arsenal football club. Sadly missed.

To Mum on her Birthday loved and remembered every day Lots of love always, Stephen, Lindsey, Frances, Edwina, Jackie, Billy, John, John, Grandchildren & Great Grandchildren xxxx

Memorial MURPHY

Jessie Julia Treasured memories of our very precious Mum, who fell asleep November 27th 2015.

We miss you so very much.

Now together with George.

From your loving Family. xxx

Announcements must be placed by 4pm on the Tuesday before Thursday’s publication

To place a funeral annoucement, birthday, death notice, birth, anniversary or memorial in the paper, please email dan@southwarknews.co.uk and he will price it up for you.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

What is planned for the albin’s annual christmas memorial service?

By Kevin Quinn

kevin@southwarknews.co.uk Thousands of people are expected to return and attend the Christmas memorial service at Bermondsey funeral directors Albin’s – after it was only held online last year due to lockdown.

All of the usual much-loved parts of the service will return this Wednesday, December 1. The gates will open at 6pm for a 7pm start at the memorial garden on the edge of Southwark Park.

Before opening words by owners Simon and Jon Dyer there will be a screening from Child Bereavement UK charity.

There will be readings, a soloist and poetry, Christmas carols to sing along to and people’s personal messages written on stars will be hung on a massive Christmas Tree in the garden, with the release of doves. Local clergy will give some final words before a fireworks display and the offer of soup, mulled wine, mince pies and bread pudding.

People are now invited to write their personal messages on the stars. You can visit the memorial garden at 52 Culling

Road, Rotherhithe, London, SE16 2TN from now until the service to write your message.

And if you cannot get to the garden email your message to stars@albins.co.uk. There is a maximum of twenty words.

This is the 22st annual memorial service, which was established by the late Barry

Albin-Dyer after getting the garden built in 1999 and has twice played host to the Princess Royal.

You can stream the service from 7pm on Wednesday December 1, by logging in to www.albins.co.uk and following the link. You can watch the service from any time after this.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Getting To Grips With Privilege

The nights are drawing in as we fall firmly into the grip of autumn and to light up our evening David Adkin & Panorama Productions bring Young Jean Lee’s Straight White Men to the Southwark Playhouse, writes Christopher Peacock..

From now on any future Shakespeares have to be liberally doused with Britney Spears before I venture into a theatre showing The Bard’s plays, writes Michael Holland.

Having experienced ‘& Juliet’, the hi-energy musical that continues the Romeo & Juliet story from where Shakespeare left off, has given me new hope of William’s work as long as music meister Max Martin is involved to sprinkle it with his pop-song magic.

Anne Hathaway tells her husband that she does not like the ending of Romeo & Juliet and that she wants him to change it and ‘give Juliet more of a voice’. Will is, of course, reluctant to part with his quill. Anne then points out that there are no happy marriages in his plays and wonders if he is merely portraying their own strained relationship for the amusement of his audience, which puts him on the back foot. He succumbs but still wants to write the play his way. Cue the Backstreet Boys’ song, I Want It That Way. Henceforth, the show switches between the new version of R&J and the travails of Mr & Mrs Shakespeare’s personal life - Which is hilarious because Cassidy Janson (Hathaway) has a real feel for comedy.

Juliet attends her beloved Romeo’s funeral only to find a multitude of

banker, make up the trio.

The brothers try to help Matt work through what they deem might be his issues without ever getting to the bottom of any. The play’s climactic finish is where all the drama lies.

The jockish joking and reminiscing of the first few scenes help lay the foundation for their relationships as siblings, but it is the final scene where they all get to say their truth.

The strongest performances came from Mugnaioni as Jake, a man who

is well aware of his privilege and still utilises it to progress his career, and Condou playing a man a mere shadow of his much hyped and lauded younger self. The play’s strength comes from the knowledge the three boys have been raised with self-awareness and an understanding of privilege. n 2014 we were getting to grips with the notion that toxic masculinity plagues straight white men.

Thankfully, since then we have been moving into a space where men can

Photo by Johan Persson

Written and initially produced in 2014, further productions by Steppenwolf Theatre and Marin Street theatre eventually led to a run on Broadway. Born out of Young Jean Lee’s discussions about straight white men with people of the LGBTQ+ community in New York, the show’s driving premise being that if privilege is problematic, what is the value of being a straight white man?

In previous productions, the preshow included sexually explicit female rap, and you would be guided through it by a gender non-conforming stagehand-in-charge. This time music was from these shores in the form of grime artist Lioness and they chose to have two such persons-in-charge who were tasked with setting the scene and running the show. They also had brief appearances in between scenes, which I personally don’t feel added much.

The play itself is about three adult brothers being home with their dad Ed for Christmas. Each brother has a different outlook on life in modern society. Charlie Condou plays Matt who has moved back in with his dad with ambition and life seemingly on pause. Cary Crankson playing Drew, a writer with no novel, and Alex Mugnaioni as Jake, an ambitious

Pop goes the William grieving women and men dripping tears on the tomb! A trip to Paris to forget Romeo and move on with her life seems to be in order. Here she meets Francois de Bois and within a day they are planning a wedding.

Quick, but not much better than the four days she knew Romeo, and we all know how that ended… Britney’s ‘Oops! I Did It Again’ kicks in: Oh, Baby, Baby, I made you believe we’re more than just friends… There is, however, a problem: Francois is gay and in love with a boy, and Anne Hathaway is not happy with this turn of events because

she wanted Juliet to grow, experience life, and not make the same mistake twice.

So, while the unhappy couple are sorting out that little Tempest in a teacup, William brings back Romeo from the dead and upsets all the wedding plans. Plus, Romeo now has to answer for all the cheating and lying he did in a previous life.

Yes, David West Read’s script has taken a liberty with Shakespeare’s work but not to mock but to pay homage. Yes, it is funny, but it is fun.

Each well-known song was greeted

ARTS 27

in Southwark

open up and show empathy freely without judgement. That said, we still have further to go in a world where we all, even straight white men, can be our authentic selves.

Southwark Playhouse, 77-85 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6BD until December 3rd.

Times: 8pm, matinees 3pm.

Admission: £22, £18.

Booking: 020 7407 0234 https://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk

with applause as soon as the crowd heard the opening lyrics. Those who knew them would be mouthing the words, eyes wide open at the spectacle of colour and sound on the stage. & Juliet also pays homage to the great pop songs that Max Martin has been part of and which lift the tragedy of the star-crossed lovers into a world where everyone gets their happy ending.

And on that journey we enjoy great songs, brilliant choreography, superb singing, the joy of seeing Romeo’s grin-making entrance and Juliet’s raised-platform finale where we knew she had finally found happiness and collectively welled up.

And that happiness crept throughout the whole audience like a rolling mist on the moauntain tops. The couple next to me exuded an aura of pride as they cheered and clapped and whooped every time Juliet ended a song because that couple was the proud parents of the star, MiriamTeak Lee. And it was they who took the plaudits after the cast had finished their final bows as we all crowded round to say how great she was.

Shaftesbury Theatre, 210 Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2H 8DP until June 25th 2022. Times: 7.30pm; matinees 2.30pm.

Admission: £22.50 - £99.50.

Booking: www.andjulietthemusical.co.uk @julietmusical

Photo by Pamela Raith Photography

what’s on

www.southwarknews.co.uk/arts

The Ever-Evolving House of Dreams The House of Dreams is exactly that for Stephen Wright, the artist who wanted to leave something permanent behind, has turned his East Dulwich home into an ever-evolving artwork, writes Michael Holland.

On entering, my immediate thought was that it was an overload of madness from an unhinged mind, but once your eyes and mind settle you begin to feel at one with the strange surroundings.

You see objects and text that you can relate to from your own life and you start to feel at home.

And this feeling of belonging is helped along by Stephen and his partner Michael who are keen to answer all your questions, and if you have none then they will ask about you, all the time creating an atmosphere of a warm and heartfelt welcome.

The objects that go to creating the House of Dreams are often dropped off by people who know that their once-adored doll or a loved one’s ashes will be continue to be treasure.

It has become ‘a depository for DNA…’ Plus, Stephen and Michael go on adventures to seek out new bric-abrac in far-flung places such as Haiti, India, Mexico and France, and these foreign influences can be seen in various places about the house. There are nods towards voodoo, and hints of South American Day of the Dead celebrations, while meditative sitar music is played to help one’s mind drift off.

The house has been bequeathed to the National Trust, so it will be Stephen’s legacy to the nation. But until that time he is continually working on the back garden and the rooms. It has become his life and is never-ending.

The House of Dreams is unique.

Not only for what it is but for how it creates different emotions in visitors.

I certainly felt different coming out than I did entering, plus, I know that the house will not be the same next time as the artist continues to work on it, so my feelings will change accordingly.

This unconventional home should be seen and enjoyed at least once, though I fear that once will not be enough.

House of Dreams, 45 Melbourne Grove, East Dulwich, SE22 8RG. Admission: £12.

Booking: www.stephenwrightartist.com

28 HISTORY

www.southwarknews.co.uk/history

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

History The toy collection now

UK’s oldest toy shop started off in walworth

The collection of the most famous toy theatre maker has been passed down through generations, from Walworth to all over London since the early 1800s. Now it resides in the oldest toy museum in the country, writes Charles Harrison...

John Kilby Green made and sold toy theatres and plays in Walworth from 1834 to 1851. He was known for being prolific in his work, which involved etching the toy theatres into metal plates that would then be used to create paper theatres.

When John passed in 1860, his printing plates were left to his former agent John Redington, who went on to create a successful business out of them. John’s daughter Eliza then married Benjamin Pollock, at which point the business was passed to him.

Pollock traded for 60 years - from 1877 to 1937. At this time the shop, still featuring John Green’s now one hundred year old printing plates, was in Hoxton. However, when the blitz hit London in WW2, Pollock’s daughters sold the building and moved on just in time - for a V2 rocket destroyed the building shortly after they did so.

Following financial struggles, by 1952 Pollock’s business had stopped trading in its new location in Covent Garden. In a stroke of luck, mother Marguerite Fawdry was looking to buy a new wire slide for her son’s toy

The prints by John Green theatre. After ringing up the shop, she was told that not only could she buy one wire slide - she could buy the entire stock.

Marguerite did so, and set up a shop and museum in Covent Garden.

Since then the collection of toys has grown and grown, and after moving to Fitzrovia in Camden in 1969, Pollock’s Toy Museum has become

the largest of its kind in the country, with over 7,000 toys. John Green’s paper theatres remain at the heart of the collection.

Today, Marguerite’s great-grandson Jack looks after the collection with his partner, having himself learned the art of toy theatre-making in Camberwell School of Arts, in the same London borough as John Green popularised it

just under 200 years ago.

“It’s amazing working here,” said Jack. “I don’t really know anything else, but it’s a different world and it’s great to be surrounded by lots of lovely things.

“I’d really encourage anyone to come and lose themselves in the museum for a day.”

The museum will be hosting a

number of winter events, including Victorian-style projector shows, handpainted slides on the wall, and latenight magic shows.

Meanwhile, an exhibition by designer Emma Carlow, inspired by Pollock’s, will be featured until the New Year, with some items for sale.

Emma will also be running paper craft workshops in the museum.

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.southwarknews.co.uk/food

FOOD 29

Food

brood

1-6 Green Dragon Court, Borough Market, SE1 9AW 0207 403 7500 www.broodrestaurant.com

London is a busy town with busy people going about their business on a daily basis - even Sundays, which is when we were out for a trip up the Shard to look down at our home town of Bermondsey and have a spot of lunch in Borough Market, where we found Brood, the alfresco brainchild of Mark Stembridge serving up food of the highest order, writes Michael Holland..

We were initially attracted by an exceedingly long, but fast-moving queue snaking its way back into the market.

Intrigued, we walked along the length of it thinking it must be something to do with an event in Southwark Cathedral, but it diverted down Green Dragon Court and we began to sense different aromas wafting our way, and just as the cathedral bell struck one for lunch we were witness to an amazing theatre of cooking in an open plan kitchen the width of two railway arches where stews, paella, burgers, hotdogs and a whole world of food was being prepared for the customers.

Fortunately for us the queue was for those busy people wanting something hot on the go so they could continue their sight-seeing, and we found a table where we ordered mulled wine, merlot and a Coke.

It was at the table that Mr Stembridge introduced himself and I could see straightaway that he was one of your own, so it didn’t take long to work out that we grew up at opposite ends of Jamaica Road. Mark, I soon discovered, is from a Tooley Street family of restaurateurs and cooks and has travelled the world working in the catering industry.

Mark then gave us the backstory to Brood, which he established in 1999. In 2018 he decided on called in Rotherhithe firm, Rose Design, to do major renovations, inside and out, with the tableware, menus and uniforms also getting a design makeover. Of course, Covid didn’t help but all the planned work is just about done and this new look Brood is very much up and running.

In our snug corner by the cathedral wall, and warmed by our hot toddies, we were ready to eat, and our meals arrived in no-nonsense hot boxes that we could have taken away or stayed seated. We sat and I listened to three other reviews of the food while I was forming my own: ‘I’ve never tasted squid cooked so perfectly’; ‘How can you get lamb so tender?’; ‘I’ve never seen so much seafood in one meal - are you sure this box is not for two people?’; ‘I can’t eat all that - I’m taking the rest of that home for my tea,’ said my

Brood is a breed apart

no-nonsense Mum, while our resident teenager just made grunts that we have come to recognise as noises of appreciation.

The squid really was about the best I can recall tasting, the lamb was truly succulent, and the hot boxes are packed full of rice and salad along with the meat or seafood. Plus, I’ve not even mentioned the prawns. There were so many the teenager’s grandmother, who would lose an arm rather than give up a prawn, was handing them out willynilly: ‘Taste these bad boys,’ she was at it whilst fuelled by a glass of red.

Brood is buzzing, it is right in the mix of market life, with the cathedral

as a backdrop and its newly refurbed railway arches the heart of the restaurant.

The dinner menu is far more extensive than lunch, which caters for those on the move, so we are already planning a return visit to once again watch these stars of the culinary theatre put on an evening show. Mark explained that he has combined his own experiences with his mum’s extensive knowledge to create a new, exciting dinner menu, and includes family favourites from the various homelands of his team.

I can’t wait to get back there and once again sample Brood’s top-notch alfresco dining.

the damage Mulled Wine x 2 Merlot x 2 Coke Box 1 Lamb Kofte Box 4 Seafood x 2 Paella Skin on Fries Halloumi Fries

£11.00 £17.00 £1.80 £9.50 £19.00 £9.00 £4.00 £5.50 TOTAL £76.80

Food . . . . . . . . . .

Value . . . . . . . . . .

Ambience . . . . . . . .

Disabled Access . . . . . . . . Yes Disabled Toilet . . . . . . . . . Yes Booking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No Opening Hours: Monday 9am–5pm Tuesday - Thursday 9am–10pm Friday 9am–11pm Saturday 9am–10pm Sunday 10am–5pm

16-18 and looking to start college?

C

M

Y

CM

MY

CY

CMY

Come and see what Bosco can offer you.

Places available for an immediate start in:

Business Child Care IT and Digital Media Sport

K

281 Jamaica Road, SE16 4RS 0207 232 0440 info@bosco.ac.uk

Find out about our courses, try taster sessions, enjoy our Winter Fair (and Xmas gifts) Waterloo Centre Sunday 5 December 11am-3pm morleycollege.ac.uk/opendays

Where London enjoys learning

32 PUBLIC NOTICES

www.southwarknews.co.uk

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 SECTION 14(1) (LYNDHURST WAY, SPA ROAD)

CONTROLLED PARKING ZONE ‘G’ REVIEW

(TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF TRAFFIC) 1.

The Council of the London Borough of Southwark hereby gives notice that to enable bridge inspection works to be carried out, it made, an order, the effect of which will be to prohibit vehicular traffic from entering part of the above named roads.

2.

Whilst the works are in progress, or whilst the authorised traffic signs are displayed, no person shall cause any vehicle to enter, proceed, stop, wait, load or unload in: (a) Lyndhurst Way, between No’s 65 to railway bridge (b) Spa Road, between Rouel Road and Frean Street

3.

The alternative route for affected traffic will be as indicated by the signs displayed.

4.

Exemptions will be provided in the Order to permit reasonable access to premises, so far as it is practical without interference with the execution of the said works.

5.

The restrictions will not apply to any vehicle being used in connection with the said works, or for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes or anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform.

6.

The works will be in operation for (2a) 6th – 7th December (2b) 7th – 10th December, both between the hours of 22:00hrs and 06:00hrs.

7.

Further information may be obtained by contacting Road Network Management at ttmo@southwark.gov.uk

Dated this 25th November 2021 Ian Law Traffic Manager London Borough of Southwark Network Management Traded Services Environment and Leisure 160 Tooley Street PO Box 64529 London SE1 5LX Ref: (2a) CAT-04-78-061221 (2b) XTD-02-60-071221 LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 SECTION 14(1) (SYDENHAM HILL, ARNSIDE STREET) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF TRAFFIC) 1.

The Council of the London Borough of Southwark hereby gives notice that to enable various works to be carried out by, Thames Water and SGN, it made, an order, the effect of which will be to prohibit vehicular traffic from entering part of the above named roads.

2.

Whilst the works are in progress, or whilst the authorised traffic signs are displayed, no person shall cause any vehicle to enter, proceed, stop, wait, load or unload in: (a) Sydenham Hill, north bound lane of carriageway, at it’s junction with Westwood Hill (b) Arnside Street, between Walworth Road and Horsley Street.

The London Borough of Southwark (Charged-for parking places) (CPZ G Review) Order 2021 The London Borough of Southwark (Free Parking Places, Loading Places and Waiting, Loading and Stopping Restrictions) (CPZ G Review) Order 2021 1. Southwark Council hereby GIVES NOTICE that on 18 November 2021 it has made the above orders under sections 6, 45, 46, 49 and 124 of and Part IV of Schedule 9 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, as amended.

2.The effect of the orders, following a review of existing parking controls in controlled parking zone ‘G’, are to extend the hours of operation to Monday to Sunday 8.30 am to 11.00 pm, by:(a) providing new consolidated ‘parent’ Traffic Orders for CPZ ‘G’ setting out the new operating hours for the zone; (b) to extend the hours of operation for all timed waiting restrictions (single yellow lines) to 8:30 am to 11 pm; (c) to formalise existing waiting restrictions in the following streets: BERMONDSEY WALL EAST, BEVINGTON STREET, EAST LANE, GEORGE ROW, JACOB STREET, LAFONE STREET, LAYARD ROAD, MARIGOLD STREET, SCOTT LIDGETT CRESCENT, SOUTHWARK PARK ROAD, WILSON GROVE, and WOLSELEY STREET; and (d) to formally correct the operating times of an existing loading bay in SHAD THAMES to operate ‘at any time’ (max stay 40 mins, no return within 2 hrs).

Note: No changes have been made to parking bay lengths, or the parking restriction type, throughout the zone. Existing car club parking places, disabled persons’ parking places, doctors parking, motorcycle parking and loading bays located in the zone would not be affected. Parking charges and permit information may be found https://www.southwark.gov.uk/parking.

3. Copies of the orders, which will come into force on 22 November 2021, and of all other relevant documents are available for inspection at Highways, Southwark Council, Environment and Leisure, 3rd floor hub 2, 160 Tooley Street, London SE1 2QH, by appointment only. Contact traffic.orders@southwark.gov.uk or 020 7525 3497 for booking details.

4. Any person desiring to question the validity of the order/s or of any provision contained therein on the grounds that it is not within the relevant powers of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 or that any of the relevant requirements thereof or of any relevant regulations made thereunder has not been complied with in relation to the order/s may, within six weeks of the date on which the order was made, make application for the purpose to the High Court.

Dated 25 November 2021 Dale Foden - Head of Service - Highways, Environment and Leisure Notice of Application for a Special Treatments Premises Licence made under Part II of the London Local Authorities Act 1991 and 2000 Please take notice that I Chris Robson Have made application to Southwark Council for a new Special Treatments Premises Licence in respect of Beauty by Eva Ltd, 157 Camberwell Road, London, SE5 0HB A register of all applications made within the Southwark area is maintained by: The Licensing Service, Hub 1, 3rd Floor, 160 Tooley Street, London, SE1 2QH Email: Licensing@southwark.gov.uk

Opening hours

Days Monday to Saturday

Start time 10:00

Finish time 19:00

A record of this application may be inspected by visiting the office during normal office hours by appointment on 020 7525 2000; details are also available on our website at http://app.southwark.gov.uk/licensing/licenseregister.asp

3.

The alternative route for affected traffic, (a) Westwood Hill, Jews Walk, Kirkdale, Wells Park Road (b) Walworth Road, Merrow Street, Queens Row.

4.

Exemptions will be provided in the Order to permit reasonable access to premises, so far as it is practical without interference with the execution of the said works.

For applications for Special Treatments Licences, there are no set objectives. However, the grounds for the objection must be relevant to the application and reasons for the objection must be given.

Representations must be made in writing to the Licensing Service at the office address given above and be received by the Service within a period of 28 days starting the day after the date shown below. http://www.southwark.gov.uk/business/licences/how-to-lodge-a-representation

5.

The restrictions will not apply to any vehicle being used in connection with the said works, or for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes or anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform.

Note: it is an offence to knowingly or recklessly to make a false statement in connection with an application. A person guilty of such offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

6.

The works will be in operation between the (a) 10th – 12th December (b) 6th – 22nd December

Date of application: 21st November 2021

7.

Further information may be obtained by contacting Road Network Management at ttmo@southwark.gov.uk

Dated this 25th November 2021 Ian Law Traffic Manager London Borough of Southwark Network Management Traded Services Environment and Leisure 160 Tooley Street PO Box 64529 London SE1 5LX Ref: (a) 5867/7036882 (b) SGN/THAMESdecember2021

To place a notice, please email: em@southwarknews.co.uk or call 07798 833758.

Deadline is 4pm on Tuesdays

Notice of Application for a Premises Licence made under Section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003 Please take notice that I / we Ahwaz Lebanese Restaurant Have made application to Southwark Council for a new Premises Licence in respect of 249 Old Kent Road, SE1 5LU The relevant licensable activities and proposed times to be carried on, or on from the premises are Days

Start time

Finish time

The retail sale of alcohol:

Sunday to Friday Saturday

09:00 09:00

03:00 04:00

The provision of late night refreshment:

Sunday to Friday Saturday

23:00 23:00

03:00 04:00

Opening hours:

Sunday to Friday Saturday

09:00 09:00

03:00 04:00

A register of all applications made within the Southwark area is maintained by: The Licensing Service, Hub 1, 3rd Floor, 160 Tooley Street, London, SE1 2QH A record of this application may be inspected by visiting the office during normal office hours by appointment on 020 7525 2000; details are also available on our website at http://app.southwark.gov.uk/licensing/licenseregister.asp It is open to any interested party to make representations about the likely effect of the application on the promotion of the licensing objectives. Representations must be made in writing to the Licensing Service at the office address given above (or by email via licensing@southwark.gov.uk) and be received by the Service within a period of 28 days starting the day after the date shown below.

Note: It is an offence to knowingly or recklessly make a false statement in connection with an application. A person guilty of such offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

Date of application: 27th October 2021

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.southwarknews.co.uk

PUBLIC NOTICES 33

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

CYCLEWAY 7 – SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD AREA

CLAUDE ROAD IMPROVEMENTS

The London Borough of Southwark (Bus priority) (Cycleway 7) Order 202* The London Borough of Southwark (Charged-for parking places) (Cycleway 7) Order 202* The London Borough of Southwark (Cycle lanes) (Cycleway 7) Order 202* The London Borough of Southwark (Free parking places and Waiting restrictions) (Cycleway 7) Order 202* The London Borough of Southwark (Prescribed routes) (Cycleway 7) Traffic Order 202* 1. Southwark Council hereby GIVES NOTICE that it proposes to make the above Orders under sections 6, 45, 46, 49 and 124 of and Part IV of Schedule 9 to the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, as amended (‘the 1984 Act’).

2. The effect of the Orders would be, on a permanent basis, to introduce prescribed routes/turns which will be physically enforced with traffic signs and any necessary changes to existing highway restrictions to accommodate the segregation of cycle route ‘Cycleway 7’ in the Southwark Bridge Road area:(a) in SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD to formalise an existing southbound bus priority lane on the east side between Southwark Bridge and its junction with Thrale Street, to operate ‘at any time’; (b) within CPZ ‘C1’ remove, (i) 10m ‘permit’ parking on the south side of AMERICA STREET, and (ii) 54m ‘pay’ bus parking on the north-west side of SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD (between its junctions with Southwark Street and Sumner Street); (c) in GREAT GUILDFORD STREET to introduce partially segregated north-west and north-eastbound mandatory contra-flow cycle lanes between its junctions with Southwark Bridge Road and Copperfield Street on the south-west, west and north-west side; (d) in SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD (i) consolidate all existing cycles lanes, (ii) amend existing cycle lanes on both sides between its junctions with Borough Road and Sumner Road to accommodate the segregation to sections of Cycleway 7, and (iii) introduce new sections of segregated ‘one-way’ cycle lane between a point 29.5m south-west of the common boundary of Nos. 2 and 2a Southwark Bridge Road and a point 22m north-east of that common boundary (a north-eastbound with-flow mandatory cycle lane on the north-western side, and a south-westbound with-flow mandatory cycle lane on the south-eastern side); (e)in SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD (i) remove all existing solo motorcycle parking on the north-west side, o/s Riverside House, No. 2a Southwark Bridge Road (23m in total); and (ii) on both sides o/s Nos. 1 and 2 Southwark Bridge Road, remove existing ‘short stay’ parking for the use of buses and coaches (58.5m in total); (f) to introduce a motor vehicle restriction in AMERICA STREET at its junction with Southwark Bridge Road; (g) in BELVEDERE BUILDINGS (i) revoke existing ‘one-way’ south-eastward operation between its junctions with King James Street and Southwark Bridge Road and introduce to introduce a motor vehicle restriction, in that part of Belvedere Buildings, (ii) re-define and consolidate an existing ‘oneway’ north-westbound operation (between King James Street and Webber Street) to include the exception for pedal cycles, and reinforce this north-westbound ‘one-way’ operation with ‘left turn’ only for all vehicles except pedal cycles in King James Street (at its junction with Belvedere Buildings), and ‘no entry’ from Webber Street into Belvedere Buildings for vehicles, except pedal cycles; (h) in DOYCE STREET revoke existing ‘one-way’ north-westbound operation and introduce a motor vehicle restriction throughout the full length of Doyce Street; (i) in SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD reinforce no access for vehicles except pedal cycles from Southwark Bridge Road, by introducing: (i) ‘no left turn’ into AMERICA STREET northbound, (ii) ‘no left turn’ into DOYCE STREET north-eastbound, (iii) ‘no left turn’ north-eastbound, ‘no right turn’ southwestbound, and ‘no entry’ (except for pedal cycles using a contra-flow cycle lane) into GREAT GUILDFORD STREET; and (j) to add new lengths and amend existing ‘at any time’ waiting restrictions (double yellow lines) to accommodate the above changes in AMERICA STREET, COLLINSON STREET, SCOVELL ROAD (at their junctions with Southwark Bridge Road) and SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ROAD (between Southwark Bridge, the boundary with City of London, and its junction with Borough Road).

NOTES: (1) These Orders supersede similar provisions at the above locations implemented by way of experimental Orders made under section 9 of the 1984 Act (which would be revoked); (2) Exemption to the restrictions described in (f) to (j) preceding, would be provided for emergency services vehicles and refuse collection vehicles; (3) ‘permit’ refers to parking places for holders of valid parking permits within the CPZ listed, and ‘pay’ refers to parking places in which paid ticket holders are permitted to park within the permitted hours. All measurements are in metres ‘m’ and are approximate. Parking charges are listed on www.southwark.gov.uk/parking.

The London Borough of Southwark (Charged-for parking places) (Claude Road) Order 2021 1. Southwark Council hereby GIVES NOTICE that on 25 November 2021 it has made the above Order under sections 45, 46, 49 and 124 of and Part IV of Schedule 9 to the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, as amended (‘the 1984 Act’).

2. The effect of the Order is, in CLAUDE ROAD south-west side (at the side of Russell Court, Heaton Road):(a) to reduce in length an existing permit-holders’ parking place in Controlled Parking Zone ‘B’ by 5.5 metres to accommodate a new car club parking place; and (b) to provide a new car club parking place, 5.5 metres in length for the leaving ‘at any time’ of a car club vehicle, in respect of which, there has been granted a valid car club permit.

3. Copies of the order, which will come into force on 29 November 2021, and of all other relevant documents are available for inspection at Highways, Southwark Council, Environment and Leisure, 3rd floor hub 2, 160 Tooley Street, London SE1 2QH, by appointment only. E-mail traffic.orders@southwark.gov.uk or call 020 7525 3497 for booking details.

4. Any person desiring to question the validity of the order or of any provision contained therein on the grounds that it is not within the relevant powers of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 or that any of the relevant requirements thereof or of any relevant regulations made thereunder has not been complied with in relation to the order may, within six weeks of the date on which the order was made, make application for the purpose to the High Court.

Dated 25 November 2021 Dale Foden - Head of Service - Highways, Environment and Leisure

Notice of Application to Vary a Premises Licence made under Section 34 of the Licensing Act 2003 Please take notice that I / we Planet Organic Ltd have made application to Southwark Council to vary the Premises Licence in respect of Planet Organic, 151-153 Tower Bridge Road, London, SE1 3LW The proposed variation is as follows: Change of operating hours on Sundays to 09:00 - 21:00

The retail sale of alcohol:

5. Anyone wishing to object to or make any other representations regarding the proposals, may use the form labelled 'Parking - Road traffic and highway schemes - responding to statutory consultation notices' at www.southwark.gov.uk/statutoryconsultationnotices or send a statement in writing to: the Traffic Orders Officer, Highways, Southwark Council, Environment and Leisure, P.O. Box 64529, London SE1P 5LX or by e-mail to traffic.orders@southwark.gov.uk quoting reference ‘TMO2122026_Cycleway 7’ by 16 December 2021. Please note that if you wish to object to this proposal you must state the grounds on which your objection is made.

6. Under requirements of current access to information legislation, any letter or e-mail sent to the Council in response to this Notice may be subject to publication or disclosure, or both, including communication to other persons affected.

Dated 25 November 2021 Dale Foden - Head of Service - Highways, Environment and Leisure

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Start time

Finish time

Sundays

09:00

21:00

A register of all applications made within the Southwark area is maintained by: The Licensing Service, Hub 1, 3rd Floor, 160 Tooley Street, London, SE1 2QH A record of this application may be inspected by visiting the office during normal office hours by appointment on 020 7525 2000; details are also available on our website at http://app.southwark.gov.uk/licensing/licenseregister.asp It is open to any interested party to make representations about the likely effect of the application on the promotion of the licensing objectives. Representations must be made in writing to the Licensing Service at the office address given above and be received by the Service within a period of 28 days starting the day after the date shown below. http://www.southwark.gov.uk/business/licences/how-to-lodge-a-representation Note: it is an offence to knowingly or recklessly to make a false statement in connection with an application. A person guilty of such offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

Date of application: 22nd November 2021 LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

3. For more information contact Colleen Gardner of the Council's Highways, Transport projects team highways@southwark.gov.uk .

4. Copies of this Notice, the proposed Orders, and a statement of the Council's reasons for making the Orders together with plans showing the location and effect of the Orders may be either: found online at www.southwark.gov.uk/trafficorders, or inspected by appointment only at: Highways, Southwark Council, Environment and Leisure, 3rd floor hub 2, 160 Tooley Street, London SE1 2QH - from the date of this Notice until the end of a period of six weeks from the date on which the Orders are made.

Contact traffic.orders@southwark.gov.uk (or 020 7525 3497) for booking details.

Days

ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 SECTION 14(1) (MELBOURNE GROVE, MISSION PLACE, WINCHESTER WALK, FRIERN ROAD) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF TRAFFIC) 1.

The Council of the London Borough of Southwark hereby gives notice that to enable various works to be carried out, by Conway, UKPN and Thames Water and Go Modular, it intends, to make an order, the effect of which will be to prohibit vehicular traffic from entering part of the above named roads.

2.

Whilst the works are in progress, or whilst the authorised traffic signs are displayed, no person shall cause any vehicle to enter, proceed, stop, wait, load or unload in: (a) Melbourne Grove, between Lordship Lane and East Dulwich Grove (b) Mission Place, between Peckham High Street to it’s blocked end (c) Winchester Walk, between Cathedral Street and Winchester Square (d) Friern Road, Southbound lane of carriageway, between Etherow Street and Lordship Lane.

3.

The alternative route for affected traffic (2a) ) East Dulwich Grove, Townley Road, Lordship Lane. (2b) not applicable (2c) Cathedral Street, Winchester Square (2d) Etherow Street, Lordship Lane

4.

Exemptions will be provided in the Order to permit reasonable access to premises, so far as it is practical without interference with the execution of the said works.

5.

The restrictions will not apply to any vehicle being used in connection with the said works, or for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes or anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform.

6.

The works will be in operation for (2a) 11th December (2b) 13th – 17th December (2c) 13th – 16th December (2e) 6th – 11th December with back up dates of the 13th – 18th December.

7.

Further information may be obtained by contacting Road Network Management at ttmo@southwark.gov.uk

Dated this 25th November 2021 Ian Law Traffic Manager London Borough of Southwark Network Management Traded Services Environment and Leisure 160 Tooley Street PO Box 64529 London SE1 5LX Ref: (2a) 5941/35446515 (2b) 5902/15523831/ 000811037680045-001 (2c) 5903/000811426360045-001 (2d) 5755/LBSCR12136/amendmenttodates

34 PUBLIC NOTICES

www.southwarknews.co.uk

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

LONDON BOROUGH OF SOUTHWARK

ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 SECTION 14(1) (GILKES PLACE)

TOWN & COUNTRY PLANNING ACT 1990 (as amended) PLANNING (LISTED BUILDINGS AND CONSERVATION AREAS) ACT 1990 (as amended) The planning applications listed below can be viewed on the planning register at https://planning.southwark.gov.uk/online-applications/ You can use facilities at your local library or 'My Southwark Service Points' to access the website.

How to comment on this application: You should submit your comments via the above link.

Comments received will be made available for public viewing on the website. All personal information will be removed except your postal address. Online comments submitted without an email address will not be acknowledged and those marked 'confidential' will not be considered. Written comments can be submitted to; Southwark Council, Chief executive's department, Planning division, Development Management, PO Box 64529, London SE1 5LX. Reason for publicity. The applications are advertised for the reasons identified by the following codes: AFFECT - development affecting character or appearance of a nearby conservation area; OR development affecting setting of a nearby listed building(s); DEP - departure from the development plan; EIA - environmental impact assessment (these applications are accompanied by an environmental statement a copy of which may be obtained from the Council - there will be a charge for the copy); MAJ - major planning application; STDCA - development within a conservation area; STDLB - works to or within the site of a listed building;

26 HALF MOON LANE LONDON SOUTHWARK SE24 9HU (Ref: 21/AP/3701) construction of 2 dormer windows to rear elevation & garage refurbishment including window and roof replacement (Within: Stradella Road CA) Reason(s) for publicity: STDCA (Contact: Winnie Wing Tse ) 113 ROTHERHITHE STREET LONDON SOUTHWARK SE16 4NJ (Ref: 21/AP/3717) External wall repointing, window replacement and door to the rear, repair roof and

replacing missing and damaged pitched roof tiles, rainwater goods, gantry repair and painting, redecoration of Juliette balconies, flat roof/atrium greenhouse, and other essential works. (Within: St Marys Rotherhithe CA) Reason(s) for publicity: STDCA (Contact: Tracy Chapman 020 7525 1948) Dated: 23 Nov 2021 comments to be received within 21 days of this date.

STEPHEN PLATTS - Director of Planning and Growth

(TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF VEHICLES) 1.

NOTICE IS HERBY GIVEN that to enable development works to be carried out by Aquinna Homes Plc or it’s appointed contractor, the Council of the London Borough of Southwark intends to make an order the effect of which would be to temporarily:-

2.

Prohibit vehicles from entering, proceeding, stopping, waiting and loading in a section of carriageway on Gilkes Place. The prohibition applies to 25 metres of carriageway from the junction of Gilkes Crescent.

3.

The alternative route for affected traffic will be via Dulwich Village, East Dulwich Grove, Gilkes Crescent.

4.

The Order will come into force on the 13th December 2021 and it is anticipated that the works will be completed by the 5th October 2022.

5.

The restrictions will not apply to any vehicle being used in connection with the said works, or for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes or anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform.

6.

Further information may be obtained by contacting Road Network Management at ttmo@southwark.gov.uk

Dated this 25th November 2021 Ian Law Traffic Manager London Borough of Southwark Network Management Traded Services Environment and Leisure 160 Tooley Street PO Box 64529 London SE1 5LX Ref: 5978/LBSHO12085

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Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.southwarknews.co.uk/sport

SPORT 35

dulwich hamlet fc

Winger inspires to Seal Hamlet win

johnk@southwarknews.co.uk DULWICH HAMLET bounced back from their 2-0 National League South defeat at Oxford City last weekend to defeat Welling United 3-1 at Champion Hill on Tuesday night and go through to the quarterfinals of the London FA Senior Cup.

Dulwich boss Gavin Rose gave debuts to academy graduates Jamal Abubakari, Alpha Diallo and Ned Bowker with another, Fikayo Atewologun, on the bench as the hosts came from a goal down in front of 719 fans in east Dulwich.

AJ Harris-Sealy was the star of the comeback with three assists but could have got his name on the scoresheet early on only for his fierce drive to crash back off the crossbar.

Harris-Sealy then set up James Dayton whose shot was blocked on the line.

Welling almost took advantage with Hamlet’s Jazzi Barnum-Bobb waiting to come back on after treatment for a facial injury. Referee Michael Chard failed to signal for a return to the pitch and Chi Ezennolim went down the Hamlet right where Barnum-Bobb would have been to play in Stefan Ilic who had only Charlie Grainger, but the Dulwich stopper saved with his feet.

Welling then took the lead against the run of play in the 24th minute as Bradley Stevenson fired past Grainger from eighteen yards.

That goal boosted the Wings’ confidence and on-loan Millwall defender Arthur Penney sent in a cross that Ilic headed just wide.

Five minutes before half-time, HarrisSealy was bundled over by Penney.

Players from both sides seemed to stop waiting for a whistle, but it didn’t come and Harris-Sealy quickly got to his feet to cross for Chike Kandi who finished via a deflection to make it 1-1.

Welling almost went back into the lead before the break but Joe Muscatt’s shot was blocked and Ezennolim couldn’t put

Surrey trio go Down Under

By Sports Reporter sport@southwarknews.co.uk SURREY BATTER Laurie Evans has signed for the Perth Scorchers to play in this year’s Big Bash League.

Reece Topley has signed to play for Melbourne Renegades and Tom Curran has joined the Sydney Sixers.

Evans said: “I am chuffed to bits to be given the opportunity to play for the Scorchers this summer, they are a really successful team in the Big Bash.

“I think over my career I have prided myself on being there at the end and winning games of cricket in tight situations, that’s what I’ll be looking to do.

“The Big Bash is certainly a tournament the world looks at as one of the biggest and I’m just really grateful to be given the opportunity to be a part of it.”

Academy graduate also on the mark on debut

Jamal Abubakari wheels away in delight after debut goal away the rebound.

Hamlet raced into a 3-1 lead inside four second-half minutes. Dayton’s brilliant pass found Harris-Sealy on the left and he fizzed in a low cross that was finished to the net by Kandi for his second.

Welling were then thankful goalkeeper Jack Sims didn’t see red after he took out Deon Moore ten yards outside the box, but the referee deemed the visitors had covering defenders. However, Welling weren’t spared full punishment as from the free-kick Sims spilled Harris-Sealy’s vicious strike and Abubakari was there to score on his debut and wheel away in

delight.

Welling tried to respond and Stevenson tested Grainger from a free-kick before former Hamlet player Danny Carr curled wide from 20 yards.

Hamlet almost added a fourth as Kandi went close to completing a hat-trick. The striker took a long pass from Dayton on his chest before rounding Sims but his attempt from a tight angle was cleared.

Another ex-Hamlet player, full-back Aaron Barnes, came on as a substitute and sent a cross in from the right that Carr volleyed over the bar from close range.

A minute later, Stevenson surged through the middle to set up Barnes only for the defender to shoot wide of the near post.

Barnes was in the thick of the action for the away side and thirteen minutes from time he cut in from the right to find Oshane Stewart whose drilled effort hit the far post.

That was the last scare for Dulwich who went closest to adding to the scoreline but Harris-Sealy and Barnum-Bobb had late shots blocked in the penalty area.

Hamlet travel meet the winners of the Hendon and Balham second-round

Peckham slump to home loss

By Sports Reporter sport@southwarknews.co.uk PECKHAM TOWN slipped to a disappointing 1-0 defeat to Kings Hill in their Kent County League Premier Division clash at The Menace Arena last weekend.

Peckham started well against a side struggling near the bottom of the table. Herve Mbongue had an effort blocked before Joshua Montella released Mustapha Hashemi down the left. He found Joe Thomas who sent Montella away but after rounding the goalkeeper he hit his effort into the side-netting.

Kevin Dance then fired towards goal before Montella was beaten to the loose ball.

The Menace continued to press

and Charlie Egleton had their next chance but couldn’t make the breakthrough.

Mbongue then failed to pick out Montella who was free in the box before Kings Hill were denied by the woodwork.

But the visitors got their noses in front in scrappy fashion after the break when the ball crept over the line following a goalmouth scramble from a corner.

Town tried to respond with Nicky Meta teeing up David Gabor but he shot over.

Peckham substitute Darren TitreWilson curled an effort wide before Dance surged down the left but no one could reach his cross and then Montella was denied again.

Mary Phillip’s side had two more chances in injury-time as Gabor

missed his kick from six yards out before Titre-Wilson’s attempt was saved.

Assistant manager Bryan Hall said: “A very disappointing day.

[The Menace Arena] is a tough place to come, and everybody that comes here lifts their game.

“But today for some reason, everyone was taking it so slow, and it just didn’t work.

“So it’s back to the drawing board, and we will push them hard in training on Tuesday and Thursday – and hope for a reaction.”

Second-place Peckham host Bromleians, who are sixth, this Saturday. Kick-off is 2pm.

Peckham have played two more games than leaders Red Velvet, who have maximum points from eleven fixtures this season.

tie. The last-eight game will take place before February 5.

Rose’s side travel to Brentwood Town in the second round of the FA Trophy this Saturday. Kick-off against the Isthmian League North Division side is 3pm.

Hamlet: 4-3-3: Grainger; BarnumBobb, Abubakari, Sterling, Blackman; Diallo, Splatt, Dayton; Harris-Sealy, Kandi, Moore.

Substitutes: Bowker (for Diallo), McQueen (for Kandi), Atewologun, McGregor (not used).

Fish set up Stans derby

By Sports Reporter sport@southwarknews.co.uk FISHER SET up a clash with rivals Stansfeld in the second round of the SCEFL Challenge Cup after beating Welling Town 2-1 at St Paul’s on Tuesday night.

Ajay Ashanike’s side responded after losing 4-0 to Bearsted in the SCEFL Premier Division last weekend.

Isaac Thompson scored from the penalty spot in the 31st minute before Adebola Sotoyinbo levelled through another penalty ten minutes later.

The home side got the winner through Matthew Nezval in the eighth minute of the first extra period.

The Fish will travel to the Stans, from the division below, in the next round on December 7.

Fisher are at Lordswood this Saturday in the SCEFL Premier Division. Kick-off is 3pm.

Photo by @Lockie_Photo_

By John Kelly

36 SPORT

www.southwarknews.co.uk/sport

johnk@southwarknews.co.uk MILLWALL LIONESSES midfielder Lottie Ivison is enjoying the “energy and togetherness” of the squad and praised the side for their performance in their recent FA Cup game against AFC Wimbledon.

Millwall held the side from the tier above goalless until ten minutes from time before their south London rivals struck twice to go through to the second round.

“I’m proud of everyone, to keep it all square for 80 mins against a team playing in a higher division just shows we are good enough to compete,” Ivison said. “It was a great game for us to see how far we have come as a team. Now we focus on the league and continue to work hard in training.

“Coming back into such a positive camp has been great, everyone is on such a high. The energy and togetherness brings focus and intensity into training, everyone’s working hard on and off the pitch.

“I’m so happy to be back and excited for the weeks ahead.”

That defeat against the Dons was a first under boss Jack Wheeler, who had enjoyed five straight wins since replacing Katie Whitmore.

Ivison added: “Jack coming in was so refreshing for us all, he is experienced and has been brilliant with us since his arrival.

“The work he is putting in is helping us develop as players which in turn is leading to better performances on the pitch. He is definitely a big part of why the energy is so high in camp.

“I think we prepared mentally very well as a team [for the Dons]. We knew it would be a tough game but we went out and competed very well.

“We knew they’d have the ball more and create lots of problems but throughout the game we remained resilient and while we’re disappointed in the result, we knew we left everything out there and I think the fans saw that at the end of the game.

“Ten minutes away from extra time hurts but it was an experience to learn from. We battled right until the end,

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Ivison pleased with her Lot

Millwall Lionesses

By John Kelly

Lionesses midfielder enjoying ‘energy’ as Millwall return to league action following FA Cup disappointment Lottie Ivison everyone worked so hard and gave all they had in the tank.

“Our keeper Chrissie [Wiggins] was different class at times keeping us in that game, she pulled off some amazing saves at crucial moments.”

The Lionesses are back in action in the

London & South East Women’s Regional Football League Premier Division this weekend when they take on Aylesford at St Paul’s.

Millwall are up to third in the table, level on points with Fulham and seven behind Ashford Town.

“As a team we want to win, we have a mindset that we are going out to win, this doesn’t change despite the score [against Wimbledon],” Ivison said.

“We will go back into training and put full focus towards Aylesford. We will continue to work hard and get back to

winning ways.

“Our focus is fully on this league and finishing as high as possible. There’s a buzz in the camp and we want this run in the league to continue.”

Kick-off this Sunday in Rotherhithe is 2pm.

Stans make history as fast start sets up progress johnk@southwarknews.co.uk STANSFLED MADE club history by beating Badshot Lea 2-1 last weekend to progress to the third round of the FA Vase.

It was Stansfeld who took the lead in the opening minute when the ball sat up nicely for Rob Hughes to hit on the volley 20 yards from goal and his effort flew into the back of the net and over the head of shell-shocked Badshot Lea goalkeeper Kallum Lunn.

Stansfeld’s impressive start to the game continued a few minutes later when Ollie Milton chipped Lunn from the edge of the box only to see his effort clip the post.

In the twelfth minute, Stansfeld increased their advantage when Joe Minter’s free-kick cannoned off the bottom of the bar but Milton was in the right spot to nod home the rebound to give the hosts a cushion and a dream start.

However, seven minutes later, Badshot Lea got a goal back from a free-kick on the edge of the box. The initial effort was

Photo by Alan Coomes

By John Kelly

Olle Milton heads in the second

blocked but Billy Upton was on hand a few yards out to head home to cut the deficit in half.

Badshot started to dominate the game.

They went close in the 31st minute when Dean Rule broke through but under

pressure from the Stansfeld defence his attempted lob went wide of the left-hand post.

Badshot kept pressing Stansfeld back and it was the home side who were glad to hear the half-time whistle.

Stansfeld had a couple of half-chances early in the second half when Milton fired a shot over the bar from 20 yards and hit another effort from a similar distance straight at Lunn.

Badshot Lea then went agonisingly

close when Marc Ford’s 25-yard free-kick hit the post.

As the game moved into added-time, Stansfeld had one final chance as Red Jenkins slipped through Jack Carthy whose effort from the edge of the box stung the hands of Lunn who managed to tip the ball over.

Stansfeld have been drawn at home to Frimley Green in the third round on Sunday, December 12.

Man of the match: Rob Hughes Stansfeld Reserves had a convincing 5-0 away win over local rivals Tudor Sports.

Stansfeld 3rds’ game against Farnborough OBG was called off just over an hour before kick-off after an outbreak of Covid-19 hit their opponents.

Stansfeld 4ths went out of the Cup 5-3 away against premier division Agenda.

This weekend’s games: Saturday, November 28 Stansfeld Reserves vs. New Romney (League; 2pm) Stansfeld 4ths vs. Ball or Nothing (League; 2pm)

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

www.newsatden.co.uk

MILLWALL 37

Fortune favours the Lions

Two slices of luck but Millwall show their resilience Championship report Middlesbrough - 1 Crooks 15’ Millwall - 1 Bamba 27’ (og) Date: Saturday 20 November 2021 Attendance: 20,845 Referee: Oliver Langford Man of the match: Bartosz Bialkowski

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk MILLWALL PROBABLY got away with it at Middlesbrough in more ways than one last Saturday.

The Lions survived an early surge from Boro to get back level and had Bartosz Bialkowski to thank for a number of good saves that earned them a point.

New Boro boss Chris Wilder felt Millwall were fortunate before their equaliser. Maybe Mason Bennett had

been watching the autumn rugby internationals because it was an impressive hand-off that floored Paddy McNair.

Bennett played the whistle, which didn’t come, much to the fury of Boro, and Millwall got more good fortune when an attempted clearance from Bennett’s low cross went in off Sol Bamba.

Middlesbrough had gone in front in the fifteenth minute and you couldn’t say it hadn’t been coming.

The Teessiders, unsurprisingly, played with real energy and pace under Wilder, who had had over a week-and-a-half to work with the squad after replacing the sacked Neil Warnock at the start of the international break.

Gary Rowett’s side were far too open early on, though, and Duncan Watmore had the hosts’ first chance when he was sent through but Bialkowski got down

low to save.

Boro did benefit from their own bit of fortune when Watmore’s cross deflected and looped to the back post, where Matt Crooks made a simple task slightly more difficult by heading the ball down into the ground from a couple of yards out, but it bounced in before Bialkowski could scramble across.

The Lions had come from behind five times to get at least a point this season and they responded well, with Benik Afobe causing panic in the penalty area and Bamba could only put his hands up to his head as he watched the ball trickle past Luke Daniels over the line.

Middlesbrough had to scramble the ball clear after defender Daniel Ballard had headed across goal from a free-kick.

Bialkowski then tipped over a fierce drive from Marcus Tavernier.

Watmore was Boro’s main threat and he set up Marc Bola but the attempt

went wide.

Onel Hernandez had another opportunity for Boro as Millwall failed to register a shot on goal in the second half. Wilder’s side had seven attempts on target to the visitors’ one and he will feel he should have marked a first win in charge at a new club at the first attempt after failing to do so at Oxford United, Northampton Town and Sheffield United.

Millwall are back in the north east again this weekend as they face Hull.

The Lions have lost just twice away from home this season.

“If you look over a two-and-a-bit-year period I don’t think there are too many Championship sides that have been in the league in that period that have taken more points than us,” Rowett said.

“I think we’ve been a very consistent team and part of that is our away form.

“Away from home I think it suits our

side since the 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest on September 25.

Ben Thompson wasn’t involved.

“We were a real attacking threat, but we are not doing enough to stop conceding goals just yet,” Nugent told Millwall’s website.

He also felt they could have scored more.

He said: “Even at 3-1 behind, we had about five chances to add to the score before we did through Kai and Nana.

“Our last three games have been like that, so there is a lot to work with going forward.”

Next up for Millwall’s under-23s is a home game against Bristol City on Tuesday, November 30.

Meanwhile, King’s Lynn Town confirmed that Jayden Davis had returned to Millwall after his loan this week.

Attacker Davis, 19, scored his first goal in senior football with the opener for National League King’s in their 3-2 defeat at Bromley last weekend.

It remains to be seen whether Davis will link up again with Nugent’s squad or head back out on loan.

style. 5-2-3, we can sit and wait and pick teams off with the likes of Jed Wallace, Benik Afobe, Mason Bennett, Sheyi Ojo. We’ve done it really well over a consistent period.

“Most clubs are the same, yes you want to win your home games but you have to pick up points everywhere in this division.”

Middlesbrough: 3-5-2: 28 Daniels; 17 McNair, 22 Bamba, 14 Peltier; 35 Jones (Hernández, 71), 25 Crooks, 16 Howson, 7 Tavernier, 27 Bola; 18 Watmore (Ikpeazu, 87), 11 Sporar (Coburn, 45).

Millwall: 3-4-3: 33 Bialkowski; 26 Ballard, 4 Hutchinson, 5 Cooper; 18 Leonard, 24 Mitchell, 17 Saville, Mitchell, 11 Malone; 7 J Wallace (Smith, 86), 23 Afobe (Kieftenbeld, 81), 20 Bennett (Ojo, 67).

Mahoney off injured in Tractor Boys thriller

By John Kelly Johnk@southwarknews.co.uk MILLWALL UNDER-23S showed their fighting qualities by coming back from 3-1 down at Ipswich Town on Monday – but boss Kevin Nugent has demanded defensive improvement.

The Lions were 2-0 and then 3-1 behind before storming back to go 4-3 up in the 80th minute before the Tractor Boys equalised in a thrilling Professional Development League clash.

The hosts went into an early 2-0 lead at Playford Road before Chin Okoli

pulled a goal back.

Ipswich restored their two-goal advantage quickly but Millwall hit back again through Kai Garande and Nana Boateng in three minutes to leave it level at half-time.

The Lions then looked set for a first away victory of the season, and in incredible fashion, when Tom Leahy put them in front for the first time in the contest ten minutes from time.

But in the 90th minute Ipswich made it 4-4 to complete a remarkable afternoon of scoring.

Senior player Connor Mahoney was named in the starting XI but went off with a hamstring injury at half-time.

He hasn’t played for Gary Rowett’s

Millwall: Wright, Smith, Garande, Allen, Okoli, Topalloj, Mahoney (Walker 46), O’Brien, Briscoe (Leahy 65), Abdulmalik, Boateng.

Subs not used: Hammond, Dailly, Hefzalla.

Jayden Davis is back at Millwall following his loan spell

38 MILLWALL Benik Afobe is a hugely positive influence in Millwall’s dressing room

www.newsatden.co.uk/

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

Benik: Keep dream going

Forward has scored against the world’s most expensive defender – now he’s targeting top-flight with Lions EXCLUSIVE

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk BENIK AFOBE’S favourite goal in his career was his first in the Premier League – and he reckons that if Millwall are in top-six contention in January he can get back there with the Lions.

Afobe, 28, joined AFC Bournemouth in a £10million deal from Wolves in January 2016 and scored in his second game for Eddie Howe’s side, the third in a 3-0 win at home to Norwich City.

Millwall have improved this season after a tricky start and before Wednesday’s game against the Cherries (after the News went to press) they were just three points off sixth.

However the result of that game went, Gary Rowett’s side have proven they can be a threat to the play-offs, despite a vastly inferior budget compared to a club like Bournemouth.

They have had to be astute in the transfer market, rather than being able to take gambles throwing big money at signings hoping it pays off.

A player like Afobe is a case in point regarding sourcing players on a tight budget. As well as scoring in the top flight, Afobe has been a prolific Championship scorer.

He scored 22 league goals in 43 second-tier starts for Wolves before Bournemouth splashed eight figures on him. The Lions got him on loan from Stoke.

Millwall have made their best start to a season since their return to the Championship in 2017.

And Afobe knows all about the club’s reputation as a strong second-half-of-theseason team.

“Last season and the season before were pretty good finishes but the aim is to be as close to the top six for as long as possible,” Afobe said. “I’m not going to sit here and tell you, yes, we’re going to make the play-offs.

“But if any team in the Championship this season who is in the top fourteen is not aiming for the play-offs then they might as well not turn up on Saturdays.

“The top two are looking strong but it’s a long, long season. We’re only a third of the way or so in and I don’t even think we’ve found great form yet, we’re nowhere near the finished article as a team.

“If we’re three points off the play-offs in January I think we’re real contenders” “What I’ve learned about Millwall is they usually have a better second half of the season. So the aim for us is to be in and around it from now until the end of December and then just off momentum and team cohesion we’re going to pick it up, for sure, in the second half of the season.

“If we’re three points off the play-offs in January I think we’re real contenders.

“We’ve had a good start. The gaffer mentioned to us it’s been the best start Millwall have had in the last four or five years.

“It’s now how we’re going to improve.

Not just as footballers but as human beings. You’re always trying to improve, whether that’s the manager, the kit-man, the players or the fans. We’re always improving.

“We’re not scoring enough goals so it’s about how do we get the opportunities to score more. We have been working on tactical and technical play and we talk.

Players talk. We don’t just turn up and go home.

“I know every single player in this squad is always, after training, analysing their own performances and thinking about how they can contribute better.

“The good thing about this squad is everyone is very self-critical about their own performances. We talk in the changing room even before training about how we can do better.

“The gaffer mentioned something to us the other day. In some games we’re better defensively and in some games we’re better attacking and not so good defensively. It’s just about getting the balance right. That’s when I think we’re going to crack it.”

Afobe loves the spirit at Millwall. That’s not just an intangible asset – the Lions had come back six times to claim points in the league this season before the game against the Cherries.

“We have a great tight bunch,” Afobe

said. “Everyone’s friends. We obviously haven’t got the financial capabilities of some teams in the league but what we build our strength on is lads being solid as a group.

“Us all being friends is great because when someone is not playing great or needs a bit of help, or a bollocking or a kick up the backside we’re not afraid to give it to them. Because it’s all love. We all want each other to do well.

“We’re a good team because we all stick together no matter what. To be honest with you, we don’t want to be coming from behind. I hope the next time we speak it will be a different type of question: ‘How do you lot hold on to leads so well?!’”

Afobe has lots of advice to pass on in the dressing room and is someone the likes of Mason Bennett seeks out. He also has some good stories about his time in the top flight. Not that he would boast – he’s a humble person – but he could tell his team-mates about the time he got the better of the defender who would become the world’s most expensive, Virgil Van Dijk.

Afobe scored against the now-Liverpool centre-back and Premier League and Champions League winner in a 2-0 win for Bournemouth over Southampton in March 2016.

Asked who the best defender he has ever played against is, he doesn’t hesitate.

“Van Dijk,” he says, before adding: “But, I did beat him and score the winning goal against Southampton a few years ago, so that’s my claim to fame!

“It was a big game for Bournemouth, obviously, Southampton being the southcoast derby. We beat them 2-0 and I scored a header, beat Van Dijk in the air.

“For me, that was one of my best games for Bournemouth.”

Afobe has also scored at Anfield and Selhurst Park, but he knows what his favourite goal is.

He says: “I’d probably say my first. It’s not my best goal. Charlie Daniels against Norwich crossed it in and we won the game.

“To fulfil the boyhood dream of scoring in the Premier League. I’ve been watching Match of the Day since I was five-yearsold. To actually watch myself at 10.30pm, the Gary Linekers and Alan Shearers of this world talking about me scoring a goal – that day will definitely live with me forever, scoring my first Premier League goal.”

Southwark News, Thursday November 25 2021

No compromises

www.newsatden.co.uk

Benno won’t change approach – even if it leaves opponents on their backsides and managers complaining

MILLWALL 39

Mason Bennett on the charge in training

Coops back for Hull test

The forward ‘handing off’ Middlesbrough’s Paddy McNair

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk

EXCLUSIVE

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk MASON BENNETT has no intention of changing his game as he heads back to the northeast for the second weekend in a row aiming to swat aside more opponents at Hull City.

Bennett helped set up Millwall’s equaliser against Middlesbrough last Saturday after dumping Paddy McNair on his backside with a hand-off that wouldn’t have looked out of place at Twickenham.

Boro boss Chris Wilder said later he felt it was a forearm smash. Bennett didn’t pause to find out what Oliver Langford thought, and maybe the forward’s lack of doubt influenced the referee as he let play go on. Bennett left McNair behind to cross towards Benik Afobe before the ball ricocheted into the net off Sol Bamba.

Bennett makes no apologies for how he plays the game.

“If you see how quickly he went down, he got up just as quickly. You’re always going to get that in games but there is nothing malicious behind it,” Bennett said.

“We don’t want it to turn into a sport where you can’t touch people, you know what I mean?

“That’s just how I play. I’m rough and I’m ready. That’s how I’ve always played.

“I’ve played in that 10 position where I can get on that half-turn and drive at people and get in behind the defence.

“I’m always that type of player

who tries to get the body in between the player and the ball and use my strength and my power.

“I always know through repetition in training when you get into that position to cut that ball back. I got my head up and saw Benik around the penalty spot. It was a bit fortunate how it went in but I felt like the movement before setting up the goal was nice.”

Bennett doesn’t just relish battling opponents. It’s a fierce competition every day in training to try to ensure he is picked in the team by Gary Rowett.

Sheyi Ojo arrived on loan from Liverpool in the summer and plays in Bennett’s positions, wide on the left or off the front.

Ojo was a regular in the team early in the season when Bennett was struggling with injuries.

Bennett is now back in the side and showed again at Boro the threat he possesses.

The former Derby forward says players help each other with advice, but it’s also “dogfight” to try to secure a place in the team.

“Regardless of which club [new signings] have come from, whether it’s an attacker or a defender coming in, each player in those positions will feel that they’ve got to improve and step up,” Bennett said.

“It’s a battle, it’s a dogfight. I’m up for it and I’m sure Sheyi is up for it, the likes of Jed [Wallace] and Benik also, there are a lot of forwards in this squad trying to be in the team.

“We’re here to help each other but we all want to be in the team and there are only so many players the manager

can pick.

“The training standards are high and I’ll always be giving everything to the team whatever the situation is.

“I sit next to Benik in the changing room and he’s always being positive and trying to give me belief, he talks to me a lot and helps me out.

“I can get good advice from a player of his calibre. He’s been at some big teams and he’s done a lot in the Champ so of course I’m going to take advice from him.

“And from the other lads. I’ve always said Jed is a great mentor for me, I listen to what he has to say.

“I think we all help each other. It’s important we all take bits of advice from each other.”

Before they played Bournemouth on Wednesday, Millwall had come from behind in six games in the league this season to earn points.

When that’s pointed out to Bennett, rather than taking it as a compliment he stresses that they have to start games better.

That starts with forwards pressing but then the rest of the team squeezing the space to unsettle the opposition, particularly at The Den where supporters expect their team to play aggressively.

“Our job now is to get in front more and not have to chase to get back in the game, which the gaffer has alluded to a few times,” he said.

“That’s the next step for us, we need to take the game to the other team to try to get ahead.

“But we’ve always had that fighting spirit, that will never go. It’s about improving on the ball and pressing

higher without the ball.

“For the first ten minutes, the last thing the visiting team wants is you in their faces. Otherwise they’ll settle into the game.

“Teams like Bournemouth, Swansea, Fulham have got good players who can dictate the game and once they’re comfortable it’ll be a long, long game.

“The main thing for us at home is to get after things and make it tough for them, and try and play when we’ve got the ball.

“We set up traps, who starts the press, but it’s also up to the midfield or the back four or five to press with us.

Otherwise teams will break us down and pop it around us.

“We can’t just go chasing willy-nilly on our own in ones or twos, we’ve got to really go as a team and get after them.”

Former England underage international Bennett has had injury setbacks this season, caused by impacts in games.

While that has been disappointing, he does point out that he has improved his strength to avoid muscle injuries.

“This is the frustrating thing. They’ve been all impact, I’m getting kicked here, I’m getting snapped there,” Bennett said.

“The main thing for me is, touch wood, I’ve got rid of my muscle injuries which I had in the earlier part of my career. I’ve strengthened those areas.

“These whacks and these kicks are going to happen in football. It has been a tough, frustrating start to the season, but hopefully I can kick on now.”

JAKE COOPER returns for Millwall at Hull City this Saturday after serving a one-game ban against AFC Bournemouth on Wednesday.

The Lions have lost just twice away from home in the league this season, at Cardiff and Huddersfield.

Hull had climbed out of the bottom three before their trip to Cardiff on Wednesday after successive 2-0 wins at Barnsley and home to Birmingham.

Possible Millwall starting XI: 5-23: Bialkowski; Leonard, Ballard, Hutchinson, Cooper, Malone; Evans, Saville; J Wallace, Afobe, Bennett.

SKY BET CHAMPIONSHIP TABLE

Table before Wednesday’s games P W D L

GD Pts

1 Fulham 18 13 2 3 33 41 2 Bournemouth 18 12 4 2 20 40 3 WBA 19 9 6 4 11 33 4 Coventry City 19 9 5 5 4 32 5 Stoke City 18 9 4 5 5 31 6 QPR 18 8 5 5 6 29 7 Huddersfield T 18 8 4 6 2 28 8 Blackburn R 18 7 6 5 2 27 9 Blackpool 19 7 6 6 -1 27 10 Millwall 18 6 8 4 0 26 11 Luton Town 19 6 7 6 2 25 12 Nottingham F 19 6 6 7 1 24 13 Swansea City 18 6 6 6 -2 24 14 Preston NE 19 6 6 7 -4 24 15 Middlesbrough 19 6 5 8 -1 23 16 Sheffield United 19 6 5 8 -3 23 17 Birmingham City 19 6 5 8 -3 23 18 Bristol City 18 5 5 8 -8 20 19 Cardiff City 18 5 3 10 -13 18 20 Reading 19 7 2 10 -7 17 * 21 Hull City 18 4 3 11 -9 15 22 Peterborough U 18 4 3 11 -17 15 23 Barnsley 18 2 5 11 -16 11 24 Derby County 18 4 9 5 -2 0 * *Reading deducted 6 pts. Derby County deducted 21 pts.

inside

Sport Southwark

Page 35

Afobe keeps eye on goal

Benik Afobe is on loan at Millwall from Stoke

Attacker just wants to make fans happy

exclusive

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk BENIK AFOBE knows his future is up in the air after this season – but his only focus is on Millwall and putting smiles on the faces of Lions fans.

Afobe, 28, has another year to run on his Potters deal after this season and Lions boss Gary Rowett said the club would be open to a permanent move for the forward.

But Afobe is not thinking beyond this campaign.

“I’m not sure what’s going to happen, to be honest with you,” Afobe admitted when asked about his longer-term future.

“This season I’m solely thinking about my situation with Millwall which is doing my best for this football club.

“I’m not thinking about where I’m going to be next year, what country, what team,

what league – I’m not thinking about any of that at the moment.

“I wish Stoke well, I’m always following them. I hope Stoke go up. I would be buzzing if they went up as well as Millwall I would be a winner in both situations.

“I’m obviously contracted to Stoke but all I’m thinking about is this season and doing my best for Millwall.”

Afobe has endeared himself to Millwall fans this season with his positive attitude and potential in front of goal.

And he insisted he completely understands the fans of his loan club when they express their unhappiness with performances.

“I don’t think Millwall fans are any different to any fans in the world, they want their team to do well, simple as that,” Afobe said.

“When we’re on the front foot our fans are brilliant. Then again when we’re losing they’re disappointed, that’s normal.

Buy online at millwalltickets.com

“They’ve been great to me. I meet our fans all the time, on social media or in person. I’ve got no complaints whatsoever about our fans.

“When you’re doing great they’re happy and when you’re not they’re disappointed.

At the end of the day they work all week and on a Saturday afternoon they spend their money to come and watch us play.

So the least they expect is for us to put a performance in.

“When we lose it ruins their weekend, so I think they have every single right to moan and groan and be upset.

“As footballers we have to understand, we’re playing for their club. Millwall fans have been supporters since before I was at Millwall, before I was born.

“The old man or the old woman or the girl or the boy giving me stick or the team stick, it’s part of life. The best teams in the world get booed, it’s normal.

“At the same time, when we’re doing well,

they love you and think you’re the best thing since sliced bread. It’s understandable.

“We’ve just got to try and put a smile on their face as much as possible.

“What they do have to remember is we have had the best start to a season in five seasons. We’ve just got to keep making them happy and putting smiles on their faces.”

MILLWALL

VS. AFC BOURNEMOUTH Go to newsatden.co.uk for the match report and all the reaction from the Lions’ Championship clash against the Cherries at The Den on Wednesday night.

Hamlet taught Oxford lesson Forward Jayden returns as loanee futures set for discussion exclusive

By John Kelly johnk@southwarknews.co.uk MILLWALL ARE set to decide on the futures of their players out on loan as a number of youngsters continue to make positive impacts at clubs lower down the league structure.

Jayden Davis, 19, returned to the Lions this week after he scored his first goal in senior professional football. Attacker Davis signed for National League King’s Lynn Town on a month’s deal and in his last game against Bromley got the ball on the left touchline and beat four defenders before lashing high into the net.

Isaac Olaofe and Alex Mitchell are among a number of players excelling at their clubs as Millwall’s loan policy is really paying dividends.

Danny McNamara paved the way last season when he went out on a temporary spell at St Johnstone before his impressive form saw him recalled and put straight into Gary Rowett’s first team.

Davis joined a King’s team struggling near the bottom of the table but has come away with that goal under his belt as well as senior competitive action.

Rowett was asked about the loan players and Davis’ immediate future.

“It was a fantastic goal, he was tight to the byline and it was really good feet and ingenuity to score from a tight angle,” Rowett said.

“We try to watch all the loan players, all their clips so we see their progress.

“It’s been a tough spell I’m sure for Jayden. I haven’t spoken yet with the 23s [management] to see how the loan has gone.

“We’ll sit down and discuss those loan players and what is the best way forward.

“Sometimes there is an opportunity to get players a month of games when there aren’t many under-23 games.

That’s the plan, to get them football in the National League and then they come back to the under-23s.

“We’ll sit down and discuss the next period for those players.”

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