Photos from the Cottington Community Garden

These photos were taken a couple of weeks ago in the Cottington Community Garden, which is going from strength to strength. They will be having further open days over the summer so keep an eye out and get involved if you can!

Beaufoy Institute up for sale

Because of cuts to Lambeth Council's funding made by the Government the Council has been forced to dispose of various sites in order to protect our frontline services. Over the past few years various options for educational use for the Beaufoy Institute site have been explored, and none have come to fruition. The council will begin the process of selling the Beaufoy site on Saturday. Lambert Smith Hampton are managing the bidding process.

Cllr Paul McGlone said:

“These plans should be good news for everyone – local residents should see the building brought back into use, while the sale of the building will raise funds for the Beaufoy Trust to help disadvantaged young people in Lambeth, and also vital funds for the council to invest in local schools, roads and housing at a time of such major cuts in Lambeth’s government funding.”

· The receipts raised from the buildings sale would be spilt between the council, to invest in services for local residents, and the Beaufoy Trust, a charity which seeks to support disadvantaged young people through education and training.

· The building is listed so could not be torn down. Instead it would be redeveloped, bringing back into use a building that is a local landmark and of historical significance.

· The building has been empty for around a decade.

· The decision to dispose of the building was made by cabinet in February 2011. The council’s disposal programme aims to raise £100 million over four years to invest in vital services, such as schools, roads and housing, at a time when the council’s budget has been slashed by cuts in capital grants from central government of 60%.

· There is no covenant in place that says the building must be used for education use, but the building’s sale will raise vital funds that will help the Beaufoy Trust continue its work of helping young, disadvantaged residents.


Background : The Beaufoy Trust

The Council is the Corporate Trustee of the Beaufoy Trust, but the issues around the dilapidated Institute building which has been ‘mothballed’ for a decade and the actual Trust have become muddled over the years. The Council has been seeking a solution to resolve this confusion, separate the building from the Trust and re-establish the Trust to focus on what it was originally set up for.

The modernised charitable objects of the 100 year old Beaufoy Trust are set out in the Trust Scheme, and state: “The object of the charity is the promotion of the education for the public benefit of persons under the age of 25 who are in need of financial assistance and resident in the area of benefit, with a preference for the promotion of vocational training”. ‘Vocational training’ is defined specifically, but covers education, training or instruction capable of improving prospects for employment. The area of benefit is also defined, but is broadly North Lambeth. Importantly, once the Beaufoy Institute building has been sold, the money can be used for the purposes of the Trust, which has delivered nothing for over a decade. Importantly, The Capital Community Foundation (CCF) has confirmed that it is interested in the trusteeship of the Beaufoy Trust being transferred to CCF once the sale of the property has been completed by the Council. This will make the Beaufoy Trust completely independent from the Council, with a capital sum of money to invest and be used for local vocational training in the future.

Queen Anne becomes Tea House Theatre

The Queen Anne (orange pub in the far left of this picture) has been closed since last summer's tragic murder of its landlady Denise D'Courtenay in the Dominican Republic.

Now new owners are relaunching the venue as the Tea House Theatre, due to open in a few weeks' time. In advance of the opening the people behind the Tea House Theatre are organising a Royal Wedding Street Party for all residents of the Vauxhall Gardens area. It promises to be a memorable afternoon with animals from the Farm, cricket, bingo, tea, cake, jelly and ice cream. Local groups and businesses such as VGERTA, Vauxhall City Farm, the Friends of Vauxhall Spring Gardens, and Franklands Butcher are getting involved.

In preparation for opening the owners have submitted a planning and licensing application for their new venture.

The Planning application is here.

The Licensing application is below:

A New application for a Premises Licence under the Licensing Act 2003 in respect of the below-mentioned premises was received by the licensing authority on 4th April 2011

Applicants Name: Tea House Theatre Ltd

Premises Address: Tea House Theatre - The Queen Anne Public House 139 Vauxhall Walk London

Activities/times requested:

Plays

Saturday 12:00 - 23:00

Tuesday - Friday 19:00 - 23:00

Films

Monday 19:00 - 23:00

Live Music

Friday & Saturday 19:00 - 02:00

Sunday 12:00 - 21:00

Provision of Facilities for Making Music

Monday - Sunday 08:00 - 18:00

Provision of Facilities for Dancing

Monday - Sunday 08:00 - 18:00

Provision of Facilities for Similar Ente

Monday - Sunday 08:00 - 00:00

Supply of Alcohol

Monday - Sunday 18:00 - 00:00

Prior to determining this application, the licensing authority may accept written representations from Responsible Authorities and Interested Parties on the likely effect of the grant of this application in relation to the licensing objectives, which are:

· Preventing crime and disorder;

· Public safety;

· Preventing public nuisance;

and · Protecting children from harm.

Representations will be disregarded if they are deemed to be vexatious, frivolous, or irrelevant, or if they are received later than the 2nd May 2011

Councillors respond to schools protest

Today a group of parents are protesting outside the Shelley site, asking that Lambeth Council expands Archbishop Sumner School onto the site. This is councillors' response:

Lambeth councillors understand the frustration of parents who missed out on securing a place for their child in their first choice primary school today. Unfortunately, the system always results in disappointment for some, as the most oversubscribed schools will never have enough places for everybody who wants one.

Lambeth’s priorities are to ensure we have enough places in our schools to ensure every child is offered a place, and to ensure every school is reaching the highest possible standard.

Archbishop Sumner, like many other schools in Lambeth, is oversubscribed because of its outstanding Ofsted results. However, other good primary schools in North Lambeth are not oversubscribed and have places to offer.

This is in stark contrast to the south of the borough, where an explosion in pupil numbers in Norwood and Streatham has put huge pressure on primary school places. To meet this demand Lambeth is building a new school, expanding existing schools, and providing temporary ‘bulge’ classes where necessary – adding an extra eight forms of entry this September alone (240 places). Even despite this investment, there are many children who will be forced to travel a great distance to attend primary school. By contrast, overall demand for places in North Lambeth is again lower than supply, as it has been for several years.

Lambeth obviously has to prioritise its scarce resources to ensure that every child in Lambeth is offered a place at primary school. Whilst we are sympathetic to the wishes of parents in Kennington who would like to expand Archbishop Sumner, the council cannot justify diverting our very limited resources on creating new primary places in an area where there is spare capacity. We are struggling to fund the expansion of places in the south of the borough as it is, and it would be wrong to divert funding away from this priority.

In order to fund the expansion of schools in the south of the borough, we have to sell assets which are surplus to immediate requirements. The Department of Education asked Lambeth to sell the site in 2006, as part of the agreement to provide funding towards the new Michael Tippett school, but it has since been used for the Olive School until July 2010. As there is no projected demand for an educational use for the Shelley site, it is right that we sell the site to raise vital funds to ensure every child in Lambeth can have a primary school place.

Our priority in Kennington is to work to ensure every school reaches the outstanding level that Archbishop Sumner has. Lambeth Council does not tolerate underachievement in our schools, and works hard to drive up standards. Recent Ofsted inspections of schools in North Lambeth show that all the schools in the area are at least satisfactory with good or outstanding prospects for improvement. Today all children in Kennington have been allocated a place in a successful local school within walking distance of their home.

Cllr Pete Robbins

Cabinet Member for Children & Young People

Cllr Lorna Campbell, Cllr Mark Harrison, Cllr Steve Morgan

Councillors for Prince’s ward

Lambeth Labour at TUC March for Public Services

Dozens of Lambeth Labour councillors marched as part of the TUC's protest against public sector cuts. Lambeth Council is facing a budget reduction of one third, one of the most extreme reductions in the public sector.

Prince's ward councillor Lorna Campbell

Tens of thousands of people gather on the Embankment

Lambeth's Labour councillors' banner

Labour councillors' banner

Royal wedding street party application deadline: 31 March

Lambeth Council have extended the deadline for people to apply to close their street for a royal wedding street party.

To organise a party, answer the questions in the form below and send to the Council before 31 March.

Residential Street Party Information Form

Please fill out this form and send it to Lambeth’s Traffic Manager, Transport and Highways, 3rd Floor Blue Star House, 234-244 Stockwell Road, SW9 9SP or email it to TFellowes@lambeth.gov.uk

1. Applicant Details:
Name of person:
Contact address:
Contact telephone number:
Email address:
Time of road closure:

2. Event Details:
Please give a description of the event:
Do you intend to place any stall/marquee/tent/stage other structure on the roads to be closed?
If yes please give brief details:

3. Road closure details:
Name of road(s) to be closed:
If you plan to close only a section of the road(s), where will the closure begin and end?
From:
To:

Once you have returned this form Lambeth’s Traffic Manager will arrange a site visit with you before the Traffic Management Order can be arranged.

Delay to Cleaver Street Cycle Hire remedial works

The new cycle hire site in Cleaver Square will be in place on the 31 March. However, current resourcing issues at Transport for London mean that the extensive remedial works at Cleaver Street which include re-paving the area, will need to be completed in the two weeks following the installation of the docking station.

Residents shouldn't worry that the work won't be completed - it will just be slightly delayed!

Ethelred Estate showhome open for business!

Today saw the opening of the LATMOS showhome on the Ethelred Estate. The showhome gives tenants an idea of the improvements to their homes they can expect if the LATMOS stock transfer is approved in a ballot this September. Tenants can expect a new kitchen, new bathroom, and full redecoration of their flats. The showhome will also be the base for LATMOS project workers, who will on hand to answer any questions residents have about the project and the ballot.

LATMOS is the Lambeth Alliance of Tenant Management Organisations - three resident-run Lambeth estates which have banded together to investigate stock transfer. They have selected a landlord called WATMOS - the only housing association in the country which is run by tenant managements organisations. By transferring ownership of the estate away from the Council, WATMOS will be able to borrow money to invest millions of pounds into the homes on the estate. Ethelred TMO will continue as it is, and will have more support than it currently gets from the Council.

Councillor Mark Harrison has lived on the Ethelred Estate for six years, is a member of the Ethelred Board, and is closely involved in the LATMOS project. He said:

'I'm supporting the stock transfer as it's the only way the Estate will get the investment it needs. We'll preserve tenant management and all the rights that tenants and leaseholders currently enjoy from the Council.'

Pictured: Olu Leigh and Glenn Upton, who will be working on the estate over the coming months, in the showhome kitchen.

Remember to fill in and return your census form

27 March is census day - you should have received your form and you can fill it out now if you know who will be in your home next Sunday.

It's crucial that everybody completes and returns their census form. The information is used to allocate resources for public services. In 2001 Lambeth had one of the lowest rates of census response in the country, and as a result missed out on funding we were entitled to. Let's not let that happen again!

New Lambeth Youth Mayor elected

Lambeth’s incoming youth mayor has vowed to provide more social activities for young people in Lambeth and campaign to improve GCSE results.

David Oyedele, 16, was announced Lambeth’s new Youth Mayor at an election night held at the Town Hall on Tuesday. David, a student at Archbishop Tenison’s School who lives in Brixton, will be given £25,000 to help improve opportunities for young people. Current Mayor, Darren Tenkorang, 16, will hand over the role on 1 April. The second highest vote saw 14-year-old Jacqueline Gomes, a student from Sacred Heart College, announced as Deputy Youth Mayor. More than 10000 young people aged 11-19 who live, study, or work in the borough voted in the Youth Council elections at polling stations in schools and youth centres across Lambeth as well as online.

Naomi Mwakamowo, a student at Charles Edward Brooke School, was voted the next member of Youth Parliament (MYP), and Jeremiah Emmanuel, a student at Archbishop Tenison’s School, deputy MYP. Naomi and Jeremiah will organise events and projects, run campaigns and influence decision-makers on issues that matter most to young people in Lambeth.

Streatham MP Chuka Umunna was present to hand out a Democracy Award for the school with the highest student turnout in the elections. The award went to Elmgreen School in Tulse Hill, where an impressive 84 per cent of students cast their votes. Elmgreen students will now be treated to a visit to Parliament, hosted by Mr Umunna.

David, said: 'I feel ecstatic to have won this year’s Youth Elections in Lambeth. It’s a real privilege to be able to stand up and represent young people across the borough, and I’m looking forward to working hard to make change happen for them.

'During my campaign, I focused on the need to protect young people from the impact of the cuts we are seeing to services, and my desire to help improve GCSE results and provide more social and physical activities for young people in Lambeth.

'I’m hoping to use my £25,000 Youth Mayor’s budget to help achieve these aims, and will be campaigning hard on behalf of young people to make sure we are a top priority for the people who are making decisions around which services are cut, and which are protected.

'It’s so fantastic that we have the Youth Mayor Elections in Lambeth and the £25,000 budget we receive demonstrates that young people here are really taken seriously.'

The outgoing youth mayor, Darren Tenkorang, used his budget to fund:

• A sailing trip for a group of young people based at Flipside youth project in Brixton.
• A film-making project for young people at Code 7 in Oval.
• A boxing club based at Lambeth Academy in Clapham
• A summer playscheme for young people at the Knights Youth Centre in Streatham.
• A project for LGBT young people based at the Terrence Higgins Trust in Waterloo.
• A photography project based at the Old Library centre in West Norwood.

Lambeth Youth Council is an award-winning youth leadership and engagement project. Lambeth is one of only four London authorities, and ten nationally, to have a directly elected youth mayor. The Youth Council allows young people to make a difference in their lives and those of others in the borough through training and empowerment. The Youth Council allows young people to give their views on issues affecting them and their community and also gives them the resources to act on their ideas.

For more information visit http://www.younglambeth.org.uk/lyc1.aspx or www.YouthMayor4Lambeth.com or follow @LamYouthMayor on twitter.

Pictured: election candidates at Parliament with West Norwood MP Tessa Jowell and Streatham MP Chuka Umunna.

National Grid Gas Works – Kennington Lane

TfL is writing to make you aware of the upcoming planned works by National Grid Gas (NGG) on Kennington Lane to renew 57m of gas mains.

This work will be completed in two phases, with each phase lasting for up to 10 days. In agreement with the London Borough of Lambeth’s Environmental Team, NGG will be working the extended working hours of 08:00 – 19:00 Monday to Friday and some weekends as deemed necessary. The following traffic management will be put in place for each phase:

Phase one
· Starting Friday 25 February 2011 until Sunday 6 March 2011
· Kennington Lane opposite the junction of Opal Street
· Two way temporary traffic signals
· Bus stop suspensions

Phase two
· Starting Saturday 9 April 2011 until Tuesday 19 April 2011
· Kennington Lane opposite the junction of Cottington Street
· Two way temporary traffic signals
· Parking and loading bay suspensions
· Bus stop suspensions

To minimise disruption to vehicular traffic, the temporary signals will be manually controlled between 07:00 – 10:00 and 16:00 – 19:00 Monday to Friday, and during working hours at weekends.

Whilst we appreciate that a certain level of disruption is inevitable, TfL has worked closely with NGG and the London Borough of Lambeth in order to reduce the impact of these works on road users and local people and businesses as far as possible.

I apologise in advance for any inconvenience that may be caused as a result of these essential works. Should you require further information or an update during the delivery of these works please contact our Streets Customer Services department on 0845 305 1234 or via the web at www.tfl.gov.uk/contact.

Surgery cancelled as work to Carmelita Centre underway

This Saturday's councillor surgery at the Carmelita Centre is cancelled, as major works are underway to renovate the community resource.

The works are taking place because residents association VGERTA applied to the 'Ward Purse' for funding to help transform the former housing office into a community facility. Councillors decided to grant VGERTA around £5000 to complete the work, which will finish in mid March.

Friends of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens respond on mulberry trees

The national press has got excited by a silly story circulating that Lambeth Council has cut down two mulberry trees in Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, simply because their fruit stains the pavement.

The reality is rather different.

The Friends of Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens have been working hard with the Council for several years developing a masterplan for the park, which sorely needed regeneration. The major developments in the Vauxhall area are bringing significant 'Section 106' money to improve parks and open spaces - this is money paid for by developers to compensate for the effects of their new buildings.

The work on the entrance to the Pleasure Gardens began a couple of months ago. The idea is that the entrance should be open, with excellent sight line down avenues of trees, that it should welcome visitors into the park, and that the new columns should draw attention to the fact the park is there.

The mulberry trees at the entrance were planted by the Friends eight years ago. They are not in good health. Unfortunately they are not in a suitable position for the new entrance works and it would be prohibitively expensive to move them. For these reasons the trees have been removed. the new entrance works will include 12 new trees and the Friends are committed to planting six new mulberry trees to replace the two which have been lost.

The Chair of the Friends Eamonn McMahon has responded in more detail here

We hope that people will like the new entrance once it is complete and that they will assist the Friends in their excellent work to plant more trees in the park.

Pictured: the Friends have planted dozens of new trees in the park over the past few year

Val and councillors press TfL on Oval junction

Val Shawcross, Cllr Jack Hopkins, Cllr Jane Edbrooke, Cllr Mark Harrison and Anna Tapsell from the KA discuss the traffic issues

Cllr Steve Morgan, Val Shawcross and Cllr Mark Harrison in front of the new traffic island

This morning Lambeth's London Assembly Member (and Labour's Candidate for Deputy Mayor of London) Val Shawcross met with councillors, a representative of the Kennington Association, and an office of TfL to discuss problems with the junction between Kennington Park Road, Camberwell New Road, and Brixton Road.

Residents and councillors have several complaints about the junction:

-the new traffic island which separates the bus lane is difficult for cars to manoeuvre around

-there is too little time for cars which want to travel left down Camberwell New Road to get into the correct lane

-the bus lane is incredibly bumpy

-the new traffic island prevents buses from overtaking cyclists

-it is difficult for cyclists to move over from the bus lane to turn right into Brixton Road

The TfL officer has promised to go away and look at what can be done to improve this junction for all road users. We hope to see some results!

------

UPDATE: RESPONSE FROM TFL:

1, The build-out was provided as part of the development of cycle superhighway route 7. Prior to the construction of the build out, cyclists heading straight on through Kennington Park Road would need to cross two lanes of traffic turning left into Brixton Road. The speed of traffic turning left was high and the junction represented a significant difficulty for cyclists. The build out slows traffic turning left, and allows cyclists to better position themselves if heading straight on.
The scheme was subject to both a multi-stage safety audit and a consultation with stakeholders, which included the Traffic Police. The design of the build out (as it affects traffic) was not raised as an issue during the safety audit or consultation stages, and we have not been advised of any difficulties subsequent to our meeting. We will monitor the build-out but would not expect its design to present any difficulties for traffic.

2, TfL regularly inspects the Transport for London Road Network and prioritises the repair of any identified defects according to their severity. The most serious defects are repaired within one or 24 hours, and less serious defects within seven or 28 days. I arranged soon after the meeting for Brixton Road to be inspected and any pot holes found to be filled.

3, Finally we also discussed lane discipline at the junction of Brixton Road and Camberwell New Road. TfL has not previously been advised of any road safety issues at this junction by the Police, and analysis of collision statistics does not indicate that there is a particular difficulty in the circumstances described during our meeting. TfL prioritises funding for road safety schemes to areas with the highest recorded collision history, to deliver the greatest reduction in collisions. We will continue to monitor safety at the junction but have no plans at present to undertake a scheme here.

Val has promised to chase TfL to ensure the potholes are filled in as soon as possible.