A place for everyone: Lambeth secondary schools offer every child a place for this September

For the second year running, every child whose application was on time has received an offer of a secondary school place in Lambeth, new figures have revealed.

More than 85% of parents who applied to a secondary school in the borough have been offered a place at their first or second-choice schools.

On the day that parents across London are told which secondary schools their children have been offered, Lambeth Council has revealed that it dealt with 2,419 applications this year, an increase of 147 on 2013. The proportion of applications made online rose from 50.8 per cent in 2013 to 97 per cent this year.

Overall, the number of children being offered places at their first or second-choice schools also rose this year; 1,629 children were offered a place at their first-preference school, 46 more than last year, and 442 were offered their second preference – 72 more than in 2013. The Council has confirmed that there are also enough spaces in Lambeth schools to support all late applicants.

The landmark achievement contrasts starkly with the picture in 2005, when over 570 pupils in the borough were left 'in limbo' without places allocated for their secondary education.  Parents had to fill out separate application forms for each local authority which handled admissions for their chosen schools.

There was no co-ordination of dates or offers between authorities so some parents held on to more than one offer for weeks or months until they had heard back from all the authorities they had applied to before deciding which offer to accept.  Consequently, allocation of surplus places to other children was delayed creating anxiety and uncertainty for pupils and their families.

The introduction of the Pan-London Co-ordinated Admissions Scheme in 2005 has seen the application process simplified and an increase in the number of pupils who receive an offer from one of their preferred schools.

Welcoming the figures, Cllr Rachel Heywood, Cabinet Member for Children and Families, said:

"These figures are a testament to the hard work of Lambeth's education services in making sure as many children as possible can go to the schools of their choice in September. Ensuring that, for the second year in a row, every child in the borough has a place waiting for them is a tremendous achievement.

"This has always been an enormously difficult time for families, anxiously waiting to find out where their children are going to end up next. But it is clear that the days of 'gambling' a child's future on a better offer that might or might not come through the post are over.

"Our children can now look forward to the next stage of their education with confidence."

Bin update from the council

Since the roll-out of smaller bins and food recycling bins 99% of people are managing well under the new system and dry recycling of street properties is up by 36%.

The team at wastestrategy@lambeth.gov.uk can help if you or your residents have any technical or operational questions that aren't covered below, and of course if you need my help with anything please let me know.

Why have you taken away my bin?

As part of Lambeth’s Waste Strategy, and in line with almost all other councils, we are redesigning the way we collect rubbish. This is so that we can meet new EU laws on waste management and take better control of the huge amounts of money we spend on disposing of waste. To date, the roll-out has resulted in a 25% reduction in the amount of residual waste.

Why are the new bins smaller?

With the extensive recycling services we offer and the new food waste service, you can recycle 80 per cent, on average, of your rubbish. Therefore most residents should not need the old larger bins.

Have there been any teething problems?

The small proportion of residents who have complained have been sent a written apology. Any logistical operation on the scale of Lambeth’s new refuse and food waste bins was likely to encounter teething problems. Nevertheless our delivery programme was 98% successful and only 2% or residents contacted us to seek clarification on the bin they have received. Figures demonstrate that residents are embracing this new and essential service.

Why am I sharing a bin with my neighbour?

Everyone who lives in a house which has been converted into flats will be sharing a bin. This is because we wanted to ensure that residents did not have too many bins in their front garden and to make good use of the existing bins. Therefore instead of having six small bins for six flats, we have given residents three larger bins to share. This will help to ensure resident’s gardens are not full of bins.

If I have a problem with sharing a bin with my neighbour what do I do?

First, try to resolve any issues with your neighbour. Most problems are likely to centre around individuals producing more than their fair share of rubbish. Even if we provided individual bins it would be difficult to ensure people only used their own bin. Please provide us with as much information as possible, including whether or not they are recycling and we will review what action we can take to try and help. We did receive some complaints that bins were being stolen but this appears to have been a minor problem and has settled down.

If I cannot fit all my waste into the bin, can I get a bigger one?

Check on our website www.lambeth.gov.uk/recycling to find out everything that you can recycle and where you can recycle other items which we do not collect from homes. If you are using both the food waste and recycling service and still cannot manage then please get in touch. We can arrange for someone to visit and provide more advice on coping with the new system. Larger bins are offered to households with six or more permanent residents. If this applies to you please contact us and we can send you an application form.

Won’t this lead to an increase in fly-tipping?

Compared to last year we have seen an 8% drop in fly tipped waste and although we do not believe this is associated with the change in service, we do believe it is a strong indication that residents have not resorted to dumping their waste on the street.
Will my collection day stay the same?

Your refuse and recycling collection day will remain the same. If you were already on the food waste collection service then your food waste will be collected on the same day as your waste and recycling, once the new refuse bin arrangements are in place. If you are new to the food waste service then it will be collected on the same day as everything else. Garden waste collections will also change to the same collection day as refuse and recycling, but we will contact all service users about this separately. These changes are planned for early 2014.

Can I put recycling in my rubbish bin?

Recycling was made compulsory in Lambeth in 2011 so please do not put recycling in your rubbish. Recycling is really good for the environment as it ensures that items get a second chance at life and can be created into a new product.

I have a sticker on my bin saying I had too much waste. What do I do next?

If you had too much waste, we will have collected it for now. However in future we will not be collecting excess waste. Please ensure that you are making full use of the recycling and food waste service. For advice on how to reduce your waste, check out our website www.lambeth.gov.uk\recycling

Can I keep my old bin instead of using a new one?

Unfortunately not - We have changed everyone’s bins to help increase recycling. We are collecting everyone’s bins and sending them to be recycled. If you do keep your old bin and place it out for collection it will be removed at some point in the future.

I want to make a water butt out of my old bin, can I keep it?

Yes, this is fine. Please send us a photo to use as part of our work to encourage water saving measures!

I bought my own bin, it is a private bin, can I keep it?

Yes, if it is your own private property you are of course entitled to keep it. Please ensure you take it back in straight after collection as we will be unable to return it to you if it is removed as part of the replacement programme. Please do not place it out for collection after the changes have been made as it will be removed. We will only collect waste from your new allocated bin.

I bought a larger size bin from the council and they have taken it away, I should have my money refunded.

I am afraid we are unable to make any refunds as the service has completely changed, including the circumstances under which households are entitled to a larger bin. If there are six or more people living permanently at your address please request an application form for a larger bin. There was no guarantee provided when larger bins were purchased over how long their use would continue.

My bin is missing?

If your bin is missing:
1. Do you live in a flat? If so you may be sharing a bin with your neighbour. If you are unsure whether  you should have a slimline bin or a shared bin, then please get in touch;
2. Please ensure you check on your street, the bin crew may have misplaced your bin by accident;
3. You are welcome to put your property number or some other identity onto your bin to try and prevent this happening again.

What will happen to my old bin?

The best quality ones will be kept for reuse, otherwise they will be recycled to make new plastic products.

How much is the introduction of new slimline bins to every household going to cost?

We are only delivering new bins to 40,000 households, the remainder (converted flats) will be sharing existing bins. The bins were £14.50 each and all the costs are funded from Lambeth’s £1.474m grant from the Government’s Weekly Collection Support Fund. The changes will save the council an estimated £2million per annum.

Licensing application: Oktoberfest, Kennington Park

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 the 14th February 2014   

Applicants Name:    London Oktoberfest Ltd
Premises Address:    Oktoberfest - Kennington Park Kennington Park Road London 
Activities/times requested:   

Time-Limited: 14/09/14 – 30/09/14

Live Music
    Saturday      14:00  - 22:00
    Sunday      13:30  - 18:30
    Thursday and Friday      17:00  - 22:00

Recorded Music
    Saturday      13:00  - 22:45
    Sunday      12:30  - 19:15
    Thursday and Friday      16:00  - 22:45

Supply of Alcohol
    Saturday      13:00  - 22:15
    Sunday      12:30  - 19:15
    Thursday and Friday      16:00  - 22:15

Please direct any queries in respect of this application to the following case officer:
Ms Carol Jones
Telephone: 0207 926 6143    Email: licensing@lambeth.gov.uk


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 14th March 2014

If a valid representation (or more than one) is received and is not withdrawn, this application will be referred to a hearing of the Licensing Sub-Committee for determination. If no representations are received, the application will ordinarily be determined by the relevant Licensing Officer.

Applications for new Premises licences, and variations and reviews of existing ones, will be placed on the Councils website for inspection; the address at which these may be accessed is www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/Business/LicencesStreetTrading/AlcoholEntertainmentLateNightRefreshment/CurrentApplications.htm

Letter from Lib Peck about Vauxhall Bus Station

To the Chair of the Kennington, Oval & Vauxhall Forum

Dear Malcolm

I wanted to reassure you that the views expressed at last week’s meeting have been relayed to me, and I understand the concerns and priorities of your  members and others who attended the meeting.

I believe we share the same goals for  Vauxhall – to make it a thriving district centre and the gateway to Nine Elms  on the South Bank, underpinned by  excellent transport connections. This is the Council’s adopted planning policy. The question is, how is this achieved?

Transport for London,(TfL), is responsible for managing and maintaining the capacity on this strategic part of the road network in London, so the traffic interchange has to work, especially for buses. No changes can go forward at the expense of the transport interchange. There is considerable technical analysis underway to establish whether the gyratory can be made to work two way and to understand the consequences of achieving this, if this is what is ultimately agreed. The programme for this work was shared with KOV last week. There will be no final decisions in relation to this for several months.

TfL have advised the Council that the traffic modelling results, that will assess whether or not two way working is possible, will be available at the end of February. If it is possible, then we will look further at what that will mean for the design of the district centre and the interchange arrangements, including the bus station. As part of this process, we will be preparing a design framework for the district centre that takes the policy within the Vauxhall Supplementary Planning document to a more detailed level of implementation. Things are changing within the Vauxhall area, as we have seen from the new shops and restaurants that have come, now
that there is a wider awareness of the Council’s ambitions. This change will continue with the implementation of Vauxhall Square and other exciting developments that the Council has supported.

The workshop next week, (29th January), will provide a useful starting point for this conversation and will help shape future consultation. At the workshop we will be sharing the results of the traffic modelling thus far, what the volume of users by mode has been, and discussing the issues and opportunities that the district centre and two-way working present.

It is essential that full and meaningful consultation follows this first stage of technical investigation, and the council passed a motion to this effect at the beginning of last week. There is clearly a challenge to TfL, and  the Council, to demonstrate that any options or proposals will improve the existing situation, and not make it worse. However, I would also ask that you keep an open mind about the potential benefits that change might bring. These need to be articulated through the process so that everyone can come to a view.

Yours sincerely

Councillor Lib Peck
Leader, London Borough of Lambeth

Our campaign to save Kennington Park Post Office

This weekend we've joined our Oval Labour colleagues to talk to residents to encourage them to feed into the Post Office consultation and sign our petition.

Labour members were out in force yesterday morning outside the Post Office talking to concerned residents.

Many of our elderly residents are worried about how they will get to Camberwell to get their pensions.  Kennington Park post office is a busy post office and valued by local residents.

Have your say in the consultation

You can share your views on the proposal through an online questionnaire.  When entering the site you will be asked to enter the code for this branch: 01600799.

Dates for local public consultation:

Local public consultation starts: 6 December 2013
Local public consultation ends: 28 February 2014

Proposed month of change: May 2014

New playground for Mountain House

Following consultation with the TRAs and representatives from the Vauxhall Gardens and Black Prince Estates in October and November 2013, the final proposals for the play area between Mountain and Sullivan Houses are shown on the drawing above.

The proposals reflect all the amendments requested by residents during this consultation and focus the works on the refurbishment of the play area site. The new play equipment and layout of the play area is fully inclusive and sustainable.

The new play equipment has been delivered to the contractor and works will be programmed to start on site in February and complete before the end of March 2014.

The contractor will create a compound area on the site but will need vehicular access to the compound from Vauxhall Street via the Sullivan House entrance.

If you require further information, please contact the North Area Housing Office  northarea@lambethliving.org.uk or telephone 020 7926 6000.

Friends of Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green

Have your say about how the Green is run……

Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green (the Green) is a wonderful community open space bounded by Lambeth Walk, Fitzalan Street, Lollard Street and Kennington Road. It also includes the nature garden outside Roots & Shoots on Fitzalan Street.

If you live or work in those streets, the Ethelred Estate or in other nearby roads and premises you will already know that the Green is a lovely natural space for us all to enjoy. But it needs to be treasured and kept that way.

It was saved from the threat of development some ten years ago and now has mature trees, some wild flower areas, a children’s playground and extensive grassed areas. It is used by local families and schools, by dog owners and many others who enjoy it as an oasis of nature and calm near the busy centre of London.

Whilst the status of the Green is now protected and recognised by the London Borough of Lambeth, it still needs to be maintained and developed to ensure it remains the safe and attractive shared place it is intended to be.

With extensive new developments ongoing on the old Lilian Baylis site and proposed on Lollard Street (as well as others nearer the river) it is important that existing and new local residents’ views are foremost in protecting and guiding the future of the Green.

How you can get involved…

The LWDG Friends Group is currently being re-formed by some local residents and users of the Green. It will be important to get as wide involvement as possible. If you would like to get involved in any way please get in touch. Involvement can range from just keeping informed by newsletters and providing feedback to more active participation in representing views to and working with the local authority or helping to organise events. To get in touch so you can be included:

Friends of Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green
c/o Roots & Shoots
Walnut Tree Walk
London
SE11 6DN

Email: lwdoorstepgreen@gmail.com with any comments and your contact details

Pictured: local councillors Lorna, Steve and Mark at the Green

Maureen Johnston MBE

 

As you may know Maureen died on the afternoon of 28 December 2013.


Maureen Johnston MBE was well known to us as a prominent and active resident of our ward, but also because her energy, enthusiasm and passion for improving our local area was enormously appreciated by residents, local groups, and by all of us at Lambeth Council who had the privilege to work with her over her decades of almost full time voluntary work. Maureen's passion for justice and fairness was indefatigable, and ensured that she consistently and persistently strove to represent our community at all levels across Lambeth and Southwark.

Maureen was always available, approachable and keen to discuss any opportunities to work together to help local improvements and initiatives give their best to the local community. She was a lovely lady who will be sorely missed on so many levels.


From 4:30-6:30 on the 23rd there will be a community get together for Maureen to be held in Kennington at Amici's Restaurant ( 205-209 Kennington Lane, London SE11 5QS )  This is not so much a formal memorial service, as an opportunity for local friends and family to come together and remember all the wonderful things Maureen has done for the Kennington, Oval and Vauxhall community.

Maureen has requested that friends and family make a donation to Trinity Hospice in lieu of sending flowers.

http://www.trinityhospice.org.uk/donate

Pictured: Maureen (left) with councillors at a community event at Waterloo Action Centre

Residents' opposition halts All Nations expansion plans

In the rush before Christmas we missed some good news from Lambeth's Planning Department - they have refused the All Nations Church's application to dramatically increase the size of their centre on Tyers Terrace.

The ANC have caused problems with noise and parking for local residents over many years. Many residents of Tyers Terrace objected to the application, supported by your local councillors.

We're pleased that Planning officers agreed that the ANC need to resolve the noise disturbance, parking problems and antisocial behaviour they cause before any expansion can be considered.

Exhibition of latest Lollard Street proposals

Braeburn Estates have invited residents to an exhibition to present the latest proposals for Lollard Street.

The exhibition will take place over three days to allow as many interested parties to attend as possible. On the first two days representatives of Lambeth Council and the project team will be in attendance to answer questions.

Exhibition Dates And Times:

Thursday 9 January 2.30pm - 7.30pm
Friday 10 January 12.00pm - 5.00pm
Saturday 11 January 11.00am - 3.00pm

Black Prince Community Hub, 5 Beaufoy Walk, (Off Black Prince Road), SE11 6HU

Proposals are being drawn up for new housing, improved public realm and an enhanced, re-located Nursery & Children’s Centre on the Ethelred Estate along Lollard Street.

The proposals for Lollard Street include:
·         Removal of the existing podium structure at the base of the Ethelred Towers
·         New homes, provided through a mixture of houses and apartments
·         New pedestrian routes and improved street level access
·         Enhanced security with clearer sight lines and fewer enclosed areas
·         Open space and landscape enhancements throughout the site, with improved amenity space and new trees and other planting
·         New landscaped gardens
·         A new building for the Ethelred Nursery, with more space, improved access and courtyard garden

Following the public exhibition held earlier this year, and focussed meetings with local stakeholders, the design team have been reviewing and progressing the proposals in response to feedback. Full details of the scheme proposals will be shown at the consultation event.

Some of the key issues considered include:
·         Availability of new affordable units. Lambeth have agreed a local lettings strategy
·         A reduction of the proposed number of new homes on site
·         Better permeability and sight lines through the site
·         Quality and maintenance of landscaping
·         Access to open spaces for existing residents

For more information contact Soundings on 020 7729 1705 or lollardstreet@soundingsoffice.com or visit www.lollardstreet.com

Pictured: Ethelred Towers during building work a couple of years ago

Update on Bird Walk

The alley between Wincott & Oakden Streets has been officially named Bird Walk.

One year ago we started to look into naming the alleyway and getting it properly 'adopted' by the Council. The frontrunner name was 'Bird Walk', as nearby Monkton Street used to be called 'Bird Street'. In June 2013 the name was officially changed. We are now speaking with our transport team to ensure that street naming signs are placed in Bird Walk.

Even though we have named Bird Walk, it is still not a part of the official public highway, like all the other pavements in the borough. As a result, the council has no obligation to clean or light the alley.

We are working through the legal process to adopt Bird Walk as an official highway, but we thought it was silly to not clean Bird Walk in the meantime and so you may have noticed that it is on the same cleaning schedule as Wincott & Oakden Streets (It will receive a once every two week sweep and a Monday, Wednesday and Friday litter pick).

We are also speaking with our PFI lighting contractor to investigate how we can light Bird Walk.

Next steps we are pursuing are:

•     to put street signs up in Bird Walk
•     ensuring Bird Walk is part of the official highway
•     securing a plan to light Bird Walk

Pictured: Bird Walk before it was resurfaced and community activists created planting beds.

Your Priorities for Kennington & Vauxhall 2014-18

As you will be aware there will be local elections next May. As a result all councillors are looking at what we said we would do over the past four years and what we want to do over the coming four years.

We therefore wanted to take this opportunity to discover what your priorities are for Kennington & Vauxhall over 2014-18. It can be as small as fixing a pothole in a pavement or as big as the level of council tax you would like to see.

All ideas are welcome! To give you an idea, please see the manifesto Steve, Lorna and Mark stood on in 2010. Do you think we kept all our promises? Is there anything we could have done better?

If you can respond by emailing Steve before the end of the year that would be helpful. Steve, Lorna and Mark will then take your suggestions to council officers and our new candidates David, Chris and Joanne to see how we can make them a reality.

Pictured: Mark, Lorna and Steve campaigning in 2010 with local resident Jon

Victory for residents - 8 Albert Embankment

Local residents have once again secured a major victory against the London Fire Authority’s handling of the plans to develop the site behind 8 Albert Embankment.

Residents of Whitgift House and Whitgift Street, supported by your local Labour Team, have consistently called for the Fire Authority to drop its unsatisfactory developer, Native Land. We are pleased to report that this hard work has paid off, and that members of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority yesterday voted to discontinue using Native Land.

Joining local campaigners Visakha Chandrasekera and Michael Ball at the London Fire Authority HQ this afternoon; Councillor Steve Morgan and Labour candidates Joanne Simpson and David Amos spoke out on residents’ behalf and publicly called for the abandonment of Native Land. Steve and Joanne also both met high level management of the Fire Authority last week to warn the body that they intended to publicly denounce the use of Native Land. Steve and Joanne highlighted three main issues: lack of public transparency, woeful levels of affordable housing and a contemptuous lack of regard for the opinions of local residents.

Your Labour Team is delighted that the Fire Authority has finally decided to listen to the concerns of the community and has realised that an alternative developer would produce a better deal, not only for local residents, but for the financial future of the Fire Authority too. This is a fantastic result and thoroughly deserved of the hard work and dedication of the local campaign.

You can be assured that your three Labour candidates David Amos, Chris Marsh and Joanne Simpson will continue to monitor this issue closely and ensure that the Fire Authority proceeds in its new choice of a developer in a transparent way. Your local Labour team will continue to support residents to ensure we secure the best benefits for the community.

Pictured: local campaigners at an earlier protest against Native Land outside the Fire Station

Proposal to close Kennington Park Post Office - your comments needed!

The Post Office have launched a consultation about their plans to close Kennington Park Post Office, at the junction of Kennington Road and Kennington Park Road. They claim customers could be served by the Walworth Road Post Office instead.

The details of the consultation are on the Post Office website - where you can submit your response.

They key questions they are asking are:  

• How suitable do you think Walworth Road Post Office is and how easy it is to get there?
• Is Walworth Road Post Office easy for you to get into and is it easily accessible inside?
• Do you have any other concerns about the proposal?
• If so, do you have any suggestions that could make it better for you or that you would like us to incorporate into the refurbishment plans for Walworth Road Post Office?
• Are there any local issues that you think could be affected by the proposals?