Anyone for a Big Lunch?

Have you heard of the Big Lunch? Basically, it's a party in your street, in everyone's street. On 19th July the organisers asking the people of Britain to stop what they're doing and sit down to lunch together. Sounds like fun to me.

Residents on Arthurdon Road are hoping to hold an event (they've had street parties there in the past) and have asked me to see if the Council will formally support the event, as many other local authorities around the country are doing. They are hoping to have a bit of food, some music played by children, and to play a few games such as the three legged race and egg and spoon. It sounds like a lovely, harmless way to spend a few hours and to get to know your neighbours. I'm going to write to the Mayor and see if he will support the day, as residents' approaches to officers thus far haven't received much support.

Looking at the website, it looks like Wickham Road are planning something too. Anyone else?

Foxy Fun Day Success

Well done to all those in the recently-formed Foxborough Gardens Tenants and Residents' Association, who organised yesterday's 'Foxy Fun Day'. It was an excellent event, with a really good community atmosphere. I would guestimate that well over half of the residents on the estate took part. As well as lots of stalls and food there were also loads of activities for children including a Punch and Judy show, a treasure hunt and an inflatable slide. Sadly I arrived too late to see PC Brian Jemmett from the Ladywell Safer Neighbourhood Team get put in the stocks, but I heard that the kids took great pleasure in throwing wet sponges at him. Definitely above and beyond the call of duty!

Thanks should go to all those from Regenter B3 (Pinnacle, Equipe and Higgins) and Lewisham Tenants' Fund who supported the event. Hopefully it will become an annual event.

As well as being a fun day, the event was also to raise money for a playground on the estate. The group will be making a presentation to the Mayor of Lewisham on 13th September to bid for some of the £1m Playbuilder Programme that Lewisham has been given by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) for the transformation and creation of 20-25 play areas in the borough.

Update 03/09/08: Newsshopper article and picture.

Foxborough Gardens Fun Day, Saturday August 30th

OK, having been pretty scathing of the Brockley PFI in the previous post, I just wanted to touch upon a couple of positive things that have happened recently and are planned over the forthcoming weeks.

Back in June, I posted about a petition organised by residents of Foxborough Gardens, calling for a playground on the estate, which I presented to the Mayor. Since then, rather than sitting back on their laurels, residents have formally established a tenants and residents association (TRA) and are planning a fun day on Saturday 30th August. The purpose of the event is two-fold. Firstly, and obviously, for the community to have fun, but secondly, they are also hoping to raise money to put towards a playground on the estate. A bouncy castle, magician, face-painting and BBQ are just a few of the many attractions planned for the day.

Foxborough Gardens TRA are also bidding for some of the £1m that Lewisham has got to improve play areas in the borough. Along with other organisations and communities, they will be giving a presentation to the Mayor at an event on Saturday 13th September. The Mayor will then decide which 6 projects will get funding in the first year, and years 2 and 3 of the funding.

Pinnacle's tenant and residents' participation officer, Jim, has been supporting residents in getting this off the ground and I've been very impressed in how the community is working together on this.

So why the picture of Punch and Judy? Well, residents are keen to have a Punch and Judy show at the Fun Day, but are struggling to find someone to do this. So if you know anyone who does Punch and Judy (you know, lots of domestic violence, police brutality, dog stealing sausages etc), let me know and I will pass it on to the residents.

And don't forget to come along on the day - Saturday 30th August, 12-6pm - fun and for a good cause!

Ladywell Village Fete?

I am delighted to 'exclusively reveal' that plans are afoot for a 'Ladywell Village Fete' in Dressington Avenue. The date pencilled in for this is the afternoon of Saturday 19th July and it will hopefully take place on the rugby pitch opposite the old workhouse building (next to Ladywell Fields). The project is being driven by staff and users of Ladywell Day Centre, working together with Slagrove Partnership, Abbey Manor College, the local Safer Neighbourhood team and a number of other local groups and individuals. Hopefully details will be confirmed soon (the booking still has to be approved by Glendale and various risk assessments, H& S criteria met etc), and booking forms for stalls etc made available.

Ute and I have met twice with the group planning the fete, discussions are ongoing with Glendale and we are hopeful that it will go ahead. We have been keen, since the threat to demolish the sports hall of Ladywell Day Centre in 2006, to make sure that the facilities in the centre are more widely available for use by the local community. One important step towards this was achieved a few weeks ago, when Slagrove Partnership started a youth club, which meets in the sports hall at Ladywell Day Centre. This was one of the projects we supported through the localities fund. However there are also other excellent facilities in the centre, including a fully-equipped woodwork room and a pottery room that are currently under-used. We hope that this fete, as well as being a great day in itself, will also help to build stronger links between the centre and the local community and lead to further use of the centre by local residents.

Opening of Stephen Lawrence Centre

On Thursday I attended the official opening of the Stephen Lawrence Centre on Brookmill Road, by the Mayor of London. I've been cycling past the site almost daily since before the old Thames Water building was demolished, so it was interesting to finally see inside it. Deptford Dame and others have posted previously about the delays in opening the building and I hadn't realised that it has actually been in use for a few months - every time I've been passed, it's looked empty, but several thousand students have apparently already used its facilities.

The centre is run by the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and will be used to train students in urban design and to provide general advice, training and guidance for young people. It is a fitting legacy for Stephen Lawrence, who had ambitions to be an architect before he was murdered.

The site posed a number of challenges for the architects, as certain parts can't be built on due to underground water pipes which need to be accessed occasionally by Thames Water, so the shape of the building was pretty much determined by the footprint they were able to build on. The architect is David Adjaye and the windows were designed by Chris Ofili.

I wasn't completely convinced when I first saw the metal cladding going onto the side of the building, but it is growing on me, and I do like the windows. The views from the balcony on the second floor are great. No obvious sign of any particularly green features in the building, but they may well be there and I just missed them.

Hopefully at some point soon the trust will find a way either to remove or make less stark the foreboding old Thames Water fencing that encircles the site without exposing the building to further vandalism. There isn't yet a notice board announcing what the building is for, and how local people can take advantage of the the excellent facilities there is missing, but I imagine that will appear soon. A bit of landscaping besides the black tarmac, and a few more bike racks for the students who are going to use the building wouldn't go amiss either, but I'll leave my criticisms there, as they shouldn't deflect from the fact that the opening was a wonderful achievement for all those involved in seeing the project through to fruition over the years.

St Andrew's 125th Anniversary Flower Festival

1. the First and Second World Wars 2. the congregation and community now - the influences of the Caribbean and Africa 3. The Abolition of Slavery 4. The nursery and under 5s.

Very impressive display at St Andrew's Flower Festival this weekend, which unfortunately the small photos I have posted don't do justice to. Each arrangement was around a particular theme, either to reflect a group active within the church or a relevant topic from over the past 125 years eg Fairtrade and Christian Aid, the Abolition of Slavery, the Youth Club.

I popped by to take a look at the flowers yesterday and also to hear local resident Gillian Heyward MBE gave a talk on the history of Brockley. There was also a very interesting display of old photographs of Brockley and Ladywell, including a photo of Brockley Jack in 1895 with two bowler-hatted gents with rifles standing at the entrance gate looking for all the world like something out of the wild west, and photos of sheep grazing on Hilly Fields. Apparently Ivy Road dates back to Elizabethan times, when there are maps showing an Ivy Lane in the same spot.

This morning Ute and I attended the packed-out service of celebration and thanksgiving to mark the 125th anniversary of the church. The Mayor of Lewisham also attended and spoke and the sermon was given by the Revd Nigel Uden, the Moderator of the Southern Synod URC (United Reformed Church equivalent of a bishop). It was interesting to hear more about the history of the church and see photos of it before its modernisation. In the 1960s the congregation had dropped to single figures and there was a risk of it closing, now the church has a growing congregation (250+) and provides a vital resource for the local community, with many local groups using its facilities, particularly the youth club and nursery.

St Andrew's Church 125th Anniversary Flower Festival

Just received an e-mail from Rev Barry Carter at St Andrew's Church on Brockley Road about their forthcoming flower festival to celebrate the church's 125th anniversary:

This year St Andrew's is celebrating its 125th Anniversary with a Flower Festival. The theme of the Festival is 'Then and Now' and will run from Friday 21st to Sunday 23rd September with a Service of Celebration on Sunday morning at 11 am. Alongside the Flower Festival, we hope to mount an exhibition of the history of the Church and its surrounding community and visitors will also be able to tour St Andrew's Community Centre and see examples of its work, especially with children and young people.

The Flower Festival and exhibitions will be open at the following times:
Friday 21st September 11am - 7 pm
Saturday 22nd September 11 am - 5 pm
Sunday 23rd September 10 am - 2 pm
Service of Celebration Sunday 23rd September at 11 am

Brockley Max Starts Tomorrow!

Busy month of festivities coming up in Lewisham, starting with Brockley Max which kicks off at 4pm tomorrow by Brockley Station. Full details here plus see Nick's blog for more info. Loads happening, don't miss it.

Then it's Catford Beer Festival next week, Bike Week 16th-24th June ( full details of rides are on the Lewisham Cyclists' site), Hilly Fields' Fayre on 23rd June and Healthy Brockley on 24th June.

See calendar on the right for details.

Brockley Max 2007 - musicians/artists/volunteers wanted

Last week I went to a planning meeting for Brockley Max 2007, and it's promising to be bigger and better than ever! Take a look at the website for details of this year's event and see below for ways you can get involved (courtesy of Moira).

The Opening Night is planned for Friday 1^st June by KNOWN's mural next to Brockley Station. The Closing Night is planned for the 9 June on a stage on Hilly Fields.

If you have a band that would like to play either the opening or closing night of Brockley Max 2007, you can send a demo / brief blurb to the following address: Brockley Max Stage, c/o Immortals Gate, PO Box 47639, London, SE4 1ZE. Alternatively, if you have a myspace address, you can e-mail the details with a short paragraph about your band to: David. Help is also needed with transport and carrying equipment, stewards, help with rubbish collection at the end of the night. If you know someone else that would be interested in this - please pass the information onto them!

Exhibitions and Open Studios

Lewisham Arthouse are holding an annual Lewisham Arthouse Group Show during the festival., which will tie in with the celebrations around the abolition of Slavery with an exhibition entitled “SUGAR IN MY TEA”. And they have their Open Studios on 9 and 10 June. If you’d like to hold an exhibition please contact the venue, or open your studio (complete an event form and send it in to Moira). Toad’s Mouth Too is having a group show if you just want to submit one picture.

Art In The Park

Afternoon of 9 June on Hilly Fields. The highly successful children’s day is happening again. Events planned include a magic lantern and wishing tree workshops with Emergency Arts. Please contact Elizabetta if you’d like to run a workshop for children, and youth especially, or you would like to be a steward/helper on the day.

Abolition of Slavery Evening ‘Looking Behind’

An evening on Friday 8 June celebrating Saartje Baartman (the 'Hottentot Venus') and the abolition of slavery. If you’d like to take part – poetry, music, dance etc please contact Gill .

Film Night
Declan is organizing another fantastic film night. If not at the Brockley Jack (possibly being refurbished) it might be held at the back of Moonbows in the open air. If you’d like to help or submit a film contact Declan .

Pre Festival event

John at Moonbows suggested a pre festival evening to promote the festival. Possibly to be held in May. Any ideas? Contact John.

CDs and myspace

Volunteer wanted to organise another B Max Trax CD this year. Also need someone to take over the B Max myspace page. Again, contact Moira.

BROCKLEY COMMON ART COMMISSION

Over the last 3 years the BXAG through its Brockley Commoners group has been reclaiming and transforming old common land around Brockley station. Phase 2 is now in active design with a planning application to be submitted in the next 2-3 months.

As part of phase 2 the group would like to commission a significant piece of art which would occupy a strategic position on the site and indeed in the Brockley Cross area. It will be visible from the main Brockley Road, to passengers passing through the station and using the main public footbridge and also, depending on its height, glimpsed by passengers passing through on trains on both the low and high level lines In order to select an artist to create and install the work a public competition is being launched with a first stage closing date of the 10th April 2007. Artists with local connections are particularly encouraged to participate.

If you would like more information, please email Moira for the full document.