Streetworks improvements begin next month with Norwood Road pavement resurfacing

Work will shortly be starting to resurface the pavements along Norwood Road, as the first phase of Streetworks, the community led project to improve West Norwood and Tulse Hill. This includes both sides of Norwood Road between Leigham Vale and Elmcourt Road.  It will start in early August and will be carried out in phases as follows:

• 1st Phase: Norwood Road (east side only) opposite Leigham Vale to Avenue Park Road – approximately one week

• 2nd Phase: Norwood Road (east side only) between Avenue Park Road and Elmcourt Road – approximately three to four weeks

• 3rd Phase: Norwood Road (west side only) between Leigham Vale and  opposite Elmcourt Road – approximately five weeks

In the letter sent to residents /businesses Lambeth states; 

We are aware that many of you live or work near the affected roads and we will do our best to minimise disruption.  We will have signs to inform the public that businesses are open as usual and to ensure that there will always be access to premises while improvement works are progressing. There are no scheduled road closures as part of the work however the parking bays outside Elmcourt Pharmacy will be suspended during the works on the west side of Norwood Road (the last phase of works).

We appreciate that these improvement works will cause some short term disruption however we will ensure that access and servicing needs are catered for. Should you have any queries regarding these works please contact Debbie Parker on DParker@lambeth.gov.uk or contact one of your local councillors

There are other changes proposed to improve West Norwood as part of Streetworks – you can see the plans at a public exhibition this Wednesday between 6.30-8pm at the Old Library, Knights Hill

On Friday 17th June 2016 a Section 23 Misuse of Drugs Act warrant was carried out by Thurlow Park SNT and the Local Policing Team in Thurlow Park ward.

Using local intelligence, the warrant was executed swiftly and a large amount of drugs (cannabis) were found along with a Skorpion firearm and ammunition.  A suspect was arrested and charged with four offences.

PC Kate Brian said; ‘This was an excellent find and has made the community safer and possibly even saved lives’. 

Peabody invested in new play equipment and an outdoor gym on Peabody Hill. Across London this year, this was their biggest investment, and included a new playpark and sandpit, adventure play equipment and a treehouse for older children and an outdoor gym for residents of all ages.

For the full album of photos, see here.

Cllrs Anna and Max were invited to open the new facilities and joined in with a day of fun and games, including testing the new play parks, joining in with a sports day, free health checks, and meeting the gym instructor to learn about the new gym.

Peabody Hill is an isolated estate and one of the least affluent parts of the ward. Anna, Max and Fred have done a lot of work to engage and empower local residents – they helped to set up an Over-60s Club, Christmas daytrips for residents, litter picking and estate clean ups, and support the local youth club.

The lovely photos are thanks to Brian Aldrich Photography.

Come to a public exhibition on the future of Carnegie Library

In March, Carnegie Library was temporarily closed for refurbishment. As well as the existing neighbourhood library, empty spaces like the basement will be refitted to include a community hub, a gym and community spaces.

Lambeth has been drawing up plans for what this might look like – on the 21st and 22nd June there will be public exhibitions to view and comments on the proposals, meet councillors, officers and GLL, who would run the gym facility.

Resurfacing Maintenance Programme 2016/2017

In our last blog piece in April 2016 we talked about the resurfacing works on Arduli, Guernsey, Trinity Rise, Deronda, Chatsworth and Idminston. 

As an update we wanted to inform residents that we have continued to campaign for further resurfacing works to be conducted on roads /pavements such as Eastmearn, Tulsemere and Chancllor as it’s a key issue for residents in our ward.

Working with the Cabinet lead, Cllr Braithwaite, we can now share an overview of the criteria involved in Lambeth’s decision making about which roads /pavements require resurfacing. 

The roads and pavements selected for an upgrade are dependant on the scores given following an assessment of every road and pavement in the borough.  The scores (out of 10) is based on a number of factors; 

In terms of roads, they are measured against a set of criteria, taking into consideration, the level of usage of the road, whether it’s considered to be a key network link, if its condition poses a health and safety risk, and a host of other aspects in order to work out the priority level such as; the road traffic sensitivity, planned engineering works and the local profile (i.e., near a school, church, leisure centre, hospital, park, museum and /or library). 

In terms of pavements, it is much the same for roads though they will also take into account the deprivation of the local area, its usage, the local profile, planned works and its linkages to other main pedestrian networks. 

As far as we are aware the next round of roads /pavements to be upgraded in second half of 2016/17 have not yet been compiled, so we will continue to campaign for those roads /pavements in our ward that we believe need to be revisited by officers and reassessed. 

Knife Crime in the Community

In the last couple of months there have been a number of incidents of stabbing and knife crime across the borough. Thankfully, none of these have resulted in a fatality.

While the number of knife crime incidents in Lambeth has actually fallen over the last twelve months, this is a problem that still blights too many of our communities and we wanted to reassure residents that our Cabinet lead Cllr M. Seedat and officers have been working closely with the police and a number of measures have been taken. These include;

Extra officers at schools
Extra patrolling officers in hot spot areas
Meetings with head teachers, facilitated by Lambeth Council
Dispersal zones implemented at key schools
Working with key community contacts to try to dissuade young people from participating in further altercations
Intelligence-led use of stop and search to recover knives and other weapons
Requested additional police resources to provide a deterrent and reassurance

With regards to the schools in the Norwood area, Lambeth has been working with the schools affected and there has already been meetings between the heads, council and police which has led to the simmering down of tensions. These initial meetings, plus several others between council officers, police, and councillors will aim to set out some longer term partnership work with the GLA, the Young Lambeth Coop, grassroots organisations and the police.

If you have any questions or concerns please get in touch.

During Full Council in May Cllr Max Deckers Dowber handed in a petition regarding parking and controlled parking zones.

Working with residents about their parking concerns has mainly centered on controlled parking zones and disabled parking bays, and as local cllrs Anna, Max and Fred have consistently pushed for the parking review to take place in order for any areas of stress to be identified and resolved. 

As an update we had further conversations with the Cabinet lead for the parking review, Cllr. Braithwaite, and we’ve also engaged in the Equality Streets Scrutiny Comission which has looked at the impact of parking on the local community. 

We will continue to work with residents, Cllrs and officers in order to find better parking solutions, and will provide further information as and when it comes to us. If you have any questions or concerns about parking on your street please do contact us. 

Last February we posted on the forthcoming tree planting that was to take place in the ward, and which was due in large part to the residents of Thurlow Park. 

The residents association on Chancellor Grove are a great example of a positive community in action.

As an update we wanted to let residents now that while we await trees to be planted in Guernsey, Harpenden, Ulverstone and Deronda we expect to see Romola, Berwyn and Deerbroke added to the tree replacement list for next season. 

We need your thoughts on West Norwood and Tulse Hill – what you love about it and what should be improved. You might live here, work here or come to shop or socialise. Whatever your connection, we want your opinion. 

Over 400 comments have been made so far – which is fantastic!

Explore the new website and interactive map for West Norwood and Tulse Hill. Lambeth is looking to amend the Masterplan which was last changed in 2009. Your suggestions and opinions will be helpful in making current and forthcoming modifications.

https://westnorwoodandtulsehill.commonplace.is/

Lambeth LED Street Lighting

From June 2016 Lambeth will begin a programme which will will convert 12,981 of Lambeth’s street lighting stock from SON-T (sodium) bulbs to LED (Light Emitting Diode) bulbs. The work will be carried out over a 18 month period. 

The existing lamp will be re-used with a new LED fitting being installed into the lantern. The programme of works will start in the North of the borough with Thurlow Park ward being visited in mid-October this year, and Parks, Footpaths and A Roads being visited across Lambeth between Feb-April 2017.                            

What are the benefits of carrying out this work?  LED 
The two main benefits of converting to LED are a reduction in Lambeth’s CO2 emissions and reduced energy bill for the council, thereby fulfilling our manifesto pledge to protect the environment by reducing the amount of energy the council uses and saving up to £600,000 per year.

How will residents be advised of works on their roads?
A letter will be sent to you 10 days before work commences on your road giving details of what will be carried out. The time spent on your street will depend on the extent of the work that has to be done on the road. As the light fittings are replaced rather than the any cabling being changed, no significant risks or delays are expected.