In an action that has been widely anticipated, although almost universally loathed, the Metropolitan Police have limited the opening hours of the public front desk at Bexleyheath Police Station - as seen in the photos above. Click on either one to see a larger view. Instead of being open 24 hours a day, the front desk is now only open for little more than office hours, and thus not available at night when it is possibly more greatly needed. As usual with these situations, the reason quoted is in order to save money. I attach below the complete press release regarding the partial closure of the public front desk, which includes the hours it will now be open, and the reasoning behind the change in policy. Personally, I think the police are going to regret this, but their hands are tied by senior management, and also by the Home Office. and the Mayor of London. It is said in the press release that the nearest 24/7 police desk is at Lewisham or the recently disgraced Charing Cross Police station. This is not much use if you've got a violent incident occurring in the centre of Bexleyheath at night, or a crazed person with a knife going on a rampage. The partial closure presupposes that all members of the public have mobile phones and other mobile computing devices, which is not the case for everyone, especially for elderly residents. Readers can make their own minds up from the text I reproduce below for your information:-
"Dear Residents,
I am writing to inform you that from Tuesday 3 March 2026, the front counter at Bexleyheath Police Station will no longer be available 24/7 and will be moving to an extended hours service model.
From Tuesday 3 March, this front counter will be open:
Monday to Friday: 10:00 – 22:00
Saturday to Sunday: 09:00 – 19:00
Alternative Reporting Locations
If you need to report a crime in person outside of these hours, the following front counters remain open 24 hours a day:
Charing Cross Police Station 2 Agar St, London WC2N 4JP
Lewisham Police Station 43 Lewisham High St, London SE13 5JZ
Other Ways to Report
Alternatively, you can report an incident by:
Visiting the Met Police website.
Calling the non-emergency number 101.
For hearing or speech-impaired users, you can text 18000 to access our textphone service.
Important: If a crime is happening right now or if someone is in immediate danger, please always call 999.
You can also remain 100% anonymous by contacting the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via their untraceable online form.
Why are these changes being made?
The way people contact the police has changed significantly. Since 2012, reports made at front counters have dropped by 60%. At some of the quieter locations, we are seeing fewer than three reports a day. Furthermore, overnight, only one in every 2,000 crimes is reported at a physical front counter.
We are adapting to how Londoners engage with us. These changes allow us to focus our resources where communities need us most: visible, local policing that keeps our streets safe.
Won’t the reduction of hours make London less safe?
What makes London safer is having as many officers as possible on the frontline, tackling and driving down crime. Today, 95% of crime reports are made through channels other than front counters.
These changes will free up approximately 3,000 officer hours, allowing extra resources to investigate crimes, update victims, and step up our action on key priorities like knife crime, robbery, and anti-social behaviour.
Will it make a difference?
We are investing significantly in neighbourhood policing, and we are already seeing results:
1,000 more arrests are being made each month.
Neighbourhood crime is down, with double-digit reductions in personal robbery, theft from person, and vehicle crime.
Knife crime has dropped significantly this year.
Homicides are at their lowest since monthly records began in 2003.
The Met is currently reducing a £260 million funding gap. This requires making tough choices to ensure our resources are focused where they have the greatest impact. These changes will deliver £7 million in savings, meaning we can focus as much resource as possible on the front line policing that keeps you safe."
Back at the end of last December, I wrote extensively on the blog about Dartford Council's proposals to regenerate and redevelop the former Co-Op department store building located between Spital Street and Hythe Street in the middle of Dartford Town Centre. Since then, the Council have revised and updated their proposals, and made substantial changes to what they intend to construct. The former Co-Op store has been empty and derelict for around 20 years, before which it was a large and successful regional department store with many Art Deco architectural features. A lot of local people - myself included - were extremely disappointed when the excellent store closed to the public. I seem to recall claims at the time that the store was to reopen under new management, but this never materialised. Dartford Council's new proposals would involve converting the existing Co-Op store building into residential flats, and the extensive grounds of the building would become 27 one bed and 18 three-bedroom properties, of which a minimum of 20% would be affordable housing. The proposal also says that there would be 1,871 m of non- residential floor space, which would accommodate shops, restaurants and cafes. There would also be three small artist studios included in the development. There is also talk of a cinema and a music venue on the site, although I find this somewhat unlikely, due to potential complaints from residents in the building about noise. The revised new design has been created by award-winning architects firm, Peter Barber. Worryingly for some potential residents of the refurbished site is the fact that at the time of writing there is little provision for private car parking on the development. In addition, Dartford Council plan to make the centre of Dartford entirely vehicle-free, and to pedestrianise parts that are currently open to traffic. This would apparently include plans for Orchard Street to be fully pedestrianised with widened footways, new landscaping and a tree-lined public square at the South End of the road. There would however be provision for a large number of bicycle racks. Unfortunately, I think that this is a typical response by an architect / designer who lives within a large city. Many people in and around Dartford rely on a car, as the town is too far away to cycle on a regular basis to other regional towns and for many a car is essential. We have seen similar situations occur in the past in places such as the Erith Park development where the limited number of car parking spaces has caused increasing amounts of friction between residents and the estate management company. Personally, I have no axe to grind either way, as I am no longer a driver, and have not been for around 25 years. I do appreciate that many people do not regard a car as luxury, but as an essential item to get turn from work and the shops for example. I understand that some local Dartford Councillors are concerned that at the time of writing, nobody has expressed any interest in the commercial units proposed within the new redevelopment, although it is very early days yet. Bearing in mind that much of the shopping area to the east of the former Co-Op department store has lost retail units in Dartford High Street and beyond to shops located in the nearby giant Bluewater Shopping Centre, it does not bode well for the confidence of investors in new retail property in the local area. One point that is encouraging is that the Art Deco shell of the former Co-Op building will be retained. In the past I have on several occasions being asked when the the former department store closed. What happened to the ornate brass and glass interior doors, and the the decorative scroll work banisters between the floors which were all very evocative of the 1930's? I don't know for certain, but I would not be surprised if architectural scrappers had stolen them, as I'm sure they were going to be worth an absolute fortune. If anybody knows any better, then please do let me know. Comments to me at the usual address - hugh.neal@gmail.com.
A piece of information that is currently not very well known is that over the next few years, there will be major changes to the currently familiar post boxes found on many public streets, some of which date back to Victorian, Edwardian and pre-war times. These old cast iron bright red painted postal facilities are being gradually phased out and replaced with brand new dedicated boxes which will have far greater functionality. In actuality, I understand that parts of the existing boxes will be refurbished, but the front door and the opening for letters will be upgraded with the new technology along with a solar panel on the top of the unit. Personally, I'm of the opinion that quite a few existing post boxes will need complete replacement, as many are in very bad condition indeed. An example of this is the one at the top of Picardy Road in Upper Belvedere, which is in a very poor state indeed, and extremely rusty, as are many in the local area. Already in some areas in North Kent existing post boxes are being wrapped in black vinyl with notices placed on them "Out of service. Automated system coming soon". The new boxes that will replace the existing ones will have the ability to take small and medium sized parcels in a drop-down drawer as well as letters and envelopes. The new units will also have a solar panel to power them and will feature an integrated bar code scanner. The Post Office anticipate that around 3,500 existing post boxes will be replaced with the new technology type, and it is said that around parts of North Kent there are already approximately 100 of the new boxes in service. Unfortunately, as most readers are aware I am still very unwell and housebound and and thus unable to check this in person or indeed get any first person photographs - the photo of the scabby and very tired post box located on Woolwich Road in Bostall Heath shown in the photo above was sent to me some years ago by a reader - click on it to see a larger version. This change in post box type is primarily down to the fundamental change in the business model used by Royal Mail - this is highlighted by the news that the price of postage stamps is set to increase yet again in April of this year. Far fewer people send letters nowadays as everything is done either on social media or via email, but they are sending an increasing number of parcels, which is where the postal service sees their future profits. Personally, the level of service they have been offering over the last few years has to me meant they are really just managing their gradual decline; but I would like to be proved wrong regarding this.
Readers may recall that not long ago I wrote how Bluewater based community radio station Made In Kent Radio closed down last December after going bust. Now news reaches me via the excellent Radio Today website - the prime source for radio trade insider news and comment, that the ailing local radio station has been purchased. The press release regarding the subject reads:- "Made in Kent Radio will return to broadcasting on DAB across Kent in April after its brand was acquired by Greenwich Media CIC. The community operator has secured the station’s assets following its closure in December 2025 due to financial pressures, including rising business rates. Made in Kent Radio was founded five years ago by presenter and producer Matt James. It launched during the COVID-19 pandemic to support local businesses and provide county-focused content. In 2024, the station moved into Bluewater Shopping Centre to strengthen its presence across Kent. Greenwich Media CIC, which operates Maritime Radio and claims to have 50,000 listeners weekly, says bringing the station into its portfolio will extend its community broadcasting work across the county while maintaining Made in Kent Radio’s local identity. Duncan Martin of Greenwich Media CIC said: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome Made in Kent Radio into the Greenwich Media family.” He added that the organisation is “committed to continuing that legacy” and plans to “invest in the brand, grow its reach on DAB, and ensure it remains a powerful voice for local people.” The station will broadcast music from the 1980s to today, alongside local news and features. Plans are in place to reintroduce the Media Academy to support young people developing broadcasting skills across Kent".
The end video this week should be of interest to many people in the local area. It shows Mick Jagger visiting the Mick Jagger Music and Arts Centre, which is located in a former part of Dartford Grammar School, of which he used to be a pupil. The centre recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, and Mick was on hand to help commemorate this, along with a number of civic dignitaries. I recall when I was a child I was told that one of my parents then adult neighbours used to be a classmate whilst Mick Jagger was at school. Nowadays, Mick has an image of being a rebel and a hell raiser, especially as a young man. The neighbour told me at least while Mick was at school, he was an extremely good student, always did his homework and always put his hand up to answer questions during lessons. Nothing like the image The Rolling Stones projected when they started to become famous, which was all due to their management, which tried to make them the bad boys compared with the good boys of The Beatles. Apparently it was all marketing. Comments me as usual - hugh.neal@gmail.com.
