The Pilgrim's Ferry.

I have a very disappointing story to tell; On Wednesday morning last week it was reported that food donated to the Bexley Food Bank at Erith had been stolen from Christ Church Erith. I contacted Reverend Simon Archer, Curate of Christ Church, who told me:- "We have a Food Bank collection box in the west porch. It was full and in fact overflowing yesterday (22nd August) so as the Erith Food bank is open Wednesdays I thought I would take it in. When I opened up the church this morning i noticed that most of the food had been taken. This has clearly happened in the few hours we leave the church open during the day on the 22nd, usually up until lunchtime. It may well have been someone in need themselves, and I will be praying for them, but by going through the Food bank we can distribute fairly to those who are referred to us. It means we can make sure we stretch the limited resources as far as possible and feed those who are genuinely struggling". This is the latest in a spate of thefts from the church, and in my opinion the lowest of them - stealing from those most in need. Previous thefts have included that of the church public address amplifier and sound mixer, and the theft of a bicycle from outside the West Porch (seen on the right hand side of the photograph above - click on the photo for a larger view). If you saw anything, or have any information regarding the theft of food that was destined to be given to the most needy of people, please feel free to contact me in complete confidentiality. Drop a line to me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

Next week is going to be hard work for anyone living in the local area who works in London and commutes by train. From Tuesday the 29th August (the day after the Bank Holiday Monday), passengers using trains to get into London face major headaches as engineering work causes disruption to services across the bank holiday weekend and into the following week. For commuters using Cannon Street via the Dartford via Greenwich or the Bexleyheath lines, it means the introduction of rush-hour queue systems just to get into the station - expected to hold passengers up by 30 minutes, according to the official announcement, but according to sources I have contacted, they are actually expecting the delays to be far worse - possibly around an hour. Railway managers are urging people not to travel during rush hour through the station if possible, or even to work from home. Network Rail, which handles the rail infrastructure, and Southeastern which run the trains, are advising passengers that between Tuesday August 29th and Friday September 1st, there will be queuing systems in place at Cannon Street station during the busiest times, as Network Rail continues to rebuild London Bridge and the surrounding railway, as part of the Thameslink programme. I am aware that not all users of the Bexleyheath and Greenwich lines are aware of this forthcoming work, despite regular announcements on the P.A systems of stations that will be affected by the outages - many commuters are using earbuds and listening to music, and are unaware of the announcements.

The two new Thames Clipper ships are now in service on The River Thames as I originally covered a while back. Ferry Jupiter began service on Thursday August the 17th after completing the two hundred mile journey from the Wight Shipyard Co Ltd on the Isle of Wight to Clippers HQ at Trinity Buoy Wharf. She has joined sister ship Mercury, which was put to work on the Thames in June. In an interview with The Wharf newspaper, MBNA Thames Clippers’ co-founder and CEO Sean Collins said: “Being able to welcome our newest fleet member is a great milestone for MBNA Thames Clippers as well as the capital itself.  Having increased our capacity along the River Thames by 30% in the last two years through the continued introduction of new boats we’re proud to be playing a key role in opening up this London lifeline to even more commuters and visitors.” Apart from a few experimental runs to Gravesend, there is no indication that any consideration has been given to expanding the service to include Erith Pier - due mainly to the reasons I outlined in a previous update.

Following the comments from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association last week in respect of some planned voluntary litter picking taking place in the local area. One regular reader and occasional contributor commented on the news:- "It's a shame that we need to rely on the kind volunteer litter pickers.  I take a walk around the Park Crescent / Lesney Park triangle most days with the dog, and often see litter on the grass verges, and pick it up when possible. My feeling is that the vast majority of this litter isn't dropped by pedestrians but mostly blown around the area because some local residents insist on leaving their recycling boxes and bins permanently in their front gardens (as ugly garden ornaments), usually without lids on the boxes, even though they have a side entrance and could store them out of sight. If they really, really, have to leave them in their front gardens all week, then it would be polite to make sure the lids are firmly on the boxes.  So let's put the lid on litter. Having said that, I filled two carrier bags up one day last week, with KFC empty cartons/plastic bottles/sweet wrappers/paper napkins, strewn on the grass verge outside an elderly neighbour's house.  I suspect that in this case the contents were flung out of a car window". In another Email related to litter, and in this case the "Butt Police" - the local litter patrols run by commercial company Kingdom Environmental Ltd, were the subject of a recent undercover investigation by the BBC Panorama team, and exposed a range of extremely dubious practices. My comments last week that the patrols operated by Kingdom concentrated mainly in Bexleyheath Broadway may have been somewhat premature. A long time reader who chooses to remain anonymous wrote:- "I have been reading Maggot Sandwich for years - do keep up the good work. I saw Sunday's blog on litter patrols and thought I'd pass on the attached. An unidentified yet lionhearted employee at Erith station posted this note on the station's window at the end of July. Not all heroes wear capes. I have seen these litter patrols outside Erith station in the mornings, so certainly useful to know. This note was removed with two days, by the way". You can see the poster that was displayed in the window of Erith Station above - click on the image for a larger view. Personally, I am not opposed in any way  to the use of private companies to enforce the litter laws, I just feel that Kingdom have been operating in a very high - handed manner, and also concentrating on the "easy wins" rather than on dealing with the endemic problems of commercial fly tipping which blight the local area. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com. 

As many regular readers will already be aware, I, along with several other local Bloggers have been very concerned about the state of what is left of our local newspapers. This is especially true of the News Shopper, which made a majority of its reporting staff redundant around this time last year. I have been in communication with fellow local Blogger Daryl Chamberlain of the excellent 853 Blog, which covers Charlton, Greenwich and Lewisham (the name of the blog comes from the old area telephone dialling code). Darryl - who is a "proper" journalist, unlike me, has been investigating the situation with the troubled newspaper for a couple of years now. As Darryl says:- "it's basically run together with the South London Guardian / Surrey Comet series as one newspaper series for an area from Weybridge to Gravesend. The distribution further into London is pretty much non-existent and has been for some time".  I can also add that the only real difference nowadays between the individual area versions of the newspaper seem to be the front page; when you get past it, the internal contents appear to be identical. The other problem of no longer employing journalists with local knowledge is that the accuracy of the stories posted goes out of the window. I have contacted them on a number of occasions when they have run a story with serious factual inaccuracies, and I know that I am not alone in this respect. One piece of feedback that the Maggot Sandwich constantly gets from readers is that they come to the Blog to get an idea of what is going on in the local area, as the News Shopper is as likely to be running a story about an event in Richmond as it is about one in Northumberland Heath. It ceased to be a local paper some time ago, and can now be considered a regional publication. The Maggot Sandwich attempts to fill this gap, and to provide news, current affairs and stories which I think would be of interest to the readership. I am just an enthusiastic hobbyist, not a professional reporter, and this all gets put together every week as something I do in my spare time. As many will be aware, I refuse to accept advertising (despite my host, Google, trying to persuade me to on a semi regular basis) and also accept no sponsorship or "freebies" from any organisation mentioned in the Blog. I try to remain completely independent, impartial and unbiased in my reporting.

I don't normally comment on news stories that hit the national press - as an amateur journalist I feel that the professionals usually have a better handle on things than I could ever hope to have; however in this instance I think exactly the opposite. You may well have read about the very unusual situation that has occurred at the McDonald's restaurant at Crayford, where the staff have launched a large industrial dispute with the owners of the franchise, and have now threatened to go on strike. The workers in the dispute are being represented by the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union. The union’s national president, Ian Hodson said recently:- “In Crayford, people have been having their hours cut in favour of others preferred by the managers, while staff have also complained of bullying and sexual harassment. We’ve had complaints that one former employee is now living in his car because he couldn’t afford to pay the rent due to lost hours. McDonald’s has had countless opportunities to resolve grievances by offering workers a fair wage and acceptable working conditions. This is a call for change.” I know that the workers involved in the dispute have a number of issues, some related to pay, others related to how many hours they are being allowed to work, but the thing that most concerns me is the claim of bullying, favouritism and even sexual harassment in the workplace. I get the feeling that there is a lot more to this story than that which has been published by the press. Bearing in mind the local nature of this story, I would not be at all surprised if a reader might have background knowledge of the events that have led up to this threat of a strike. If you know what has really been going on, and would like to let me know in complete confidence, then please drop me a line to hugh.neal@gmail.com - you can be anonymous if you so wish.

I have been in communication with pub chain J D Wetherspoons over the last week, as a follow - up to discussions I had with them last year, concerning plans they have to open a pub in the local area. I had originally been quite optimistic that they might have put in a bid to take over and refurbish the failing Running Horses, overlooking the Erith Riverside Gardens, which you can see in the photo above - click on it for a larger version. The once great pub has been staggering on for a number of years, but it is sadly a shadow of what it used to be in the late 1980's / early 1990's when it was an incredibly popular venue with an amazing carvery restaurant on the upper floor. Back in the day you had to book in advance to secure a table in the carvery, and at weekends the place would be heaving with family groups. Food portions were large and well - cooked, and all three bars (two downstairs, and a smaller one upstairs) in the pub would be busy. Nowadays this is sadly very far from the case. I had suggested to Wetherspoons that they might wish to buy the place and refurbish it, as it would make an excellent Wetherspoons outlet. I got a response from their property acquisitions team on last Monday morning which read:- "Thank you very so much for your email regarding The Running Horses in Erith. J D Wetherspoon is interested in being represented in the town, but would rather a site closer to the shopping area.  If you know of any other sites of potential we would love to hear about them. Once again, thank you for taking the time and trouble to contact us". So much for that idea then; I don't think the property team actually realise just how close the Running Horses is to the Erith Riverside Shopping Centre, and I responded accordingly. They were also not aware that the shopping centre gates are closed at 6pm in the evening, and that the retail area is closed off from public access. My opinion is that it is looking less likely that we will get a Wetherspoons in Erith than I had originally anticipated, but it may be that an accommodation at another site closer to the town centre can be made.

It would seem that the Erith Lighthouse project has attracted more attention that some would have imagined. The London Evening Standard has written a very interesting piece on the project. They give the pop – up restaurant a very favourable review, though I do think that they unintentionally damn it with faint praise – they say that the Erith Riverside Gardens, where the Lighthouse Project is based are located “on a flood defence wall” – which I suppose in essence it is, but the gardens are so much more than that. It is good to see a paper like the Standard, which tends to be very North of the river centric, giving exposure to a part of the city that normally gets somewhat overlooked. I am hopeful that the Erith Lighthouse project will not be a one – off event, but in time will become an annual celebration of the local area. For far too long Erith and the surrounding areas have been regarded as a cultural and social backwater by the trendies in central and West London – perhaps that is now starting to change for the better. Time will tell.

The recently opened pie and mash shop in Erith town centre seems to be doing well; the outlet is located in the ground floor of the Nemesis Thai Boxing Gym. I can understand why the business would want to share a space with another organisation. The pie and mash shop is a bit of an experiment for the owners; Rather than commit large amounts of capital into leasing a full retail unit in Erith Riverside Shopping Centre, they have wisely chosen to test the market by instead subletting space in an existing business. If things take off, they can expand – if they don’t – their financial exposure will be limited. Any new food outlet in the town centre is to be welcomed, especially one that concentrates on traditional fare – there are already sufficient burger and kebab outlets as it is.

This week we have ward reports from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association:- "BEXLEYHEATH POLICE STATION / FRONT OFFICE CLOSURE - HAVE YOUR SAY. As covered in previous weeks, the London Mayor's consultation period for proposed changes that affect Bexleyheath police station runs until 6th October 2017 and Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch are keen that as many NW Coordinators and residents in the Borough have their say as possible to ensure that one of our vital services remains intact. These are the key ways that you can have your say: 1) Email the London Mayor’s Office directly giving your name and address. Please email the London Mayor’s office directly at consultation@mopac.london.gov.uk using the following as your pointer-guide:`“I call on the Mayor for London Mr Sadiq Khan to - a) Keep Bexleyheath Police station open with a 24 hour front office counter facility. b) Keep Bexleyheath Police station open. c) Recognise that the Police Station plays an important role allowing residents to report crime and anti-social behaviour in the area as well as seek advice and assistance from officers. Bexleyheath is and must remain an operational base for local officers which means they can respond swiftly to problems and calls. d) To recognise that Bexley, the borough, covers a large geographic area and that the principal police station must be at the centre of the borough bus transport hub and main ‘shopping area’ which is The Broadway Bexleyheath.” 2) Fill out the on-line petition at: http://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/bexleyheath-police-station-front-office-closure-1 . 3) We have a hard copy petition that we can send you as a document (or download here) to print out and for you to gather Name / Signature / Postcode / Tel no. (optional) from your residents. Alternatively we can supply you with a couple of forms or more to collect these details. We have over 1,000 coordinators; if each just collected 10 signatures we would have 10,000 signatures and we should be able to exceed this figure because many will collect more. In addition to the 3 options being offered above to protest against the planned closure, why not come along to this meeting: SNB Board Meeting in the Civic Chamber / Civic Offices at the top of Gravel Hill (Old Woolwich B.S. Building) on Thursday 7th September at 6.30pm. The main item on the agenda is the proposed closure of the front desk and then the police station itself. The Chamber is booked from 6.30pm. Please come along and bring any residents from your street who want to show their support for keeping the station / front desk and NW Office open. A representative from The London Mayor's Office (MOPAC) will be attending. Barnehurst Ward:- "Barnehurst Ward has suffered two burglaries in the past week. Both burglaries happened on Friday 18th August. The first one occurred in Lyndhurst Road at 21.30 hours. Suspects had ripped an alarm off the wall however the alarm continued to sound. A pane of glass to a rear patio door had also been smashed. On speaking to local residents Police were on scene very quickly and nothing has been reported stolen from the property. The second Burglary occurred on the same night in Pinnacle Hill at 22.20. The resident heard a loud noise and found the rear door glass pane had been smashed. The door to the garage was also found open. Entry is believed to be via the garage to the rear of the property. Again, nothing was taken from the venue. It’s easy to think house alarms go off in error and can be annoying but please bear in mind when house alarms are sounding it may not just be a fault with the alarm. Please contact Police so the property can be checked and secured and suspects, if still on scene or in the vicinity can be caught. Patrols continue to parks and open spaces. Weapon sweeps were carried out in Martens Grove Park on Monday 21st August and to Russell Park on Wednesday 23rd August as part of a Met wide operation to combat knife crime. Our next coffee with cops will be on Tuesday 29th August at Barnehurst Golf Club at 11am so please feel free to join us should you wish to discuss any issues you may have. Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @MPSBarnehurst to find out what we’ve been up to, crime prevention advice and details of our drop in surgeries". Belvedere Ward:- "The team have continued to visit residents across the ward in order to create new Neighbourhood Watches. We have also been busy after reports of Anti Social Behaviour by youths in the Nuxley Road area – in particular the car park adjacent to Albert Road and surrounding streets. Through subsequent patrols of the area in question, we have stopped and spoken to a large number of youths to offer advice on cycling safely". Erith Ward:- "There are a number of youths on mopeds regularly riding around illegally with faces covered, coming and going from Erith / Abbey Wood. Not only is the constant noise a nuisance every evening but I have witnessed them dealing drugs. They chase around on roads and paths to escape police and it is known by all that they steal bikes but no one can prove this. They are a danger to other car and bike drivers as well as children that play on local streets. They have also been seen going tooled up with baseball bats and other things. It starts about 6pm till 11pm every night. [NW Office: We have forwarded on this information to the relevant police SNT team and would ask that other residents that witness ASB locally let us know and we will forward on. Please consider also reporting on 101 or 999 if an emergency]". North End Ward:- "We’ve received a number of reports about Bike related Anti Social Behaviour in and around the Eversley Avenue and Eversley Cross area. We’ve stepped up patrols in these areas during the peak times identified to us. We’ve also been working closely with residents on the road, and via social media. If you have any further information on this issue please contact us. We’ve also been building up our intelligence picture in relation to motor bikes concerned in ASB traffic offences on the ward. We’ve been viewing CCTV, completing door to door enquiries and putting out social media appeals. We’ve also received some good intelligence from the community". Northumberland Heath Ward:- "The team are pleased to report very little crime reported to us in the last week with no burglaries. There were a large number of tools stolen from a work van on Thursday August 17th between 0800 – 1000am in Little Heath Road. The residents in and around Bexley Road have not reported any anti-social behaviour to us, although youths continue to do wheelies up and down the high street causing a nuisance to pedestrians and drivers. On Tuesday of this week we conducted a Community Litter Pick with the members of the council, councillors and local residents giving up their valuable time to help. The North Heath Family Church opened their door to us and provided refreshments and the use of their facilities to us all. We managed to clear a number of alleyways and the car park in Mill Road. Thank you to everyone who took part so willingly". Thamesmead East Ward;- "The team have been busy over the past week, because as well as dealing with every day aspects of the ward, we have also been on aid, (Operation Sceptre) completing weapon sweeps across the ward, in an attempt to find any disused weapons they may have been used in crime. As part of the operation, we have also assisted neighbouring wards in executing search warrants (23rd August). Two males were arrested at different locations, and drugs seized. A burglary occurred Chadwick Way on Monday 21st August, between 0900- 1645 hours. No damage to door, however victim discovered door wide. Cash and jewellery stolen. Another offence occurred in Chadwick Way, overnight Thursday 10th August, when a vehicle was stolen from the rear car park. There have been further reports of male’s action suspicious in the area. Please let us know if anyone sees any more suspicious activity in the area. During the early hours of Monday 21st August a male was disturbed trying to break into a vehicle in Grange Crescent. No damage caused, nothing taken. Between Sunday 20th August 10am and Monday 21st August 2pm, attempts were made to steal from a motor vehicle parked up in Manor Close. The victim discovered the glove box open, paperwork thrown on floor. No items of value taken. On Tuesday 29th August, the team will be at The Thamesmead Library from 2.15 – 3.15pm. Any issues come and see us".

I have had several people mention to me in the last few weeks that the local area is definitely feeling nicer than of yore; the redevelopment of so many areas, and the soon to be forthcoming large cash investment into Erith are already making a big improvement in an area that has been sadly overlooked for many decades. Things definitely feel like they are looking up. If you have any stories about the town and how it is changing, please get into contact with me, as I would love to hear them.

The plaque shown in the photo above (click on it for a larger view) is one of the least known artefacts in Erith - very few locals are even aware that it exists. The plaque, which marks the eight hundredth anniversary of the start of the Rainham to Erith Pilgrim's Ferry, which began in the year 1199. The plaque was erected on the wall next to the wooden jetty adjacent to Erith Riverside Gardens back in 1999. The Pilgrim's Ferry was used to allow travellers to cross the River Thames between Erith and Coldharbour Point in Rainham. There was an unsuccessful campaign back in 2010 / 2011 to try and get the ferry service restarted, as part of the "London Loop". The ferry last ran on a regular daily basis back in 1854.

The end video this week is from a group of people who create YouTube videos on the subject of exploring Britain's industrial archaeology; In the video below, they visit the Crossness pumping station to view the largest working rotative beam engine in the world. Give it a watch and see what you think.