The photos above - click on any one for a larger view, were taken by me yesterday at the private viewing of a large photographic exhibition in the main hall of the old Carnegie Library in Walnut Tree Road, Erith. The exhibition, which runs until the 27th of October features images from three distinct sources. The opening hours of The Bookstore Cafe, downstairs in the old Library building are:- Mondays and Tuesdays - Closed; Wednesday - 8am - 8.30pm; Thursday and Friday - 8am - 10.30pm; Saturday - 8.30am - 10.30pm; Sunday - 9am - 4pm. The photographic exhibition brings together three exhibitions in one, Erith: In Review presents a fascinating sideways look at Erith through the photographic lens. The photography group at local mental health charity Centrepieces led by Terry Longley have worked with Bexley Archives throughout the summer, searching the collection for historic views of the town. The group returned to the locations of archive images to retake the views today - these stunning black and white photographs document how the town has changed over the last hundred years. Photography students at London South East Colleges have turned their cameras on contemporary Erith, providing a sometimes surprising insight into the town as seen by a new generation of photographers. Local artist Stuart Smith has taken some striking photographs of the River Thames, and printed them onto sheets of brushed aluminium, creating images that change with the light and the viewing angle. Visitors are able to purchase these unusual artworks, which are of a very limited print run. More on the photographic exhibition later in this update.
Following my account of an attempted fly tipping in the car park of Christ Church Erith last week, the authorities have been very active in investigating the incident. I am led to understand that the perpetrators have been identified, and CCTV footage located of the attempted tipping, and the subsequent actual fly tipping, which happened in Avenue Road, after I and others saw what the criminals were trying to do, and successfully saw them off. I will say no more at this point, but I am quietly hopeful that charges will soon follow, and the perpetrators brought to justice.
As regular readers will be aware, I monitor events across the River Thames in the London Borough of Havering. The reason for this is that the borough is of a similar size, geography, residential demographic and council budget, but it often appears that Havering has a very different way of managing its affairs. The same thing also is true of the Borough of Barking and Dagenham, and I feel that there are occasions when Bexley Council could learn much from our neighbours across the water. As you may be aware, the London Borough of Bexley is about to release new waste bins to the residents of the borough, in an attempt to make the collection and recycling of household waste more efficient. I feel that they are looking at the problem in what could be described as a very traditional and linear manner, and that they could do with taking a hard look at the innovative approaches to waste management, as is being done in the North of the River Thames. Barking Riverside is a large new housing development. It is being built on land formerly occupied by Barking Power Station, adjacent to the River Thames. The brownfield site has planning permission for 10,800 homes. The area was initially to be served by an extension of the Docklands Light Railway, but it was announced as part of the 2014 United Kingdom budget that the London Overground Gospel Oak to Barking Line would be extended to Barking Riverside to allow the development to be completed as planned. The new station is expected to open by 2021. Between 1995 and 2000 Bellway Homes built 900 homes and since 2004 the development has been managed by Barking Riverside Ltd, a partnership between GLA Land and Property and Bellway. Building work under this partnership commenced in 2010 and the first homes were occupied in 2012. In 2016, housing association L and Q bought out Bellway's stake in Barking Riverside Ltd, entering into a joint venture with the GLA to deliver the remaining new homes. There will be three neighbourhood centres and, when complete, the development as a whole will have a population of approximately 26,000. What relevance has this to Bexley you may wonder? Well, it is in the way that Barking Riverside has managed their waste and recycling processes, which I feel that other local authorities could do well to learn from. An underground pipe network has been developed in Barking Riverside to provide a new way of waste disposal. The system, built by Swedish company Envac, sees household and recycled waste transported to a centre on the edge of the 10,800 home site. The concept means residents no longer have to wait for weekly collections and can dispose of waste whenever required via fob accessed ‘inlets’. Waste is shot through the pipes at 40mph to the outside area. Managing Director of Envac, Dave Buckley, said in an interview with Romford based radio station Time 107.5 FM:- "The waste is collected into separate fractions, pneumatically moved to a central storage point, and then collected. They’ll have two inlets outside their house; one for recycling and one for general waste. The furthest anyone will have to walk is 30 metres from their front door.” A pneumatic waste collection system not only reduces on-street litter, smells and the noise from waste collection trucks, but also frees up space by reducing the amount of space required for waste storage areas. Once the user has placed a bag in the Envac inlet, the waste is sucked through an underground pipe network to a waste collection terminal. The pipes are either hidden underground, similar to telecommunications, gas and electricity infrastructure, or situated within the very core of a building. By using Envac, space traditionally designated for bin storage is no longer required, manual handling of waste is minimised and waste no longer needs to be transported through the streets using heavily polluting waste collection vehicles. I know that an Envac system installed throughout the London Borough of Bexley would be prohibitively expensive, but I cannot see why an installation in somewhere like Bexleyheath, and in the Quarry housing development in Erith could not be run as a pilot project. Pneumatic waste collection systems can be installed in existing town centres and integrated into the town's architecture. More and more cities and towns are becoming aware of the costs associated with traffic jams, littering, noise and emissions. These create health risks, lower the living standard for residents and weaken the area's image and brand. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.
Now for a bit of fun to mark the opening of the new photographic exhibition Erith: In Review - a photography exhibition exploring new and old views of the town. This is a partnership project with Centrepieces, London South East Colleges and local artist Stuart Smith, as mentioned earlier in this Blog update. The photo above - click on it for a larger version - was taken some years ago somewhere in Erith. Since the photo was taken, the location has been subject to renovation, and the vintage 1950's mock marble formica interior no longer exists. Can you name the location? Answers on a postcard please, or better still, send me an Email to hugh.neal@gmail.com. The winner and as many friends and family as they wish to accompany them will get a personal guided tour around the old Carnegie Library by me, at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon of their choice, subject to any major events taking place.
Maggot Sandwich readers of long standing may recall that quite some time ago I explained why I refused to take advertising on the blog. One of the reasons I cited was that I did not want to be at the thrall of an advertiser or sponsor, and thus be muzzled as to what content I wrote. It would seem that my feelings on the subject were crystallised in a report from The Advertising Standards Authority specifically targeting Vloggers (video bloggers) who have been promoting commercial products and using product placement in their videos, for which advertising agencies and public relations firms have been financially rewarding them for. The ASA are pointing Vloggers at a report that they actually published back in 2015, and which has not been updated since. Whether The Advertising Standards Authority actually have any power over Vloggers is debatable; many are based outside of the UK, and other may be based in the UK, but use platforms that are hosted outside of the UK. I suspect that the ASA are having a bit of a “fishing trip” to see who they can scare into submission. I think that in many cases their words may prove to be an empty threat. I get the feeling that the ASA don’t really have much of a clue as to exactly how video services such as YouTube actually operate. Whilst a file may be uploaded from an I.P address in the UK, it may end up being hosted on a server in the USA, Japan or a host of other locations, from which it is then “broadcast” to viewers via the World Wide Web. Which country is legally responsible for video content? The country from whence it was uploaded, or the country that hosts the video files? Users may upload files using a proxy, mirroring the upload to a third location anywhere in the world – The Advertising Standards Authority would need the resources of GCHQ to track activity of this nature, and I cannot see it ever happening. I think some clueless Whitehall Mandarin is blowing off steam over something that they really don't have a handle on. Let’s see what happens.
Now for the weekly local safety and security updates from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association. Firstly the report from Barnehurst ward:- From a Neighbourhood Watch Member - in Beechcroft Avenue. "Just wanted to let you know what took place this morning at 7.15am (2/10/19) I saw a young man approaching my front door as I was about to leave for work. He was dressed very scruffy and had a bandage on one of his hands which was very dirty. I opened my door to see what he want and at the same time my friend who I walk to the station with was already questioning him. At the same time there was another young man opposite to my house dressed in dark clothes with a black bobble hat on looking extremely suspicious. The young man on my drive asked if my car was for sale and I replied no. He said it was old and tyres were flat so thought it would be for sale, I replied the tyres are not flat and no it's not for sale, the 2 guys went to the bottom of Beechcroft Avenue and got into a small silver VW and drove off. My friend said the other man opposite my house was up the drive of number 2 looking at that car also as she was walking towards them". PCSO Cathy Nolan - "Good news for Barnehurst residents, we have had no burglaries in the past week. We have had one Incident of vehicle crime whereby number plates were stolen from a vehicle overnight in Birling Road. Please continue to secure vehicles and do not leave any items anywhere in the vehicle for thieves to help themselves. In recent incidents items such as bank cards, cash and electrical goods have been taken from vehicles, these sort of items should never be left in a vehicle even if left out of sight. We have been experiencing an increase of youths on pushbikes riding in an anti-social manner in and around Manor Way. These youths are also cycling in the playground at the bottom of Northall Road where signs in the playground clearly state no cycling. If you are or have been affected by this group please contact us. The next community contact session will be held on Tuesday 8th October 2019 in Barnehurst Golf Club at 04.00pm. We are here to offer crime prevention advice and answer any questions you may have". Belvedere ward - no report received this week. Bexleyheath ward:- "On Saturday 26/9/19 an elderly lady had her purse stolen from her bag in Savers Broadway, resulting in the purse being dumped in a rubbish bin and a member of the public finding it and handing it into the Police Station. However cash was taken from within £15.00. Monday 28/9/19 overnight a Transit van parked in Banks Lane had the rear door damaged nothing taken from within. On Wednesday 30/9/19 an 80 year old female had withdrawn cash from Santander Broadway and it was placed in an envelope in her handbag. However after shopping and chatting to people it was noticed missing when she arrived home. Please be vigilant as the dark nights start to draw in, making sure you have security at your property including adequate lighting, also be aware of your surroundings whilst shopping. If you do have to withdraw large amounts of cash please go directly home and have a bag which can be zipped up nice and safe. Stops and searches continue across the ward with several arrests for possession of cannabis, including the war memorial, car parks, Braeside garages and other hotspots. If you are aware of any issues in your local area please do get in contact with the team". Crayford ward - From Neighbourhood Watch Member - in Stanham Place. "On Monday, 23rd September 2019 between the hours 11:30 – 13:30 my catalyst converter was stolen from my car whilst I was at St Paulinus School. It was parked outside the school field on Iron Mill lane 1 car down from the field gate. When I started up the car it sounded like a motorbike and noticed the exhaust was dragging on the floor. It was only when the garage called me today they told me the catalyst converter had been stolen on my 2001 old, Green, Toyota Yaris. I am in shock as I didn't realise it would be worth much being so old and small. I have made an online police report but I am concerned to be at the school now just in case the new one is stolen". Ward report:- "Number plates were stolen from a vehicle whilst parked at St Paulinus Court between 20.00 on Tuesday 24th September and 09.00 on 25th September, no further details known. It has been reported that on Saturday 10th August a bag containing baby items and an iPhone 7 was taken from close to Cray Newsagents in Crayford Way. There is no indication why it has only just been reported to police. On Sunday 15th September between 23.00-23.35 a Rotavator, petrol lawnmower and other equipment, all heavy duty and difficult to remove, were stolen from a garage in Station Road. Criminal damage was caused to a vehicle parked in Wolsey Close on Thursday 26th September between 12.50-12.59. Two Females and one Male were arguing and their car door hit the victim's car causing a dent and transferring paint. Store security at Sainsbury's stopped a shoplifter who had filled their trolley, gone to self-service tills and paid for some items and then tried to leave without paying for the rest. On Monday 23rd September between 11.30-13.30 a green Toyota Yaris had its catalytic convertor removed whilst parked outside St Paulinus School. A robbery took place inside a shop in Princess Parade, the suspect snatched the victim's cash and was arrested nearby by police. On Thursday 26th September at 12.15 there was a theft of mail from an external post box to a property in Heath Road. A black Ford Fiesta RA165XE was stolen from Wyatt Road between Monday 12th August and 13th August without keys and reported to police on 27th September. Criminal damage was caused to a Peugeot GC15XCG by having the rear window smashed whilst parked in Crayford Way on Saturday 28th September, it is believed it occurred at around 12.15. It was reported that a male with tools was seen jacking up a Mazda RX8 in Chapel Hill on Saturday 28th September at 14.40. The male and his accomplice who was driving a blue panel van were challenged by a neighbour and left the scene, it was later discovered that the catalytic convertor had been stolen. Between 17.30 on Saturday 28th September and Sunday 29th September at 10.30am a Citroen was broken in to in London Road and the centre display screen was smashed, the vehicle smelt of cannabis. A silver Ford Tourneo had number plates stolen (WN15NZK) whilst parked on the driveway on Tuesday 1st October between 10.00-16.00. Between Tuesday 1st and 2nd October a car was broken in to at Shearwood Crescent, no other details were given about the vehicle or what was taken. Number plates were stolen from a vehicle whilst parked in Chapel Hill on Tuesday 1st October between 00.00-01.00. LX56SVL should be on a Renault Megane. A garage was broken in to in Glebelands between Sunday 22nd and Sunday 29th September. The heavy duty padlock was broken off and removed, no damage caused to the door. Four bicycles, two male, one female and one child's) an industrial style vacuum cleaner, SDS Hammer drill, and heavy duty jump leads were stolen. Our team have been very busy, not just on Crayford ward but by assisting other teams in Erith and Bexleyheath with larger scale warrants and enquiries to apprehend suspects who are likely to cause or have caused crime on Crayford ward. There have been arrest enquiries conducted for outstanding suspects. As you will see from above we have had two garages broken in to recently with high value items requiring a van to remove them, please consider your garage security if you have one, please see met.police.uk/burglary for further details on home security especially with the autumn nights drawing in. If you have an external post box, please consider removing it and using the letter box on your front door, removing your post could lead to identity theft and could be costly in terms of time and stress as well as financially. Our ward panel meeting is to be held at Vintage Lindy Lou's on Tuesday 8th October from 7pm". Erith ward:- "We had an attempted burglary in Tower Road where a male tried to gain entry to a property but failed and ran off this was captured on CCTV, however there was no facial image. We are having a street briefing with the residents of Erith Park next week, this week we had a street briefing in Bramble Croft of which we signed up 2 new NW members. On Saturday 5th October officers from Erith SNT will be attending Erith Town FC who play their home games at Erith Leisure Centre we will be there to support the local team, if you wish to attend more info is here https://www.erithtown.co.uk we would like to make this a regular visit for us. Crimes of note for last week. Theft from MV 14/09/2019 Erith high Street. Theft from MV 23/09/2019 Lesney Park Road. Theft from MV 25/09/2019 James Watt Way. Theft from MV 27/09/2019 Pembroke Road, Theft of MV 27/09/2019 Riverdale Road, Theft from MV 27/09/2019 Upper Holly Hill Road,Attempted Burglary Residential 30/09/2019 19:45:00 Tower Road". Northumberland Heath ward:- "Unfortunately this week there has been a theft of motor vehicle – Ford Transit stolen from Broadoak Road. Attempted Theft of a motorbike. Two suspects on a green motorbike wearing helmets have attempted to steal a motorbike from address on Bexley Road. Theft of number plates from a motor vehicle on Parsonage Manorway. A Community Protection Notice Warning has been issued to a Local resident. Officers have completed positive stop and searches on Becton Place, where one male was found in possession of cannabis. The team have also arrested a male for being wanted for failing to appear at Medway Magistrates Court for the offence of Theft – shoplifting. Community contact point was completed on Monday 10am at Mill Road Library. Good News -Officers successfully arrest a male wanted in connection to a Burglary Non dwelling. The male was then charged for the Offences and remanded in Police custody".
Slade Green and Northend ward:- "Only crime of note this week is the theft of a number plate from a vehicle overnight on Sun/Mon 29/30 outside The Sidings in Moat Lane. PC James was alerted by a member of the public on Monday about a vehicle that was seemingly dumped in Hilden Drive. Upon checking, it turned out to be stolen and was recovered and sent to Charlton car pound. Our next CCS is from 6pm on Saturday October 5th at our SNT base in Pier Road. PCSO Mark will be at St Augustines' church this coming Sunday afternoon where he is honoured to be invited to take part in Rev. Jim Bennetts' Installation Ceremony". Thamesmead East ward:- "Sunday 22/09/19 between the hours of 2:00am and 6:00pm a vehicle parked outside of Shire Court had the driver's side window smashed the vehicle was rummaged through, nothing taken. On Wednesday 25/09/19 at 05:51am a vehicle parked in Maran Way had the front driver's window smashed ,no items taken. A dash cam and a private hire taxi badge was stolen from a vehicle parked in Wolvercote Road, the passenger side window was smashed ,the theft happened overnight of the 24/09/19 to 25/09/19. Over night of the 25/09/19 to 26/09/19 a vehicle parked in Ponter Close had the driver's window smashed ,a wallet containing bank cards was taken. On Thursday 26/09/19 at 9:00am a vehicle parked in Lensbury Way was broken into, a mobile phone, bankcards were taken. Between the times 4:00pm of the 19/09/19 and 12;00pm of the 21/09/19 the catalytic converter was stolen from a vehicle parked in Lensbury Way. Between the time of 10:00pm of the 26/09/19 and 12:00pm of the 27/09/19,a vehicle parked in Glimpsing Green had the rear driver's side passenger window smashed ,entry gained ,loose change, black ray ban sunglasses and the vehicles log book were taken. On Thursday 26/09/19 between the hours of 2:30pm and 3:40 pm the catalytic converter was stolen from a Honda vehicle parked near Argali House Kale Road". West Heath ward:- "We have had a significant reduction in motor vehicle crime this week, with just one crime reported to us. Theft of motor vehicle in Gypsy Road overnight on Monday September between 08.30pm and 16.00am on Tuesday October 1st. Unfortunately, we have had a residential burglary in Chessington Avenue between 11pm on Tuesday October 1st and 7am on Wednesday October 2nd 2019. Keys to a Ford Focus and a Ford Fiesta were stolen along with the two vehicles. Method of entry to the property is not known at this time. One attempted burglary in Winchelsea Avenue 0n Wednesday October 2nd at 06.45am. A male was seen attempting to force the front door before making off in a silver coloured vehicle. The team are continuing to focus on arrest enquiries and stop and searches. A male was arrested by officers from the team last Friday for a recall to prison".
The end video this week features Erith Yacht Club, located at the Eastern end of Manor Road adjacent to the Bexley Brewery in the Manford Industrial Estate. The yacht club has been on the site for a considerable time, but its current clubhouse is a relatively recent addition. See what you think, and either leave a comment below, or alternatively email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.
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