The Pier Festival.

Yesterday marked the second Erith Pier Festival. Last year's inaugural event was expected to be attended by around four hundred visitors; in the event around four and a half thousand people turned up, which was helped by excellent, sunny weather. This year the weather was also excellent. As you can see from the photos above - click on any one for a larger version. The turnout was excellent this year, and there were an increased number of stalls. This year exhibitors were able to use the full length of the pier, including the dog leg area. At the time of writing, the attendance numbers for the event were not yet available, but it certainly felt that the numbers were significantly up on last year. Bexley Brewery had a very large marquee tent which housed their pop - up pub. As well as serving a number of their excellent, locally brewed real ales, they had a range of ciders and soft drinks on sale, all served in commemorative "Erith Pier Festival 2019" plastic glasses.  They also had a series of live music acts throughout the day and into the evening. There were a large number of food stalls offering a wide variety of cuisines, along with stalls for the RNLI, St. John Ambulance, The Erith Think Tank, and many others. More on The Erith Pier Festival at the end of this update.

Tuesday evening last week brought some drama to Erith; at 6.30pm a loud argument began between two groups of men in Morrison's car park. It started with three white males aged 45  - 55 in a shouting match with two men of Afro - Caribbean heritage of around the same age, over a red Vauxhall Astra hatchback. I skirted round them as I went to do some shopping in the supermarket. I reported the incident to the Morrison's duty security guard, and suggested he call the Police. He declined to do so and said it was nothing to do with him. When I returned home about 15 minutes later a fight was under way between one of the white guys and one of the black guys - the white guy was completely naked at this point. Not sure how this happened, but it was not a pretty sight. He was shouting, running around starkers and fighting with the other guy. The white guy appeared to be very drunk or under the influence of drugs. As you can imagine, quite a number of onlookers were present by this time. As no weapons seemed to be involved, and nobody seemed to be seriously hurt, I did not ring 999 or 101, as very likely by the time any Police turned up the fighters would be long gone. I phoned the Erith Police office, but got the voicemail. Later that evening I passed the car park for a third time, returning from an evening meeting. Three Police area cars were in the Morrison's car park, with their blue lights flashing. Understandably they were taking a very dim view of the earlier proceedings. Did you see anything? Drop me a line to hugh.neal@gmail.com with any information, which will be treated in the strictest confidence. 

Residents of the Eastern end of Erith may have noticed that Thames Water have been present at the junction of Appold Street and Wheatley Terrace Road, next to Abbey Car Breakers, on at some point, an almost daily basis; in fact the most recent visit was last night. There is a serious blockage problem with one of the drains under the road, and Thames Water have to repeatedly pump it clear. It is well known that the area around Appold Street / Manor Road and the Frobisher Road housing estate has historically had some serious issues with low water pressure and drainage blocking problems. I believe that the Appold Street problems are also linked to the British Gas substation that is hidden under the historic bridge in the road. There are  nasty smells from the substation. It got me thinking - who was the Appold behind the name of Appold Street? I did some research and found out quite a lot. It turns out that the name Appold comes from Victorian engineer and inventor John George Appold, who you can see in the photo above - click on it for a larger view. John George Appold was born in 1800 and died of cancer in 1865, as a very wealthy man. As a boy he showed considerable talent for calculation and a decided aptitude for mechanical pursuits, which he was enabled to gratify by introducing improvements in the processes in use in his father’s business - that of a fur skin-dyer, to which he eventually succeeded; and which, by his ingenuity and scientific improvements, he made very profitable. In the early part of his career there were but rare opportunities for improvement by mixing with contemporary scientists; but, as soon as it was practicable, Mr. Appold became a Member of the London Institution, where he enjoyed the advantages of the use of the Library, and of attending the evening meetings. In 1834 he was named one of the Auditors, and in 1844 he was elected one of the Managers; and henceforth he took great interest in the welfare of that Society. He devised many ingenious mechanical contrivances which he incorporated in his home. His major invention was a form of centrifugal pump used for drainage in the fens, which he demonstrated at The Great Exhibition of 1851, which won a gold medal. He also invented a brake for use in lowering telegraph cables into the sea, a system used when laying the first transatlantic cable in 1857. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1853. He was regarded as quite eccentric, and created many groundbreaking domestic implements, such as automatically opening and closing doors, an early form of air conditioning. Even the gates of his stable yard opened of themselves as he drove through, and closed again without slamming. His name will probably be most universally connected with the Appold Centrifugal Rotary Pump, which was so prominent a feature in the International Exhibitions of 1851 and 1862. He took great and unceasing interest in the laying of the Submarine Telegraph Cable to America, and the paying-out apparatus employed in the early attempts was mainly of his invention. He had amassed a large fortune by the end of his life in 1865, which, by his will, was very judiciously disposed of among his relatives and friends, he not having any family. All his workmen and servants were well remembered, and several bequests were made to scientific societies. Among others, he bequeathed one thousand pounds to the Institution of Civil Engineers, 'for the general use and benefit of the Society.' His connection with Erith, and the area around what is now Appold Street is down to the engineering company Easton and Amos, which was located in the buildings which now form part of Abbey Car Breakers, and also in buildings in Manor Road from 1865 until 1903. They produced and sold Appold designed pumps for industry, which were exported all over the world. John Appold is little remembered nowadays, but in Victorian times he was regarded as a very important person, hence how a road in the vicinity of the pump factory was later named after him.

Last weekend there were celebrations to mark the final completion of the Erith Park project - the large redevelopment of the once notorious Larner Road Estate on North End Road. As you can see from the photos above, the once run down and outright dangerous Larner Road Estate has been completely transformed into a bright and pleasant place to live. Orbit and developer Wates said of the event:- "Orbit and Wates Residential celebrated the completion of work on the award-winning Erith Park development in Bexley with a community event. Over the course of six years, the development partners worked with the community and key stakeholders, such as London Borough of Bexley, to transform the Larner Road estate into Erith Park. Throughout Phase 1 and 2 of work, seven tower blocks were replaced with 587 medium-rise homes, including 329 homes for affordable rent, 114 for private sale and 144 for shared ownership. To mark the significant milestone, a community event was held on Saturday 14 September. Maggie McCann, Orbit’s director of regeneration and partnerships thanked partners and residents for their contributions to the new community.  Maggie invited Cllr Teresa O’Neill OBE, Leader of the London Borough of Bexley, to join residents in unveiling the name of the new Arthur Street estate, which will now be known as Park East. Local resident, Tracey Kember kick-started the event with a DJ session to get everyone moving, while local residents organised stalls to sell cakes, knitted items, recycled goodies and sweets to their neighbours. Children from the area also got stuck in to the activities at The Exchange’s stall – trying their hands at balloon modelling, penalty shoot outs, arts and crafts, and stilt walking. Wates Residential, Orbit and Southern Land services also hosted stalls. Families took part in a scavenger hunt and one lucky winner took home a tablet computer. The event was also a public celebration of the sculpture commissioned by Orbit to mark the entrance of Erith Park. Artist Howard Boycott, whose design was chosen from 41 submissions, was present to talk about his work and the stories behind it. The 3.5m brick sculpture reflects the site’s history of Victorian brick making and incorporates decorative bricks made by residents. Hidden inside is the shape of a Stone Age tool - a reminder of the important Palaeolithic archaeology of the site. The Orbit and Wates Residential partnership continues with the redevelopment of the nearby Arthur Street estate. The £95 million project will deliver 280 new homes, of which 80 per cent will for affordable rent and shared ownership. Maggie McCann, Director of Regeneration and Partnerships, Orbit, said: “The event marked a momentous achievement for both the project team and community. We were able to celebrate the official completion of Erith Park after years of hard work, and also showcase our next venture, Park East. “Many of the Erith Park team will be bringing their experience to Park East and we are confident we can deliver yet another thriving community and leave a lasting impact in Erith.”Paul Nicholls, Managing Director, Wates Residential, said: “Our vision for Erith Park was to create delightful contemporary homes in a beautiful new neighbourhood. This event was where it finally all came together and we can confirm that, together, we’ve created a brilliant new community we can all be proud of.” I am glad to see the investment in social housing that is being made by Orbit in the forthcoming Park East. The influx of people into the area, not to mention the existing local population who will be returning to the area once the Arthur Street estate has been demolished and replaced with the new Park East estate will mean a substantial increase in the local population. On top of this, the aspirational development at The Quarry, at the other end of Erith will bring new residents moving from other parts of Greater London. It seems to me that all these additional people will need additional resources such as GP surgeries, dentists and other infrastructure services. Erith Park has been a good example of a redevelopment done well; in fact this has been recognised. Erith Park has been shortlisted for two national construction awards. The announcement of these reads thus:- "We’re delighted to announce that Erith Park has been shortlisted for two awards in this year’s Inside Housing Development Awards. Orbit and Wates Residential’s Erith Park development in south east London was shortlisted in not one but two categories: Best Regeneration and Best Partnership. The national awards ceremony will showcase the best of the best in housing development and regeneration, recognising the work of landlords, developers and architects across the UK. Working with development partners Wates Residential and architects Broadway Malyan, Orbit transformed the former Larner Road estate into Erith Park. Over the course of six years, seven tower blocks were replaced with 587 medium-rise homes. The development has overhauled an area that was almost entirely social housing (less than five per cent Right to Buy sales) into a thriving community where homes are tenure-blind between affordable rent, shared ownership, rent-to-buy and market sale. Continuing their success, Orbit and Wates Residential are set to embark on another venture at the neighbouring Arthur Street site – recently announced as the Park East development. Speaking on the news Caroline Field, Head of Regeneration at Orbit, said: “The whole team are really proud of the transformation of Erith Park and it’s wonderful to have our hard work recognised by industry experts.” Paul Nicholls, Managing Director for Wates Residential, said: “Our vision for Erith Park was to create contemporary homes in a beautiful new neighbourhood that everyone can be proud of, so we’re delighted to be recognised by our peers for making this vision a reality. We are now looking forward to continuing to build on the strong partnership we have developed with Orbit on our next partnership at Park East.” Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on Wednesday 27 November 2019 in London". News reaches me from a reliable local source who prefers to remain anonymous that the Arthur Street redevelopment into what will be known in future as Park East has now had its planning permission approved by Bexley Council. The planning decision reads:- "Development At Arthur Street Arthur Street Erith Kent. Proposal:- Demolition of all existing buildings (excluding Warwick Court) and provision of 320 residential units in 5 blocks varying between three and nine storeys high, together with associated parking, cycle parking, hard and soft landscaping, play space, access and utilities. The scheme is subject to minor amendments as follows: Amendment to application site boundary; Minor changes to the public realm; Confirmation of temporary access arrangements for Warwick Court; Incorporation of bulky waste storage room within Block B; Inclusion of missing door to Block D plant room; Block B podium entrance pushed south to create a recessed entrance; Omissions of misplaced door swings on upper levels; Double door entry provision to all cycle stores; Removal of illustrative double stacker cycle storage equipment from each cycle store". The full list of documents relating to the successful application for planning permission for the redevelopment of the housing estate can be read here.

Now for the weekly local safety and security updates courtesy of Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association. Firstly a report from Barnehurst ward:- "Barnehurst unfortunately has suffered one attempted burglary on 17/09/2019 between 02.30am and 03.00am in Cumbrian Avenue. Two males were seen on CCTV however the camera outside the property has been damaged. A piece of wood was found near the front door and there are forensic opportunities to explore due to possible finger prints on the door. No entry was gained. Vehicle crime continues on the ward. On 08/09/2019 at 11.05pm in Midfield Avenue two males were seen on CCTV. One male with a torch has rummaged through a vehicle on a drive way whilst the other male crossed the road to try handles to other vehicles. Overnight on 11/09/2019 in Westfield Road suspect gained access to a vehicle and stole a disabled badge. In Colyers Lane on 12/09/2019 between 11.30am and 01.30pm a catalytic converter was stolen. On 12/09/2019 at 09.45pm in Stuart Mantle Way a grey Honda motor cycle HF65XGP was stolen from the garden. In Holmsdale Grove vehicle registration plates WM03KEK were stolen on 13/09/2019 overnight. In Heath Way between 05.00pm on 13/09/2019 to 01.00pm on 14/09/2019 a silver BMW VRM CA07MKJ was stolen. On 16/09/2019 at 11.00pm a motor cycle was stolen from an address in Birling Road, we are unable to provide the registration number at this time. Over the weekend the team were busy rolling out Smart Water kits to residents of Westfield Road. We are aiming to get one hundred percent coverage here. Our next community contact session will be on Wednesday 25th September 2019 in Barnehurst Golf Club at 11.00am". Belvedere ward:- "PC Holmes has just arrested an outstanding male for Domestic violence that has been wanted for the past 2 months residing on the Belvedere ward. As well as visible patrols across the ward officers are on occasion undertaking plain clothes patrols in the hope of catching any potential villains unaware. This will continue throughout the winter months in the run up to Christmas. PCSO Jay continues his excellent engagement work in the community from school visits to reassurance and neighbour enquiries after burglaries have been committed on the ward. Unfortunately there has been one reported burglary this week at a house of multiple occupation in Coleman Road, Belvedere. Enquiries into this incident continue currently" Bexleyheath ward:- "There has been a report of a theft of motor vehicle that happened overnight along Latham Road Bexleyheath on the 16/09/2019, vehicle was stolen from the driveway Also on the 13/09/2019 – There was a report of a theft from motor vehicle along Haslemere Road Bexleyheath that had happened again overnight into the 14/09/2019. Vehicle was searched and items taken from inside. Also a male was stopped along Braeside Crescent Bexleyheath in relation to drug offences. Also another male stopped along Iris Avenue in relation to a harassment. There was also a report of a purse being stolen from an elderly victim whilst in M&S on the Broadway, purse was taken from the shopping trolley whilst victim was shopping. If you do wish to pass on information to Police then please contact Crime Stoppers on 0800 555111 If you are after crime prevention advice, please look at the Met Police website which has lots of information that you may find useful. Remember in an emergency please dial 999 and 101 for non-urgent reporting". Crayford ward:- "There has been two report of criminal damage to a motor vehicles along Maiden Lane Dartford, one on the 14/09/2019 and the other on the 13/09/2019 Also a report of theft from motor vehicle has been reported along Perry Street on the 14/09/2019. Also on the 12/098/2019 there was a report of a theft of motor vehicle along Hall Place Crescent. If you do wish to pass on information to Police then please contact Crime Stoppers on 0800 555111 If you are after crime prevention advice, please look at the Met Police website which has lots of information that you may find useful."  Erith ward:- "No burglaries again this week which is good news. However, theft from and of motor vehicles is still an ever present not only across Erith, but across most of Bexley. Most vehicle crime is preventable. It can take as little as 10 seconds for a thief to steal something from your car. The best way to protect your belongings is to lock your car whenever you leave it. Other things you can do include: Removing everything from the car; don't even leave a jacket where it can be seen. Closing the sunroof along with the windows when you leave. •Not storing things in the boot; take them with you. Storing car ownership information in your home, not your car. •Having a routine to ensure you always take the keys out of the ignition. Taking removable stereos and sat nav equipment with you. In addition, using secure (theft resistant) number plates can make your plates less attractive to thieves. Where you park can make a big difference to the safety of your car and your belongings. Look out for car parks approved by the police Safer Parking. You can find them by looking for their distinctive 'Park Mark' signs. More info here - http://www.parkmark.co.uk/ Theft of MV 15/09/2019 Rutland Gate, Theft of Motor Vehicle 13/09/2019, West Street, Theft from Motor Vehicle 17/09/2019 St John's Car Park, West Street, Theft from Motor Vehicle 17/09/2019 Corinthian Manorway, Theft from Motor Vehicle 17/09/2019 Queens Road, Criminal Damage 18/09/2019 Erith High Street, Theft from Motor Vehicle 17/09/2019, The next Community Contact Session will be at Costa Coffee, Erith on 24/09/19 at 2pm".  Northumberland Heath ward:- "After viewing the CCTV footage in Tesco on Bexley Road, the team were able to identify a male involved in an incident, further to this the team arrested a male who is now due to appear at court. This was a very good result for the team. Unfortunately, there have been a number of motor vehicle crimes committed on the ward this week. 11/9 at approx. 17:05 hour a vehicle was stolen from Oakdene Avenue. 10/9 Theft from a motor vehicle overnight on Carlton Road. 12/9 overnight a vehicle was stolen from Streamway. 13/9 Theft of number plates from a vehicle overnight on Avenue Road. 14/9 overnight a vehicle was stolen from Coniston Close. Between the 13/16 there was an attempted theft of catalytic converter from a vehicle in Walsingham Walk. There have been no burglaries in Northumberland Heath this week. Our next community contact session is on Monday 30th September at 10am in the Mill Road Library, please do come along and meet a member of the team and discuss any issues or concerns you have, or just pop in and say hello".

Slade Green and Northend ward:- "2 vehicles have been stolen overnight on the 16/09 and 17/09. One from Frobisher Road and one from Duriun Way. Enquiries are ongoing for cctv and to see if the crimes may be linked. PCSO Mark assisted Kent police in the recovery of a stolen vehicle found in Betsham Road on Tuesday (pic attached) The vehicle is linked to theft of catalytic converters in the Swanley area and is now being forensically checked. A good bit of cross border working. St Augustines church has a Welcome café every Tuesday from 11-2. PCSO Mark attended this week and chatted with Jim the vicar as well as around 10 residents and 4 St Paul's school children who also were present having their lunch in the local community. A great place for the community to come together and chat, engage and more importantly, eat cake!! We also attended the Slade Green Big Local Community Safety Partnership meeting with some good plans put in place for the next year of their plan. Our next Community Contact session is on Saturday 28/09/2019 from 9am at the Forest Road café". Thamesmead East ward:- "Several thefts of Catalytic Converters this week vehicles being targeted are Toyota Prius and Toyota Auris. Attempted Burglary: FAIRWAY DRIVE Wednesday 11/9/19 between 9am – 8pm Victim returned home and found the Yale lock which had been picked was jammed. There was evidence of the door being forced however no entry was gained. Vehicle Crime: SEACOURT ROAD SE2 Wednesday 11/9/19 between 2am – 12:48 Front number plate removed from vehicle by suspect/s unknown. Overton Road SE2 Saturday 14/9/19 between 8:35pm – 1am Victim informed by a neighbour that vehicle had been broken into. Victim returned to vehicle which was now unlocked. Victims leather wallet which had bank cards and pin numbers recorded on a piece of paper had been removed by suspect. The cards have been used to on three occasions to withdraw £300, £90 and a further £300. Maran Way Wednesday 15/9/19 between 2pm – 3pm on 17/9/19 Catalytic Converter removed from vehicle by suspect/s unknown. Holstein Way Monday 16/9/19 at 7:15 victim witnessed a group of youths on pedal cycle's riding along kicking wing mirrors off several cars, one of which was victims own. Templar Drive Monday 16/9/19 between 9:35am 5:30pm victim parked vehicle outside a resident's garage. When victim returned to vehicle both front tyres were flat and wheel trims removed by suspect/s unknown. Maran Way Wednesday 17/9/19 between 12 noon – 3pm Catalytic Converter removed from vehicle by suspect/s unknown. Wolvercote Road Tuesday 17/9/19 between 11:30 – 11:45 victims neighbour witnessed vehicle being jacked up by suspect/s who removed Catalytic Converter. Wolvercote Road Tuesday 17/9/19 between 7:30am – 7:30pm Catalytic Converter removed by suspect/s unknown". West Heath ward:- "No burglaries reported to us this week, however we have a continuation of motor vehicle crime. Fishing equipment and power tools were stolen from a van in Sidmouth Road overnight 11.35pm on Wednesday September 11th and 06.15am on Thursday September 12th. There was no sign of forced entry. Theft of a motorcycle in Milford Close between 6pm on Friday 6th September and 10pm on Saturday September 7th. Theft of a Toyota Yaris in Berkley Avenue on Thursday September 12th at 2.10pm. A silver Ford Focus was stolen from Winchelsea Avenue overnight on Thursday September 12th and was discovered missing at 7.45am on Friday September 13th. Theft of a white Sprinter van from Axminster Crescent overnight between Monday September 16th 10.30pm – 0730am the following morning Tuesday September 17th. The victim is still in possession of the keys to the vehicle".

The end video this week shows the Erith Pier Festival and gives a good idea as to just how many people attended the excellent and very popular local event. I am hopeful by the next Maggot Sandwich update that attendance statistics will be available. It felt to me that more people attended the event than the inaugural event last year. I am certain that the popularity of the festival will mean that it will be a regular annual event for many years to come. What do you think? Leave a comment below, or alternatively Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com. 

The Christmas Tree Festival 2018.

The photos above were taken this weekend at the annual Christmas Tree Festival at Christ Church Erith. The event raises money for several good causes, including The Greenwich and Bexley Community Hospice. Hundreds of visitors turned up to the event, which is one of the most popular and well - attended in the local calendar. A very wide cross - section of the local community visited the church over the weekend - the event started on Friday lunchtime, and finished on Sunday evening, with many live musical performances taking place whilst the visitors walked around the church, which was filled with decorated Christmas trees sponsored by local organisations and individual families. A very large number of local and not so local people visited the events; I spoke to a chap who had travelled all of the way from Eastbourne to pay a visit to the church. Visitor numbers were definitely up by a significant percentage when compared to previous years, and donations made were also up, though the final figure of the money collected for good causes is not yet available. The event is free, though donations to the various good causes that the event supports are always very welcome. The Christmas Tree Festival is one of numerous events which take place over the course of a year that really show how much of a sense of community involvement there is locally. Thanks to the numerous Maggot Sandwich readers who came over to say "hello" during the festival whilst I was handing out event programmes to incoming visitors. 

As people gear up for Christmas, the whole thorny issue of gifts and gift wrapping comes up. I have a major issue with gift wrapping paper for Christmas presents; due to the treatment much of the paper receives during production, it cannot be recycled, and is especially bad for the environment, as the only way to get rid of it is to put it in landfill, or to burn it. What I have chosen to do is rather than wrapping Christmas presents, I will be giving them in sparkly gift bags, which can be reused, year after year. As I have previously written, this is also the reason that I don't send Christmas cards, as I believe them to be ruinously bad for the environment - wood and rags are pulped to make the cards, energy is used to print them, fossil fuels are used to transport them to the shops, electricity and gas are burned to light and heat the shops, then once they are purchased, more fossil fuels are used to deliver the cards around the planet, then after a few days they are discarded, and many cannot be recycled, due to the plastic or wax derived finishes that many cards have. I can understand the practice in the past, when an annual card sent to friends and loved ones would be a form of annual communication when you might otherwise not hear from them, but nowadays this is far from the case; instant worldwide online communications mean that from my perspective, Christmas cards are consigned to the past. What do you think? Please leave a comment below, or alternatively Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

On Monday of last week, I was sent an Email by Caroline Field, Head of Regeneration at Orbit Housing Association regarding Erith Park, the development on the site of the former Larner Road housing estate - somewhere which had a very poor image and reputation of being something of a "sink estate". The information she sent me showed just how far things have changed over the last few years. Back when the Erith Park development was in the very early stages in 2013, I wrote an article stating that I felt the new development was doomed to failure and that Orbit would be putting good money after bad. Caroline Field invited me to the site Orbit site offices on the then building site that was to become Erith Park, and showed me around. I was extremely impressed with what I saw. I then wrote the following piece which you can read by clicking here. Now the Erith Park development has won an important and prestigious award, which shows just how far things have come since the days of the now long gone and unlamented Larner Road Estate. The article reads as follows:- "A former council estate, which was blighted by social problems and crime for 40 years, has undergone a major community-led regeneration with police crime prevention techniques built into its 588 new homes from the outset. The 1970s Larner Road Estate in South-east London was widely known for its eight distinctive tower blocks, which presented a forbidding landmark to drivers travelling through Erith towards the capital from the M25. Local residents knew it as a troubled estate and it presented huge challenges for police. Calls about crime often required a two-car response, a direct reflection of the level of crime and disorder on the estate. Over the last five years, Larner Road has been transformed into Erith Park as part of a wide-scale regeneration of the area by the UK housing group Orbit and Wates Residential. The tower blocks have come down and been replaced by a low to medium rise development of apartments and houses for affordable rent, shared ownership and market sale, built into traditional street patterns. On Tuesday, 27 November 2018 as the last three homes were completed by Orbit and Wates Residential, the Metropolitan Police reported that there had been no recorded offences of burglaries, drugs related offences, weapons, robberies or personal thefts within the boundary of Erith Park over the last 12 months. Reported crime on the estate remains low in volume and impact and police have received relatively few reports of anti-social behaviour. Despite the high density of the housing on Erith Park, it now has 80 percent less crime compared to the rest of the ward it sits within, according to the Metropolitan Police. Key to this policing success has been the ongoing work of police officers trained by Secured by Design (SBD), the national police crime prevention initiative. Known as Designing Out Crime Officers, they are attached to local police forces around the UK to work with architects, developers and local authority planners to design out crime at the planning stage – long before construction begins. SBD measures improve the physical security of buildings, such as robust doors, windows and locks that meet SBD standards, as well as crime prevention techniques designed into the surrounding layout and landscaping. These techniques include increasing natural surveillance so strangers can be seen clearly and limiting cut-throughs and alleyways to avoid potential hiding places and escape routes. Metropolitan Police Sgt Matt Coe, said: “Designing out crime on the estate has not only reduced crime but also improved the outlook for people who live here. It’s a place where people are choosing to live. Whereas before, it had a poor reputation and was poorly regarded. “The big lesson I take away from Erith Park is the importance of having the mixed tenures: social, rental and private living. People who live here feel confident in the police and feel the police are doing a better job, even though we have fewer resources than in the past. So from a police point of view, our attention to detail in the design of the estate has been an extremely worthwhile investment compared to decades of reactive policing. Some people regard designing out crime as a long-term investment. I don’t think it is. Buildings are happening and going up very quickly. It’s not long-term, it’s long lasting and that’s the difference. It’s not something that is happening in the future, it’s happening now, but will last for a long time,” he said.  The driving force behind Erith Park has been Orbit, the UK’s largest developer of affordable housing, with over 42,000 homes under management. In 2005, Orbit started discussions with the local community about the estate’s future. In 2012 Wates Construction Ltd were selected as construction and development partner. The £120 million project has had the support of the London Borough of Bexley and the affordable housing was grant-funded by the Greater London Authority. Built in two phases, construction started on phase 1 in March 2013 with phase 2 completed in November 2018. Caroline Field, Head of Regeneration, Orbit, said the estate had sold well and has proved to be popular when properties have come up for rental or sale. “The perception in the wider community is that it’s an amazing transformation. Sometimes, on regeneration schemes, people say: ‘You may have built new homes, but it’s still the same place’. But with Erith Park, people can see the wider and deeper transformation – it’s not just window dressing.” Caroline added: “Residents on the old estate would never have let their children play outside unsupervised because it was unsafe. Today, children are allowed to do so. That’s the measure of what’s changed here.” In 2016 Erith Park achieved gold in the annual Considerate Constructors Scheme’s National Site Awards and a few days later won the London Regeneration Project of the Year in the London Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Awards. SBD is the national police crime prevention initiative, which works to prevent crime in the built environment. More than one million homes have been built to SBD crime prevention standards over the last 30 years with reductions in crime of up to 87 percent. SBD is managed by Police Crime Prevention Initiatives (PCPI), which runs a wide range of crime prevention initiatives and activities on behalf of the Police Service throughout the UK. SBD is due to mark its 30th anniversary in 2019. 

Just when the hoary subject of government issued personal ID cards in the UK has been dead and gone for a long time, the subject pops up again like a bad penny. Last Monday, in an interview with the Dailey Telegraph, Digital Minister Margot James MP said the Government should play an active role in the development of technology-based identification that she believes could speed up how people access public services online. She said: “I think there are advantages of a universally acclaimed digital ID system which nowhere in the world has yet. There is a great prize to be won once the technology and the public's confidence are reconciled." She touted the government's role in the development of digital identities – but pointed to work on an existing system called Verify in an apparent bid to demonstrate UK government's expertise. For those in need of information on the subject, Verify is one of the albatrosses around the Government Digital Service’s neck. The digital identity system, launched in 2011, has been struggling with low user take-up and internal Whitehall battles for years. In July, a government watchdog downgraded its chances of success and in October the government opted to cut public support for the system, offering it up to the private sector. Margot James is not the only government minister keen on a new ID card system; Amber Rudd – now secretary of state at Verify's beleaguered Department for Work and Pensions – called for a state-backed system based on NHS numbers. At the time, she also shrugged off the public's possible concerns, arguing that people were perfectly happy handing over their data to technology giants, so they should give it to the government. However, the government has yet to make any concrete policy proposals about a national ID system – and it can be sure critics won't dismiss concerns about security and surveillance as easily as its ministers have. A comment I found online seems to sum up the situation quite admirably:- "Politicians, like nappies, should be changed frequently, and for the same reason".

A regular reader contacted me early last week to inform me that Morrison's in Erith were hosting a crisp packet recycling facility from a company called TerraCycle, and sponsored by Walker's Crisps.  In the first instance, Walkers are asking customers to collect a batch of packets and drop them off at a collection points manned by volunteers - but with only 191 participating collection points around the UK this could be a long journey for many people. A public drop-off location is a communal collection point where the public can take their TerraCycle waste for recycling. TerraCycle is eliminating the idea of waste by recycling the "non-recyclable". Whether it is coffee capsules from your home, pens from a school, or plastic gloves from a manufacturing facility, TerraCycle can collect and recycle almost any form of waste. They partner with individual collectors such as individual members of the public, as well as major consumer product companies, retailers, manufacturers, municipalities, and small businesses across 20 different countries. With public help, they are able to divert millions of pounds of waste from landfills and incinerators each month.  When you take your waste to a public drop-off location, you are helping the site administrator raise money for the charity of their choice through TerraCycle points. This is a great idea, and the site will take empty and washed out packets from any crisp manufacturer, not just Walkers. The problem at the time of writing is, that none of the staff in Morrison's Erith know anything about the TerraCycle recycling scheme. This in itself is not very surprising, as communication between senior staff and the shop floor appears to be somewhat poor. I predict that the whole matter will become clearer over the next few weeks. It has to be a priority to increase the amount of materials that we recycle. Over the past 100 years, the amount of waste that humanity produces has increased by almost 10,000 percent. Of that staggering volume, it is estimated that 25 percent ends up in our oceans, forming five gigantic areas composed exclusively of rubbish. Since only a small percentage gets recycled the majority is effectively mummified in landfills, leaching out methane and other toxic outputs over time. If it is not buried, it is typically burned in incinerators. While a very small percentage of incinerators do produce some energy as an output, in the process they also destroy all possible value except the caloric (or energy) value inherent in the materials. The main reason most of our waste is sent to landfills and incinerators, and why few of our outputs are recycled (like they technically can be), is tied to the economics of waste. It is simply more expensive to collect and recycle most things than the results are worth, and it’s cheap—because we allow it to be cheap—to send waste to a landfill or an incinerator. To their credit, Erith Morrison's do have facilities for recycling batteries, and most recently - and successfully - a collection point just inside the main entrance where customers can deposit used Tassimo coffee cartridges. Whilst I think this is a laudable move, I still struggle with the whole concept of cartridge based drinks systems - per cup they work out to be very expensive, and your drinks machine is tied into using one proprietary cartridge - if the supplier goes out of business, or stops making the cartridges, you are stuffed. On top of this - and to my mind far more importantly, the cartridges are not environmentally friendly. Personally I would suggest that using loose ground coffee would be a better option - and the used coffee waste can be subsequently composted. Hopefully if more large companies like Walkers take responsibility for their waste recycling through schemes such as TerraCycle, this situation will change markedly for the better. 

A new calendar showing various views of the river front at Erith is currently on sale. Its creator, local resident Tim Hutton writes:- "Essentially, the calendar came about as a way of sharing a selection of photographs I've taken of the Thames from the perspective of Erith. In 2016 I began running on the Thames Path as a means of increasing my own personal fitness. Using the popular 'Couch To 5K' running app, I would run 3 mornings a week along the Thames Path. In line with the app, week by week you increase the distance that you run, reaching the 5km goal at the end of the programme. What became immediately apparent were the stunning views of the river that were on offer from the path. This was a motivation to carry on and complete the 'Couch To 5K' and later 'Couch To 10K'.  Before and after running, I would take photographs of the river from the Thames Path in an attempt to capture those views and changing colours as the seasons progressed. I decided to compile the best of the photos in the calendar to hopefully make people aware that we have all this on our doorstep and at the same time hopefully encourage people to make use of the path for exercise, whether it be walking or running. The reaction to the calendar has been overwhelmingly positive and I'm hoping to be able to repeat this next year with a series of new photographs". You can read more about the local calendar, and even buy copies online by visiting Tim's website here. 

Erith has been awarded £1.6m from the Mayor of London’s Good Growth Fund, following a successful bid by the Council. The funding will be used to make further improvements to the town by rejuvenating existing open spaces, bringing empty buildings into use, nurturing innovation and enhancing all the things that make Erith great, making the most of its unique setting by the River Thames. Councillor Louie French, Bexley’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Growth said: “I am pleased that the Mayor has recognised the potential that Erith has and awarded us Good Growth funds. We want to make the town the prosperous and forward-looking place it used to be, and we are excited about the cultural, employment and housing opportunities it could offer.” More information about the upcoming projects will be available in the new year. The Good Growth Fund is open to a broad range of public, private and third-sector organisations in London who want to drive regeneration in their local area.  Funds are awarded to innovative, best practice regeneration activities that focus on the local community. Improvements which have already been made in Erith as part of The Greater Erith Programme, a London Borough of Bexley partnership project with the Mayor of London, including the restoration of the iconic Carnegie Library building. 

Now for the weekly local safety and security reports from Bexley Borough Neighbourhood Watch Association. Firstly a report from Barnehurst ward:- "In the past week two residential burglaries and one non-residential burglary have been reported to Police on Barnehurst Ward. On Tuesday 04/12/2108 In Downbank Avenue a resident returned home at 09.30pm to find the front door open and damage caused to a rear garden door. An untidy search had been carried out within the property and items taken. In Beverley Road on Thursday 06/12/2018 suspects gained entry by entering the rear garden and smashing a rear window to a patio door. CCTV footage showed two IC1 males, walking down the side of the driveway at 06.30pm hours. At 07.00pm hours the two suspects reappeared from the property and walked down Beverley Road towards Manor Way. One male appeared to be very tall and the other male very short. Both males wore baggy clothing and one had a white pair of trainers on. Due to the night vision we were unable to obtain clear facial footage. On Friday 07/12/2018 at 04.00am suspects forced open window shutters and smashed the inner window to gain entry to Barnehurst Golf Club. An alarm sounded and suspects were believed to have fled as nothing was taken. On a good note we now have a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme in Eversley Avenue so another road off the list. A reminder that our next community contact session will be on Thursday 20th December at 11.00am at Barnehurst Golf Club". Belvedere ward - no report this week. Bexleyheath ward:- "We have had two reports of burglary on the ward. One was reported along Garden Avenue Bexleyheath, a vehicle was taken. Entry was gained by front UVPC door forcing lock. Second report Braemar Avenue. Entry was gained theft of keys and vehicle taken. Regular burglary patrols are conducted by the team. Hawthorn Road - theft of vehicle owner still had keys. Upland Road theft of Motor Bike, and two reports of theft from motor vehicles on Warren Road and Royal Oak Road. Car parks on the Broadway patrolled for anti - social behaviour and drug activity. Also patrols are conducted in the car park areas and the Broadway to reduce anti-social behaviour including Martens Grove Park. Drop In Surgery an indoor one to one consultation session Central Library Townley Road Bexleyheath. Wed 19 December 2018 10.30AM- 11.30AM. If you do wish to pass on information to Police then please contact Crime Stoppers on 0800 555111. Please do not hesitate to contact us via Twitter, Facebook, email and the ward phone. If you are after crime prevention advice, please look at the Met Police website which has lots of information that you may find useful. Remember in an emergency please dial 999 and 101 for non-urgent reporting". Crayford ward:- "Thankfully a relatively 'Q' week for reported crime in Crayford this week. On Saturday 8th December at approx. 15.20 it was reported that a burglary had taken place at the closed premises at Skoops in Crayford Ward. The owner attended and saw the shutter was up and chased off two suspects within. It would seem that a large amount of damage had been caused within the building. Between 19.30 on Friday 7th December and 8.40 on Saturday 9th December the front window of a bronze Honda Civic was smashed in Valley Road, nothing was taken from within. On the early hours of Friday 7th December a male tried to enter a fire exit in to the Bear and Ragged Staff Pub; he was described as wearing a dark hooded coat with the hood up, a balaclava covering his face, wearing a rucksack and gloves. We held a street briefing at Town Hall Square on Sunday 9th December to listen to concerns of residents living there, notably about anti-social behaviour and will be following these concerns up. We don't have any forthcoming meetings and will endeavour to arrange and promote some in the coming weeks". 

Erith ward:- "We have been attending a few sheltered housing schemes this week for their Christmas events raising money with raffles and bingo. We have been carrying out weapon sweeps across Erith again this week. Due to a high number of shoplifting in Morrisons we have been patrolling the store early mornings in uniform and in plain clothing which has been going very well (thank you to Morrisons for providing us with a few coffees) ongoing talks with all store management in Erith (photo above - click on it for a larger version). Harassment warning has been issued following an ongoing neighbour dispute. A camera (CCTV) has been requested for the area of West Street.  Crimes of note from this week: Theft from MV Saturday 08/12/2018 Erith High Street – car door forced open items taken; Burg Res Monday 10/12/2018, West Street – front door opened items taken; Possible Cannabis Monday 10/12/2018 Erith Pier; Criminal Damage U500 Wednesday 28/11/2018 Chichester Wharf – car damaged; Shoplifting <£200 10/12/2018 Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc, James Watt Way – items taken from store; Burg-Bus/Com Monday 10/12/2018 20:00:00 Wickes Building Supplies Ltd, Fraser Road – items stolen from store; Theft from MV Monday 10/12/2018 16:15:00 Erith Veterans Club – car broken in to, items stolen. The next Community Contact Session is on Wednesday 19th December at 3pm in Costa Coffee". Northumberland Heath ward:- "Unfortunately we have had a spate of house burglaries since Thursday 6/12/18 with the common theme being entry gained via UPVC doors or windows forced open with a blunt object. Small easy to carry and conceal items, such as purses and wallets but especially cash, seem to be the preferred targets. Traditionally this escalates at this time of year so please ensure doors and windows are securely locked A red Ford Focus vehicle registration number PK11 ARZ has been reported stolen from the local area Four sets of number plates have been taken from vehicles parked and unattended. If you happen to see registration numbers LB05DMF, EA07APX, RX15XGG or AY63YBN please contact police so further enquiries can be made. Should you wish to protect your vehicle from this type of offence drop us a line and we may be able to provide appropriate anti-theft devices On Sunday 9/12/18 police stopped a vehicle being driven in Avenue Road and found inside were a small amount of cannabis consistent with personal use along with an axe. The vehicle was also seized for having no insurance. The investigation is ongoing. High visibility patrols have been conducted in Walsingham Walk which has come to police attention. On Monday 10/12/18 police seized one black and white handled knife concealed in the car park unattended but readily accessible". 

Slade Green and Northend ward:- "On Wednesday 05/12 around 11pm a resident in Wessex Drive heard a noise downstairs and upon investigation saw the lock to the front had been tampered with and 2 males driving away in a vehicle. Enquiries are being made into this crime and patrols of Wessex Drive will be taking place. At some time between the Thursday 6/12 and Saturday 8/12 a pushbike was stolen from a garden in Guild Road, no further information at this time but please keep all bikes securely padlocked if you have no shed or garage. Community engagement took place with Erith SNT attending the Orbit Sheltered Scheme Christmas Pop up event at Lambert Court. PCSO Mark had fun calling numbers at bingo (photo above) and hosting a few rounds of Play Your Cards Right before a buffet lunch was had by all and the day was rounded off by an entertainer singing some festive favourites. On Tuesday this week PCSO Mark attended Peareswood Primary school again to do some more reading with the year 1 pupils. This was followed by escorting the school choir to Sherwood House sheltered scheme in Erith (opposite Mcdonalds) where they brilliantly sang some favourite Christmas tunes which was much appreciated by the residents. PC's Mark and James have been doing some successful and excellent plain clothes work very early in the mornings this week especially around the cinder path area where we had received some intel of a suspicious male. A male matching the description was stopped and spoken to with no offences seen but strong words of advice given. Our next Community Contact Session is at 12 o'clock on Wednesday December 19th in Slade Green Library". Thamesmead East ward:- "Burglary - Overton Road, Sunday 09/12/18 between 00:01 – 08:00 Unknown suspects have entered the venue by the rear kitchen window (which was not locked) and stolen the property from within. Motor Vehicle Crime - Sydney Road, Tuesday 04/12/18 between 6pm – 12pm Wednesday 05/12/18 overnight theft of motor bike without keys by unknown suspect/s Kale Road Sunday 09/12/18 between 5am – 1145am By unknown person/s approaching victims vehicle, smashed driver side window taking property from within. Front windscreen also damaged. Manordeane Road, Sunday 09/12/18 between 3:25pm – 3:45pm VIW1's vehicle has had its offside front window smashed, vehicle notified off road for 2 years no insured / taxed / MOT".  West Heath ward:- "Unfortunately this week West Heath have suffered three burglaries. There were two burglaries on Thursday 6th December in Chessington Avenue and Mayfair Avenue. Both burglaries were committed during the day, entry forced from the rear of the properties with the glass either smashed or removed to gain entry and muddy footprints left at both scenes. There was an untidy search of both properties and items of jewellery taken. The third burglary happened in Dryhill Road overnight between Friday 7th December at 2330 hours and Saturday at 1030 hours where bags and documents stolen. West Heath will continue their burglary patrols both in high viz and plain clothes. A vehicles number plates were stolen from a car in New Road on Monday 10th December between 7am -3.30pm".

The end video this week is a bit of a curiosity; it is not strictly local being based close to Westcombe Park Station and adjacent to the Blackwall Tunnel South entrance approach road. Observant commuters to and from London on the North Kent line to Dartford via Greenwich may have noticed a small side line that heads off towards the River Thames a little while after passing through Charlton Station on the way towards London. This little known railway line is the historic Angerstein Wharf Branch Line. The line only carries freight and there are not many trains each day, sometimes none at all. It is the oldest full gauge freight railway line in the world. The Angerstein Wharf Branch railway line was opened in 1851, and linked the North Kent Line near Charlton Station to Angerstein Wharf on the River Thames. It was promoted and built by John Julius Angerstein, a local land owner, investor, businessman and art collector – whose collection of paintings formed the nucleus of The National Gallery. Because the line passed over his land and was built with his own money he only needed to seek Parliamentary Powers to build the bridge over Woolwich Road – he is thought to be the only individual to have gained Parliamentary permission to build a railway in the UK. The line was leased by the South Eastern Railway in 1852 and bought outright in 1898. During the line’s life it had links to the South Metropolitan Gas Works (whose gas holders remain near the southern entrance to the Blackwall Tunnel) and the London County Council (later London Transport) Central Tram Repair Depot at Penhall Road (which gradually became the place where London’s Trams were scrapped after the system closed in the early 1950s). Although much quieter today the line is still in use, with trains four or five times each week conveying sea-dredged aggregates from a terminal at Angerstein Wharf. The line never carried passenger trains, although the odd enthusiast excursion train has used the track. The video below shows a little known (and I surmise little used) passenger crossing of the historic railway line. Do give it a watch and let me know what you think. Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

St. Anne's nursery.

The News Shopper are currently featuring a story about the enforced closure of St. Anne’s Nursery on the Erith Park Estate (what used to be known as the Larner Road Estate before it was redeveloped). Their article can be seen here.  I have done some investigation into the story, and have found out that it is far more complex and nuanced that the News Shopper have described. In the story, reporter Josie Griffiths makes several key errors – principally in believing everything that the nursery owners have said, and printing it as fact. I have done some digging, and found a far different state of affairs, and far from the “black and white – Nursery good / Orbit bad” situation as described in the News Shopper. The reporter writes “St Anne's Nursery is a not-for-profit business run by Liam Connolly and owned by Silon 7”. This is factually incorrect. A simple check with Companies House confirms that Silon7 is  a ‘private company limited by shares’ with one shareholder – Liam Connolly. So it is definitely not a not-for-profit organisation as the News Shopper incorrectly states. Reliable sources have told me that Liam Connolly has run the nursery as a profitable business for some years. A couple of years ago Orbit Housing Association (the landlords)  instigated a conversation to suggest that the nursery might want to switch to a not-for-profit model such as a charity or social enterprise. Liam Connolly said no, it was a profitable company, he planned to grow it and he expected to have a commercial relationship with Orbit. Liam and his company Silon7 own the nursery and control the finances, but are not involved in the day to day running or the childcare which is all delegated to the (excellent) staff. At the time the nursery moved to the current premises, Orbit knew that rent was owing on the previous location.  Orbit therefore gave the nursery a licence (rather than the security of a lease) with a clear message that the nursery were required to enter into an agreement to pay off the arrears as a condition of the Orbit partnership continuing.  No proposal has been made by Liam.  Rent has been paid on the current property but only after Orbit involved lawyers. Silon7 have not responded to any of Orbit’s attempts to open up a conversation about moving this forward – if they were to do so, they could still consider it reopening as a not-for-profit business with transparent accounts and reinvesting profit in the business. I also understand that the statement about nursery staff not being admitted to the building when the locks were changed is also untrue. My informant tells me that  on the morning Orbit changed the  locks, one of the staff asked if she could go in and get the records, and Orbit representatives let her take as long as she liked to find what she needed and she confirmed that she had found what she was looking for.  Since Orbit changed the locks,  they have had no contact from Silon7 to request  access. The big shame in all this is the effect it is having on all the children – by all accounts the nursery was excellent, with dedicated and caring staff. My understanding is that the nursery staff had little if anything to do with the business side of the enterprise, which was solely administered by Liam Connolly. It would appear that through some kind of failure on his part, the staff and children are now suffering. The News Shopper have also deleted two comments made by readers – which, knowing the history the local paper’s website has with online trolls, may not be that surprising. One of the comments alleged that Liam Connolly had a history of criminality, and that he should not be allowed to run a nursery for that reason. I have absolutely no idea whether this is true or not, but the allegation was made – and the News Shopper webmaster made the (wise in my opinion) decision to remove the post from the website.  The bottom line would seem to be: 1) Liam Connolly has reneged on an agreement with Orbit Housing Association; 2) As a result of this, Orbit have closed down the nursery, as they are legally unable to subsidise a commercial organisation with their tenants rent money, and 3) All this has left the hardworking and dedicated staff, and the children who used the nursery with nowhere to go.  It is a pity that the News Shopper have only published half of the real story.  What do you think? Leave a comment below, or Email me at hugh.neal@gmail.com.

With all of the debate going on at present about improving road and rail connections across the River Thames, It is interesting to see enterprises that instead of viewing the river as a barrier, they use it as a means of transport in itself. Back in 1963, a unique experiment was carried out. A hovercraft ferry service on the Thames was set up. The Denny D2 Hovercraft could carry seventy passengers at speeds of up to 21 knots, and the service was launched in early July 1963. It was operated by Thames Launches, who planned to operate a service every day until that October with a schedule of three trips per hour. The fare was £1 for adults and 10 shillings for children – a very substantial amount by the standards of the time. Built in Dumbarton by Denny Hovercraft, the hovercraft travelled under its own power along the east-coast, which was at the time the longest trip ever made by a hovercraft. The hovercraft also required a permit to fly along the Thames, as they were officially classed as aircraft, under the Air Navigation Order 1960. As such, a Times newspaper report into the new service was written by the Aeronautical correspondent, not their shipping one. The first passenger carrying “flight” took place on 1st July, with some five hundred customers on the first day. Initially the hovercraft service was limited to running three trips per hour between Tower Bridge and Westminster, but a series of experimental flights were also made down river, at least one of which was to Anchor Bay, Erith, to the area that is now the site of Erith Construction Ltd’s six and a half acre logistics and materials treatment facility. A key advantage of the hovercraft over conventional ships was that it would race along the Thames at much higher speeds as it caused minimal disturbance to the river as it passed over the water, a problem which limits speeds on the Thames to this day. Sadly, the experiment was a failure, and the builders were forced into bankruptcy the following year. The hovercraft was eventually sold in 1970 to begin life on a new route in the Caribbean linking Kingston, Jamaica, with the island’s Palisadoes Airport. If things had turned out differently, it could have been that Erith residents took the hovercraft to work in the morning. It would have certainly been a somewhat more interesting commute that using Southeastern trains!

Some great news. The Kent Chilli Farm have moved their artisanal chilli sauce and jam production facility into Erith. I will be running a special feature on this independent local business shortly. You can find out more about the Kent Chilli Farm by checking out their website and online shop here. 

The two photos above are a "then and now" photo showing the Erith end of Manor Road at the junction with James Watt Way and Erith High Street. The upper photo was taken in July 1966, and shows the old Co-Op store, not very long before it was demolished. The lower photo shows what the site looks like recently. The KFC drive through and the new block of affordable apartments for rent, which replace the old Erith Trades and Social Club that used to be on the same site in James Watt Way. As you can see, the area has changed beyond all recognition in the last fifty years; many would say not for the better. Further East along Manor Road, the houses are little changed - many of which date back to the 1860's, so there is still a lot of history in the area. 

Bexley Police have just issued the following updates on matters of concern to local residents in relation to safety and security matters:- 

Erith Safer Neighbourhood Team.

The team has received reports of drug activity in different locations across the ward. A different approach has been taken to tackle the issues where letters have been posted to each address in the affected areas providing the teams contact details and requesting residents to report matters directly and anonymously. The idea behind this will be to provide the team with more regular intelligence / information with a view to catching those responsible. In crime news, a high value vehicle, stolen from during a burglary from an address in Greenwich, was recovered on the ward.  A prolific shoplifter was caught in the process of stealing items from Morrison’s supermarket and arrested and sent to court. The team has arrested 7 people during January for numerous offences such as criminal damage, theft and motoring offences.  The team is now on twitter! Follow the team at @MPSErith. The team has some upcoming surgery dates and encourages residents to come along and meet the team and have a chat about problems on the ward. The next 3 surgery dates are as follows:-

29 February 2016 - Erith Library 2pm-3pm

29 March 2016 - Erith Library 2pm-3pm

22 June 2016 - Erith Library 2pm-3pm

Northend Safer Neighbourhood Team.

During January the team has continued to focus on their ward promises which are Anti-Social behaviour in Forest Road, increased visible foot patrols across the ward and Drug use.  Anti-Social behaviour patrols in and around the Forest Road area and tower blocks have seen positive results and a reduction in ASB related calls. Several searches have taken place in stairwells of some of the tower blocks after males were found at locations believed to be involved in drugs offences.  The team have recently acted on information in relation to people involved in drugs supply on the ward and executed 2 search warrants. One of these warrants led to the seizure of a quantity of drugs and 2 arrests made for drugs offences. They also continue to work closely with the local housing authorities and will actively target residents engaged in anti-social behaviour who cause issues for their neighbours and the local community. The team are committed to tackling anti-social behaviour and will explore utilising enforcement powers for breaching housing / tenancy agreements. They are currently working closely with L&Q housing and Orbit housing in two such cases. A number of arrests have been made over the past month for a variety of offences such as drug possession, criminal damage and public order. On 1st February the ward panel meeting took place. After listening to panel members who raised some local issues the following new priorities for the ward were set. Traffic Issues due to the upcoming major roadworks on Northend road and the knock on effect this will have on the surrounding streets. Block Patrols. Continued reports of youths loitering and drug misuse in communal areas of several of the wards tower blocks. General increased visible patrols of the ward which will include Erith marshes and other key locations on the ward known for Anti Social Behaviour, as well as any identified crime hotspots. Please find below a list of Northend’s upcoming events. Please come and speak to members of your local team about any issues you have.

Drop-in Surgery 

Date - Sun 14th February 2016

Time - 6pm - 7pm

Venue - Pier Road Safer Neighbourhood Office

Drop-in Surgery 

Date - Sat 23rd February 2016

Time - 10am - 11am

Venue - Forest Road Cafe

Street Briefing 

Date - Wed 24th February 2016

Time - 8.30am - 9am

Venue - Peareswood School.

I see that TGINO (Top Gear In Name Only) announced their full presenter line – up this week. I wonder how much the BBC will be spending on the re-launched  show? Having seven presenters is going to make a big dent in the BBC wage budget.  As I have mentioned previously, I don’t think the new version is going to work, especially not with Chris Evans at the helm. I have heard a story that when TGINO comes back, it will be at a prime spot at peak viewing time on BBC1, instead of at 8pm on a Sunday evening on BBC 2 as it used to be.  The thinking behind this seems to be fairly straightforward; the change in channel and time will ensure that the viewing figures look good in comparison with the old show. Such “massaging” techniques are fairly common by TV producers. Personally I won’t be watching the show, as I cannot stand Chris Evans. I have however taken out an Amazon Prime subscription – which for me at least seems like pretty good value. Some Amazon Prime only shows have proved to be very good viewing indeed. The bonus that Clarkson, May and Hammond’s new ultra high budget motoring show will be aired on Prime is also welcome. I would expect that I won’t be the only person attracted to the online channel because of this.

For years a debate has been bubbling away between psychologists, child welfare experts and video game players about the effect that playing video games has on adolescent behaviour. Now a large study conducted over a considerable period of time has been published. A fair number of studies suggest that there is a link, but those can be contrasted with other research that says there isn’t. The problem is that there are so many different factors to take into account, along with a swiftly-changing medium and difficulty in obtaining high-quality data—we'd need an avalanche of research to answer the question definitively. While it's not an avalanche, a group of researchers, led by biological psychologist and video game violence sceptic Peter Etchells, has published an analysis suggesting that players of violent games might face a very small increase in risk for behavioural problems. They’re the kinds of small results that would be met with disappointment by authors who were hoping to find an effect, but they’re there. And yet, as always, this analysis isn’t the final word. This field is so tricky to navigate partly because of the wealth of potential confounding factors and difficulty finding causation among the correlations. It’s conceivable that substantial exposure to on-screen violence could cause a change in behaviour, but it’s also conceivable that people with behavioural problems would seek out violent media. And many studies have looked at “games” in general, which encompasses a wide range of media. Even if we manage to focus on just violent games, there’s the problem that games that are violent are also other things as well: challenging, competitive, fast-paced, and so on. If players of these games show higher levels of violence, it’s difficult to say for certain that it’s the violence that's causing the problem. For instance, games that are highly competitive have been found to increase aggression in the short term, even if they're non-violent. Games are also a modern and evolving phenomenon, which means that the best data is still in production. Ideally, to see whether a long-term habit has long-term effects, you need longitudinal studies that takes measurements from people over years of their lives, but that data takes decades to collect. Peter Etchells and his team were lucky enough to be able to use an existing study, but it came hand-in-hand with the weakness that the games in question were all from the '90s. To see the effects of modern games, we'd need to wait even longer. The study which had started with more than 14,000 pregnant women in 1991 and 1992. Around 2,400 of the children in the study had answered a questionnaire on their gaming habits when they were eight or nine years old, and around 5,000 had completed an interview called the Development and Well-Being Assessment (“DAWBA”) at the age of fifteen. Approximately 1,800 children fell into both categories. The researchers focused on two outcomes of the DAWBA: risk for depression, and risk for “conduct disorder,” which is a term describing antisocial behaviours in children. Then, they tried to eliminate or control for as many confounding factors as possible. They looked for children who had been rated as high-risk for conduct disorder by their parents when they were seven years old and removed them from the study. The researchers included family history of mental health, maternal education and socio-economic status, religious beliefs, family structure, gender, bullying victimhood, IQ, and social and emotional problems in their model as well. What they found was that children who had reported playing shoot-em-up games (a stand-in category for violent games) at the age of eight or nine had a slightly increased chance of conduct disorder, even after controlling for all the confounding factors. The effect was weak, though; just on the border of statistical significance. The initial risk for conduct disorder is small, too, so any additional risk above that is going to be even smaller. There didn’t seem to be an association between the number of games the children reported owning and an increase in risk for conduct disorder. When examining depression among shoot-em-up players, there was evidence for increased risk before the researchers controlled for all the confounding factors, but not afterwards. There are some obvious weaknesses in this study. They couldn’t control for the question of whether the children who played shoot-em-ups were already predisposed to problems but didn't yet display them at age seven. They also had to rely on self-reported data from eight-year-old children, who might not have known what a “shoot-em-up” game was when they answered the questionnaire. Even more problematic is the question of what games eight-year-olds are likely to play. Maybe children generally only really start with violent games when they’re a little older, which is why this study didn’t find much. A more detailed look at gaming habits in later childhood and adolescence could find a stronger link. In any case, '90s games are not today’s games, which have changed drastically, and often don’t fit in clear genres that are clearly violent or non-violent. We need to move away from a generalized discussion of “video game use,” the authors argue, and look rather at the content of particular games. This research sits squarely in a middle ground: it found an effect that ties in with other, more alarming research, but the effect sizes were so small that they don’t really provide much support for the idea that video games are a major concern. “Some have claimed that the magnitude of this effect is larger than the effect of exposure to smoke at work on lung cancer rates,” they write. “Our findings do not support such claims.” This rather leaves us back at the beginning – and provides more fuel for those on both sides of the argument.

Housing association Peabody is seeking responses from local people to its proposals to regenerate south Thamesmead over the next decade, which includes the building of fifteen hundred new homes on the estate on Wolvercote Road. Peabody plans to rehouse the nearly six hundred residents currently living in the Wolvercote Road area to its housing zone on Harrow Manor Way, which recently received a £1m funding boost from London Mayor Boris Johnson. The six towers and housing blocks on the site would be demolished under the proposals and replaced by better designed, better quality homes with improved public spaces. Peabody intends to start a planning application in 2017, with residents being rehoused over three phases, and demolition planned to begin in 2020. In addition to this, it proposes refurbishing existing homes in Southmere and Parkview that are in need of repair and regularly suffer from cold and damp, with high heating bills. My concern is that as this will happen shortly after the full opening of Crossrail, with its South East terminus at nearby Abbey Wood, there will be a great temptation for the developers to market the new estate at higher wage earners, and to "gentrify" the area (I detest the word "gentrify").  Peabody plan on spending £440 million on the regeneration of the South Thamesmead estate, and will want to see a decent return on their investment. Another improvement will be the demolition of the unsightly concrete wall facing Yarnton Way. The boss of the Peabody Trust, Stephen Howlett, said in a recent interview with the Bexley Times that "We are passionate about Thamesmead – the people, the place and its future potential. Our proposals take into consideration the wants and needs of the thousands of residents we have consulted over the past two years. Our proposals are ambitious but they are based on what we believe we can realistically do. Residents are vital to the future of Thamesmead and we want to encourage as many of them as possible to share their views.”

The surprise news that popular Dartford pub the Paper Moon is closing for good today came as a shock to many local (and not so local) residents. An online petition was set up, and after reading the comments on the site, it is clear that feelings are running high. I understand that the reason given for the closure of the Paper Moon is that there is another Wetherspoon’s pub only a couple of minutes walk away in Spital Street. The Flying Boat was converted from a Beadles car showroom and generally caters for a younger client base, who at the weekends use the giant pub before heading to the night club. The Paper Moon seems to have a mixed set of regulars, but primarily those who are slightly older. I am certain that no amount of campaigning will get Wetherspoon’s to change their mind. It may well be that there is more to the closure than has been publicised  - the lease may have expired on the building, which prior to being used as a pub, was a branch of Lloyd’s Bank. If Wetherspoon’s no longer want to operate the Paper Moon, I cannot see why another brewer or pub chain could not take it over, if indeed there are sufficient loyal customers to make such an enterprise viable. Personally I would love to see a Fuller’s pub in the area, though I am not holding my breath. I am quite surprised at the extent of the support for the preservation of the Paper Moon – it is OK, but just another corporate Wetherspoon’s operation. One can take a walk for a minute or two up East Hill and take the first left into Darenth Road and visit the absolutely superb Malt Shovel pub – a fifteenth century hostelry that offers a wide range of Young’s real ales and superb, home cooked food. I definitely rate The Malt Shovel as the best pub in Dartford, and it is only pipped to the post as my favourite pub of all time by the stunningly brilliant Robin Hood and Little John, in Lion Road Bexleyheath. Both highly recommended. Do you have a favourite pub in the local area that you would like to tell people about? Drop me a line to hugh.neal@gmail.com and let me know.

The end video this week is an aerial film of Erith Yacht Club. The impressive clubhouse building and workshops are not known to many people, as the club is situated at the far East end of Manor Road, out on the Crayford Marshes, well away from most people. The area around the club is stunningly beautiful, and I would highly recommend it for a walk on a sunny day. Back in 2012 the Olympic torch was landed at Erith Yacht Club as part of its tour round the UK.