Newsletter of the Hartley and District Residents’ Association Spring 2018 Protecting and Advancing the Common Interests of the Area
As a Resident of our area you are invited to our
A N N UA L G E N E R A L M E E T I N G Thi s w ill be held at Coulsdon M anor Hot el on W ednesda y 20 th J une 2018
THE PROGRAMME 7.00pm Refreshments (a finger buffet and glass of wine or soft drink) 7.30pm Safer Neighbourhood Police Team update 7.40pm Talk by Old Coulsdon Medical Practice Business Manager, Arif Ladha (this has still to be confirmed) 8.10pm AGM followed by Q & A's with local Councillors and Chris Philp, MP. (The programme may be subject to change)
Please come along to our AGM, find out what we do and give us your views and opinions. Remember that we are your Association and our role is to represent you and, to do that effectively, we need to know what you think about local issues. Please also consider giving a little bit of your time to help us, either by joining our Committee or helping to distribute our newsletter twice a year. If you are interested or would like more information, talk to us at our AGM or contact our Secretary, Heather Elliott on 0208 660 6202.
Subscriptions for 2018 are now due ÂŁ3 Subscription for this year is due: if you did not pay our Road Steward when this Newsletter was delivered please send payments to the Membership Secretary, Lee Cooper, 54b Haydn Avenue, Purley, Surrey, CR8 4AE
If residents need to contact the association they can do so via email. Our address is action@hadra.org Editor: John Clarke Editorial Advisor: Heather Elliott Printed by R. Young & Sons, 360 Brighton Road, South Croydon, Surrey CR2 6AL, Tel: 020 8680 2242
EDITORIAL Our spring edition is here and the Association is as busy as ever. The results of the Inquiry on the Purley Tower planning application are due in May. Let’s hope it is a positive result. Proposals for the redevelopment of Lion Green Road car park, Coulsdon Community Centre, the CALAT centre and outline planning permission for a Medical Centre on the CALAT site, were all passed at the Planning Committee on 22nd March. HADRA, along with the other Residents’ Associations in Coulsdon have been involved in regular meetings with Brick by Brick – the Council’s developers - regarding these projects and, in particular, ensuring that public car parking spaces would still be available on the site. At the meeting on the 22nd, it was also agreed that car parking spaces would remain available during the period of construction which will be a relief to the local businesses. One of the biggest issues with planning and new builds is the provision of parking. The amount of parking available in most new builds is less than 1 per household, the argument being that if the property is near a station or on a bus route, that household would not need a car. This does not, however, take into account the fact that people have work vehicles, such as white vans, which need to be kept close to their homes; many families include adult children who may also have cars; people use cars to commute where public transport is not appropriate or just for leisure. Just because a car parking space is not provided, it doesn’t mean one (or more) will not be needed. The Department of Transport National Survey published on 8th September 2016 gives the following nationwide figures: in 2002/03 car ownership was 1.14 cars per household and in 2014/15 the figure was 1.21 cars per household, so car ownership per household is increasing, with no provision for parking on site where they live. Lack of parking spaces in new developments puts more pressure on nearby roads, which are invariably already congested, making the roads less safe for all road users.
John Clarke, Editor
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT The main item on the agenda this year has been the Purley Tower Inquiry, which you will read more about on page 3. I would, however, just like to say thank you to Diane Hearne and Lee Cooper from HADRA for their contribution to the joint Residents’ Associations’ fight. As mentioned on the front page, we are always in need of more Committee Members. Our Committee details are published on page 11 and we are a very friendly group of people and do not take ourselves too seriously. New Road Stewards are also very welcome and if you would like to find out more, please contact Lee Cooper, our Membership Secretary. Our Planning Officer, Colin, is kept busy with all the developments that are going on in the area, our Health Representative, Rita, keeps us all fully informed about the activities of the CCCG (Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group) and our Transport Representative, Clive, looks after our interests in the running of trains and local buses. Our two police representatives, Tony and Mike, keep in touch with the Safer Neighbourhood Teams of East Coulsdon and Kenley, on our behalf. I would also like to say thank you to Lee Cooper, our Vice-Chair and Membership Secretary, Heather Elliott our Secretary and Josephine Hullay our Treasurer for their contributions. Communication today is very good as we have email, our Website, our Facebook page and our Eblast, all excellent ways of keeping our members informed. Our Website is www.hadra.org and if you are not already signed up for the Eblast, you can go onto our website and follow the link and don’t forget to sign up to our Facebook page as well.
CHRISTMAS LIGHTS IN OLD COULSDON 2018 CLOC Friends Group was formed in 2016 to raise money to bring back Christmas Lights to Old Coulsdon and we hope you agree the displays have been stunning. Thanks to your generosity, in 2017 we were able add more lights in Canon’s Hill and at the beginning of Court Avenue. We are however continuing to fundraise to allow us to improve and renew the displays and our Chairman, Danny Tevfik of Danny's Fish & Chips Tudor Parade, Old Coulsdon will accept any donations on Clocfg’s behalf. Cheques should be payable to CLOC Friends Group or email: Margaret@wraybank.co.uk for alternative arrangements. PLEASE HELP US TO KEEP OLD COULSDON FESTIVE AT CHRISTMAS TIME Christmas Lights in Old Coulsdon Friends Group
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Purley Tower – Public Inquiry
Report by Phil Thomas, Riddlesdown RA
Following the announcement in April 2017 by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid, that he had "Called In" Croydon Council’s decision to grant planning permission for this large development in Purley District Centre (PDC), the Public Inquiry commenced on 9th January 2018. The Inquiry, which was held in the Purley Baptist Church, sat for 6 days and completed on 17th January. The ‘Call In’ to the Secretary of State was requested by our MP, Chris Philp. As a reminder, the scheme for the island site (surrounded by Banstead Rd, Brighton Rd and Russell Hill Rd), is to erect a 3 to 17 storey building with basements, comprising 114 flats (1, 2 & 3 bedroom), plus a community and multi-purpose church space, and a retail unit. There are to be 78 car parking spaces (50 for the church/ community users and 28 for the residential units, 11 of which will be set aside for Blue Badge holders). For the south site (opposite and fronting Banstead Rd and Brighton Rd), it is proposed to erect a 3 to 8 storey building comprising 106 residential units (again 1, 2 & 3 bedroom) with vehicular access and a service bay off Banstead Road. The car parking on this south site is for 9 parking bays. The development was opposed by seven local Residents Associations (RAs). The seven Associations were; Riddlesdown, Hartley & District, Sanderstead, East Coulsdon, Coulsdon West, Old Coulsdon and Kenley & District. The RAs applied to the Planning Inspector and Riddlesdown RA was granted ‘Rule 6’ status (as the lead RA) and we presented our case to the Inquiry. Because we had ‘Rule 6’ status, we were allowed to cross examine witnesses. The Planning Inspector leading the Inquiry was David Nicholson. At the Inquiry, the RAs were represented by Charles King (East Coulsdon), Dennis King (Sanderstead), Diane Hearne and Lee Cooper (Hartley& District) and Phil Thomas (Riddlesdown). The Planning barrister for the applicant was Christopher Katowski QC, and the barrister acting for the Council was Stephen Morgan. Although seven RAs objected to the scheme, the Purley & Woodcote RA (PWRA), in whose area the site is located, supported the proposal. However, the feedback the seven RAs received from PWRA members was that this view is not shared by many of their residents. The seven RAs are also not opposed to new development on these sites, as we understand that growth will be key to the future vitality and viability of suburban District Centres like Purley. We also recognise the acute housing needs in the area and wish to see more new homes that are genuinely affordable provided for local people and our group are not anti-development. At the Inquiry, we put forward the issues which we believe were not considered sufficiently by the Council when granting planning permission, including: the height of the building; the density of the site; the flood risk; lack of parking; the entrance and exit on to Russell Hill Road and the impact the 47 months build time will have on the traffic in Purley and surrounding areas. In our opinion, the seven RA’s presented a very valid argument and in fact the two main legal barristers (for the applicant and Council) did congratulate the RAs for the way we put forward our presentation at the end of the Inquiry. We didn’t disgrace ourselves! It was a long hard slog by a number of members in the seven RAs and we did it without any legal representation. We did our best and we wait the outcome in May, with interest.
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TREASURER’S REPORT Financially, this year has been uneventful with no major expenditure for the running of the Association. Raising funds for charity is something we try to do and we have been supporting a charity that I have been involved with over the last year which is the Willow Foundation, dedicated to bringing special days to the seriously ill who are between the ages 16 and 40 years and live in the United Kingdom. Our main charity effort is at the Old Coulsdon Village Fair which last year raised £130.00. All other expenses are ones that we incur at intervals through the year i.e. newsletter printing, website costs and our own office supplies. Our income comes from two sources, your subscriptions and the revenue from our advertising. Subscriptions have declined, marginally, as we do not have enough Road Stewards to canvas each and every road and collect subscriptions. We do manage to get the Newsletters delivered to all of our residents but we need people to knock on doors to collect subscriptions (If you would like to volunteer to help, please contact our Membership Secretary). As for advertising, we have maintained a steady income from our regular advertisers but have had a few withdrawals over the past couple of years, so if you know of anyone who would like to advertise, please contact our Editor. Josephine Hullay, Treasurer
Government injects £10m into Croydon Town Centre to help deliver Westfield centre In February, the Government announced £10m in “Housing Infrastructure Funding” to support 1,000 new homes in Croydon Town centre and provide infrastructure to enable the Westfield centre to move forwards. After years of delay from project had been in danger of stalling. This much-needed support will help deliver the transformation of Croydon town centre and also make sure that Westfield goes ahead. The Westfield scheme will deliver 1,000 new homes and 7,000 new jobs. It will help make Croydon the leading commercial centre of south London. This is a huge vote of confidence in Croydon. Work on Westfield is due to start by early 2019. The Westfield shopping centre will be similar to the existing ones in Stratford and Shepherd’s Bush, and will stand on the site of the current Whitgift centre. I discussed these problems with the then Minister for London, Greg Hands, last summer. The Minister later convened meetings with all parties at his Whitehall offices to agree a support package and to end the deadlock. I am delighted that the Government has made this vital investment in Croydon. This is fantastic news for Croydon. It will provide world-leading retail facilities in the town centre, and act as a spur to other much-needed regeneration projects there. We are hopeful that John Lewis will be confirmed as the anchor store before too long. This news will make Croydon town centre one of Europe’s leading growth areas in the coming years.
Chris Philp, Member of Parliament for Croydon South 4
POLICE REPORT KENLEY WARD
March 2018
At the last panel meeting in December 2017 the following promises were agreed: BURGLARY
Between 1st January and 7th March 2018 there were 19 burglaries including non residential and attempted burglaries. This compares with 10 for the month of September 2017 alone. Winter months do tend to be quieter.
SPEEDING
In February a Speed Watch was carried out on Godstone Road.
ANTI SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR
Monitoring of this is concentrated at the far end of Old Lodge Lane where the 455 bus terminates.
Other activities include the recent stopping of a car carrying five individuals who were arrested following the discovery of a machete plus a quantity of cannabis in the vehicle. On 20th February officers from three wards responded to a burglar alarm ringing. The intruder had already left but a substantial quantity of jewellery from the house was recovered nearby.
Mike Oastler COULSDON EAST WARD The crime figures for Coulsdon East Ward for the period October, November and December 2017 compared with the same period in 2016 show an overall increase of 7. There was a significant reduction in crimes of violence, the main increases relating to theft and handling together with residential and business burglary. The ward policing priorities are anti-social behaviour, motor vehicle crime and speeding. Community Payback scheme gives offenders a chance to repay local communities for their crimes by doing work that benefits the area. It does not replace paid employment it complements work done by local authorities and voluntary organisations. For more details or to suggest projects in your area visitwww.londoncrc.org.uk/what-we-do/community-payback/ or telephone 020 7593 3120. Police surgeries will be held at the Poppy Café, Coulsdon Memorial Ground, Marlpit Lane every Wednesday between 12 noon and 1pm giving you the opportunity to consult with a police officer regarding local policing issues. Tony Sales
DON’T FORGET Telephone 999 in an emergency or if the matter is non-urgent but needs a police response dial 101.
A Few Words about our Retiring Councillor Chris Wright To say that Chris has been an outstanding Councillor for Coulsdon over many years is an understatement. To many he has been seen as “Mr Coulsdon” and has worked tirelessly for its residents. On a personal note his advice and support has been invaluable. I have no doubt Chris will continue to be a force for good locally but will be missed as a Councillor. Cllr Steve O'Connell Assembly Member Croydon and Sutton, Chair Assembly Police and Crime Committee, Kenley Councillor, Spokesman Safety and Communities, Trustee Crystal Palace FC Foundation and Chair Purley Kenley Caterham RSPCA
Note from the Committee: We would also like to thank Chris as he has always been available for advice over the years and he has helped the Residents’ Association and our residents in many situations. Thanks Chris have a long and happy retirement.
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HADRA ALSO HAS A FACEBOOK PAGE SO IF YOU WANT TO KEEP UP WITH WHAT’S GOING ON IN OUR AREA COME AND JOIN OUR GROUP.
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TRANSPORT REPORT Southern railway will be operating a new timetable from 20th May. The Tattenham Corner line will change to three trains per hour to London Bridge. The direct services to and from Victoria are retimed. Also, from the 20th May, Thameslink will be introducing new routes running from Brighton to Cambridge and Horsham to Peterborough, which will bring with it a wide range of benefits. There will now be reduced journey times for passengers travelling through London, as well as new travel opportunities, for more information visit https://ticket.southernrailway.com.. Over the last three months Surrey County Council has been working closely with Transport for London to secure the future of bus routes 166. This is an important bus route used by many residents living in Surrey and London. This bus route is contracted by Transport for London, crossing the London boundary into Surrey to serve Epsom Hospital. Last week Transport for London agreed to halt a planned consultation that included the option to cut this route short, thus enabling discussions to continue. I am delighted to inform you that Surrey County Council has agreed to financially support the cost of this bus route, meaning that it will continue unaltered. The agreement reached is for five years. Clive Lang, Transport Representative
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A History of a Councillor (Retiring) by Councillor Chris Wright Following 4 years as a Councillor in Paddington, before it was merged with Westminster, I concentrated on a family and professional life and didn’t start ‘councilloring’ again until being elected in 1990 for Coulsdon East in Croydon. Now 28 years later I am saying goodbye to all that with many very happy memories. I followed Stan Littlechild as a councillor for this ward and he had represented the ward for 51 years so it was a hard act to follow, but I have tried to keep to his aim of making local residents my first priority. I can safely say it has been a varied and interesting time. From leading a cow that insisted on misbehaving (!) through the streets of Paddington, to trying to convince a lady in a new house that the reason her cup of tea did not have the same flavour as in her old house, was that the water pipes were new copper and not the old lead pipes. My first aim, however, has always been to try and conserve the character of our area and make sure, when possible, that new developments were in keeping with this unique environment. But I realise none of this could have been attempted or achieved without the huge support from local Residents Associations and local societies and groups. That is where I have been so lucky in having residents who have the same beliefs and have been prepared to rally round. In recent years I have formed many Residents groups to carry out duties which the Council, because of financial constraints, have not been able to continue to carry out. These projects include preserving Bradmore Pond where, but for local enthusiasm and hard work, the Pond would have disappeared, maintaining and managing the beautiful environment of Coulsdon Coppice, that little ‘tardis’ of 8 acres, where fly-tipping and litter would have ruined this important small woodland, We also had an inspiring and enthusiastic group to raise money to completely restore the Children’s Play Area in Grange Park. This work is still on-going as we raise more money to further improve facilities in the park and this work will continue and, I hope, with help from W.I. Cup Cakes we will bring back some hanging baskets to Old Coulsdon. The World War One Group will be providing a fitting remembrance and celebration for the centenary of the 1918 Armistice. My thanks to all those residents and societies who have joined me in making our neighbourhood such a wonderful place for us to live in and enjoy.
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SECRETARY’S REPORT We are now making arrangements for our AGM on Wednesday 20th June. This is always an interesting event held in comfortable surroundings with excellent refreshments and also plenty of free parking space. Do come along if you possibly can as various items of local significance are discussed. Full details are given elsewhere in this Newsletter. You will also see a plea for more Road Stewards. You need only volunteer to deliver to a few houses if that is all you have time for, but any help will be welcome. Please contact Lee Cooper, our Membership Secretary, for further information. We continue to monitor developments in the area. The Purley skyscraper is still under review and no further news expected until early summer. The Public Inquiry at Purley Baptist Church at the beginning of January was very well attended when our Member of Parliament, Chris Philp, spoke on this subject - standing room only - which shows how much interest and concern there is about this project. Our Chair, John Clarke together with Lee Cooper and Diane Hearne attended the Inquiry daily. The corner of Brighton Road and Banstead Road is also being developed, but these plans are more acceptable, as the buildings are not 17 storeys high! For many years the committee has had the help and guidance of Councillor Chris Wright at our committee meetings. Chris has now decided to stand down from the Council. We shall miss him and his invaluable help at our meetings and send him every good wish for the future.
Heather Elliott, Secretary
PLANNING Planning Notification letters Croydon now only send notification letters to those properties that are adjacent to the application site. You should also advise your neighbours who may also be affected by the planning proposal and seek their support in objecting to a planning application. If you want advice or wish HADRA to support your objection then contact me at planning@hadra.org or by telephone on 020 8668 3707. Details of planning applications are on the council web site; alternatively you can use the HADRA web site to see current planning applications and can click on the application number which will direct you to the Council website where you can view the details. Croydon Planning Committee Since the last newsletter HADRA residents have spoken at the council’s planning committee meeting against a planning application to extend a five bedroom house and convert it into five flats to accommodate 18 people. Once again the residents’ objections were ignored and the application was approved. Purley Sky Scraper. The Planning Inspector held the appeal hearing in January 2018, HADRA and other resident associations along with our MP Chris Philip gave objection speeches against the 17 storey skyscraper. A decision from the Planning Inspector is expected soon. Croydon Local Plan 2018 & Draft New London Plan The new Croydon Local Plan 2018 was approved in March 2018, two committee members attended Croydon Council’s Residents Association forum where the head of Development Management advised how the planning department would revise their working methods to speed up the planning process in order to achieve the new housing targets. This also included a presentation on the Council’s new Suburban Design Guide Supplementary Planning Document, which details how to sustainably accommodate growth and deliver homes in suburbs by intensification of developments in existing residential plots. HADRA has objected to the Draft New London Plan as it proposes to increase housing density in residential areas such as that covered by the HADRA area and in order to achieve this it removes the protection to back gardens which is currently afforded by the National Planning Policy. Also a further lowering of on-site parking spaces for new developments will result in more on-street parking and a reduction in road safety. Unsolicited offers to buy your house from developers. HADRA are receiving reports that developers are making unsolicited offers for houses using a complex option contract. There are some things to note about this contract that need some careful thought by anyone considering this or similar offers, as they may not be as generous as they appear. One developer will offer to pay the house owner a non-refundable deposit of £5K for an opportunity to buy your house in approximately 18 months’ time at a price agreed today. After 12 months the non-refundable deposit will be topped up with further payments of £1K/month for up to 6 more months. Should you have a forward purchase, the developer will allow you to delay completion by up to an additional 6 months should you need to. It is very easy for house owners to focus on the generous purchase price and the opportunities this lump-sum will present. However, you need to think through what these terms mean. From the developer's perspective he might buy your property in 18 to 24 months’ time. In the meantime you are their "house-sitter" and you are required to pay all the household bills until the developer buys your house. You are locked-in to a contract and there is nothing you can do to make the developer complete the house sale earlier, even if your personal circumstances dramatically change, or the seller of your next house refuses to wait any longer. Also you would not be able to sell to another person for better terms. Colin Etheridge, Planning Officer 9
HEALTH REPRESENTATIVE’S REPORT Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group met in March to sign off plans for service developments in 2018/9. They are continuing to work on a Financial plan to reach break even after years of substantial deficit. Mental health psychological services have been extended and further capacity will be encouraged and Children’s Special Needs Services will be developed further. A Strategic Plan for Carers has been approved providing Health and Council services initially agreed priorities will be developed and advertised. The plans were developed with the help of carers and public. The Clinical Commissioners have encouraged extensive public involvement in their work and have continued to have a Public Involvement Board member, the current appointee is Paulette Lewis. GP’s will be encouraged to extend the availability of their services and an additional Urgent Care Hub is developing in the West Croydon area. The GP services are inspected by the Care Quality Commission and so far many practices are providing good quality services. Rita Lewis, Health Representative
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RESIDENTS’ ASSOCIATIONS’ DINNER/DANCE 2017 The Residents’ Association Annual Dinner Dance was held on Friday 24th November 2017 at Coulsdon Manor Hotel. There were residents from ECRA, OCRA, CWRA and HADRA, the four local Coulsdon Residents’ Associations. The photograph below shows the organising group of Jan Stollery from OCRA, Charlie King from ECRA, Josephine Hullay, John Clarke and Diane Hearne from HADRA and also included, although not pictured, Maureen Levy from ECRA and Rita Barfoot from CWRA. A very good three course dinner was provided by Coulsdon Manor with tea and coffee to finish the meal. Music was provided by Jenny Green (pictured on the bottom right) and the boys who played some old and some new tunes that had the audience up and dancing. We had the Raffle later in the evening with prize donations from local businesses including a Sunday lunch donated by Coulsdon Manor and a meal for two from Danny’s Fish and Chips in Old Coulsdon and, of course, wine and chocolates. There was a surplus from the dinner of £42.00 which has been donated to the Old Coulsdon Centre for the Retired. There was a good attendance of about 100 people, all of whom enjoyed the evening of good food and music, some attendees, although senior, showed no fear on the dance floor. We also had a number of local councillors, who have always been very supportive of local RA’s. This has become a regular social function and we will be advertising our 2018 Dance later in the year. If you are interested, drop us an email at action@hadra.org and we will get back to you nearer the time.
All correspondence to be addressed to: The Secretary, HADRA, 57 Hartley Hill Purley Surrey CR8 4EQ Or email: action@hadra.org 12
ROAD STEWARDS ASMAR CLOSE Ann Smith BENCOMBE ROAD Susan Bentley BRIGHTON ROAD Vacant (odds) BURCOTT ROAD Emma Mascaranhas BYRON AVENUE John Peachey (evens) Jackie Smith (odds) CEARN WAY Rita Lewis COULSDON COURT ROAD Kim Clerkin COULSDON ROAD Vacant HARTLEY DOWN Andrew Dunlop (evens) Helen Ali (odds) HARTLEY FARM Sharon Smith HARTLEY HILL Nigel Preston HARTLEY OLD ROAD Christos Nicoli (odds) Helen Moon (evens) HARTLEY WAY Terry Barnes HAYDN AVENUE Susan Quaintance HIGHER DRIVE Sam David HILLARS HEATH Elaine Tindall OLD LODGE LANE Valerie Woodley (part evens) Sharon Smith (part evens) Liz Marsden (part odds) Sharon Smith (part odds) PETERSFIELD CRESCENT Ann Smith STOATS NEST ROAD Linda Lawrence STOATS NEST VILLAGE Vacant NEW RESIDENTS WELCOME Please let our Membership Secretary have your name and address if you would like to become a member of the Hartley and District Residents’ Association (HADRA)