Planning: Old Bank in Honor Oak and 13 Church Vale

The Forest Hill Society has recently objected to two planning applications in the local area.

Old Bank, 76-78 Honor Oak Park
Details of Planning Application for conversion to Domino's Pizza take away
You can read the full letter of objection here


13 Church Vale
Details of Planning Application for conversion of residential property to children's nursery
You can read the full Letter of objection here

HONOR OAK PARK WOES

In spite of having a lot of money spent on the ticket hall and steps up to the road, Honor Oak Park Station continues to look like an abandoned building site. New benches have been provided, but some are behind fences! As a moderately disabled person, I find that it is not easy to get on/off either the Southern trains or the Overground ones. Why oh why did they not raise the level of the platforms to make it easier for every passenger to get on/off the trains while they were modernising the station? The slope has been stabilised and a ‘weed field’ established. Will this avoid any maintenance?

Honor Oak Rec deadline. Act now!

The consultation process by Southwark Council is almost over - you have until Friday to submit your questionnaire. If you have not already done so, the questionnaire can be completed online at Southwark's website.

About 150 people attended last weekend's Public consultation event at the Rec and the questions and comments gave the loud and clear message to the council :
that our community want the Rec to stay as an open green space, to be improved and not used for burial.

We recognise that the passing of loved ones is an emotional affair and that people need to visit graves to grieve, but are also cognisant of the fact that we have limited space locally for the living and the deceased. We are not against burial, but urge Southwark (and Lewisham) to follow a sustainable policy which does not consume valuable amenity space; the previous extensions of Camberwell New Cemetery were supposed to last many years and yet are already full. Using the remaining space of Honor Oak Rec will merely delay the inevitable day when there is no more burial space available in Southwark and Lewisham - it is not a solution to the problem. In 2007 the Government stated it was supporting London boroughs in the reuse of burial grounds that are more than 75 years old.

Our suggested answers

How often do you visit the cemeteries or crematoriums in Southwark?

Enter frequency of visits to all Southwark cemeteries and Honor Oak Rec (which is part of Camberwell New Cemetery from the viewpoint of this questionnaire)

What is the reason for your visit(s)?

Tick all that apply

Do you have a preference for burial or cremation?

Answer truthfully. Obviously, if you say burial, then more burial space is required.

If you have chosen burial as a preference please let us know what would be important to you when selecting a cemetery plot

If you chose burial, then explain that you want a sustainable solution, encouraging grave reuse by lift-and-deepen. The Church of England recommends grave reuse after 50 years in its Churchyards' Handbook.

Do you feel it is important for Southwark Council to continue to provide burial space for its residents

If you feel that Southwark should provide burial space, then stress that this should be either by reuse of existing space, or by provision of new space outside the Borough

Please rate the following options in order of those you feel most appropriate for the future of burials in the borough. Please number your preference from 1 to 8 with 1 being your first preference and 8 being your least favoured option.

A. Re-use of common graves - 1
B. Re-use of private graves - 2
C. Use of burial chambers - 3
D. Find burial site outside of Southwark - 6
E. Share other cemetery or buy privately - 4
F. Find shared land with other councils - 5
G. Use some/all of Honor Oak Recreation Park - 8
H. Stop burying in Southwark Providing a burial service is not a statutory responsibility. - 7
Add comments stating the need for any Burial policy to be sustainable. Also note that when Camberwell New Cemetery opened, there was plenty of green space in the Borough and this is no longer the case; burial space should not be provided at the expense of amenity space.

The campaign to preserve the Rec is being supported by Fields in Trust as well as the Friends of Honor Oak Rec.

Honor Oak Park Station

Station users will be delighted that the new and improved stairs are now open. They also include a second hand rail for children.

The re-grading of the bank up to the Southwark cemetery land continues and, once the planting on the bank develops and matures, the station should feel very much more pleasant than before, hemmed in with ugly fencing and the overgrown cutting.

Unfortunately, we continue to get no answers to our questions about exactly what is planned for the future of the station, although London Overground have indicated that lifts may be provided in the period 2012-2013. We are seeking confirmation of this information. With a platform to train step of around 15 inches, disabled access to trains will still be difficult without the use of a ramp.

As the major works at the station come to a close, we expect London Overground to complete their ‘Phase 3’ upgrade which includes total re-painting, new signage etc; smart new benches have appeared on the platforms which are very welcome.

Retail Therapy

We take a look at some great new shops opening in SE23; next issue we’ll feature some firm old favourites.

b CARDS

A great new shop selling with refreshingly distinctive stuff...unique and beautiful greeting cards and stationery from the likes of Treasures Pop-Ups, Orla Kiely, Moleskin, Paperblanks and Pantone, to name but a few!

There are lots of lovely and stylish wrapping paper and gift bags, all of a very high quality including party accessories, thank you cards, notelets and much more. They have a great selection of Children’s cards too.

Well worth a visit and excellent for those gift purchases from the lovely Bunka. Bunka opened this shop in March; good to have such nice shops just a hop and skip apart.

Canvas and Cream

Situated on the old Aceri site on London Road this has multiple community roles:

* Neighbourhood Dining/Cafe

* Artist's and Artisan's studios

* Gallery and Showcase

* Community Workshops and Gatherings

In opening her new venture, Proprietor Joanna Gore is enlisting the help of her family, including her Mum.

“We are going to convert it from a space that has been empty for at least five years into an arts community hub.

All furniture and fittings will come from recycled materials - two old Mercedes car seats will become cafe chairs, chandeliers will be made from old decanters and walls will be papered with old music sheets and comics.”

Looks like a great addition to Forest Hill!

Home Accessories Extra

Opened recently on the former Blockbusters site, this shop with the bright frontage is a real treasure trove of household and other useful wares.

VAIDAS BICYCLES

Vaidas, originally from Lithuania, trusted his instincts having no experience of Honor Oak, when he started his bike sales and servicing business , close to the station, 18 months ago. And that proved a very good decision for local cyclists. Vaidas says that this is a small shop with big ideas! He is looking to build further links with the community with a series of short rides, aimed at beginners and social cyclists. Watch this space of go to www.vaidasbicycles.com

HILLS AND PARKES

49 Honor Oak Park

Since setting up their stall outside Honor Oak Park station most weekends for the last six months, Mrs Hills and Mrs Parkes are about to take over their own delicatessen in the old ID premises on the same road.

The shop will sell freshly baked artisan breads from Blackbird Bakery, fruit and vegetables, cheese, milk and other dairy products, charcuterie, pies, cakes and pastries, jams and chutneys, dips, salads, ready to cook meals, pasta, rice, spices, oils and vinegars and all number of other tasty delights.

Planned opening is mid to late July.

Visit www.hillsandparkes.com for developments.

Honor Oak Park Station Improvements (continued)

Following our report in the last newsletter, work is continuing. The stairs are being replaced and newly painted ironwork is emerging from under the tarpaulins. The cutting behind platform 1 is being re-graded and at some stage the platforms will be repaired and extended. When all of that is complete, the station is going to receive its Phase 3 upgrade with improved lighting, new signage and redecoration.

But we have not been informed how long this will all take. Getting information from Network Rail is proving very difficult; however the Society has been told that the stairs should be in place at the end of April.

We have suggested that getting the level of platform 1 rather closer to the level of the trains, either by raising the platform or lowering the track, might also be a worthwhile improvement. Getting Landscaping at Honor Oak Park station.

Looking more like the Pompidou Centre or Lloyds buildings, the stairs under construction! on or off trains is a nightmare for anyone who is not reasonably agile, or who has a buggy to contend with. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that this objective will be achieved any time soon.

Community says “NO” to loss of Park!

The Honor Oak Recreation Ground is a much loved and valuable resource for people in Forest Hill, Honor Oak and further afield, many of whom have no external space or garden access.

The users of the space have been right over the years to suspect that Southwark Council has been planning to take even more of the space for burials.

TV cameras at the Rec (cemetery in the background) Local authorities encourage residents to take more exercise and are active in promoting sporting opportunities for all. But then Southwark move to take away the very sites where these activities can take place.

Southwark's Executive Cabinet recently announced it will be reviewing the ground for more burial space. With the formation of an online petition by local residents against the move, the Forest Hill Society acted quickly to ensure that as many people knew about this as possible.

We raised the issue on the Today programme and BBC London News with interviews with FHS Chair Richard Hibbert and Councillor Alex Feakes.

Because of the activity and views of local residents, and coverage in the national media organised by the Forest Hill Society, the meeting, scheduled for 28 February, was moved to the end of March. So there's more time to ensure that we don’t lose this considerable local amenity and leisure space.

The online petition has over 1,300 signatures; please consider adding yours: http://bit.ly/savehonoroakparkrec

Residents and local residents' groups can still demonstrate how much demand there is for the site, raise awareness locally and building support for the campaign. Find out more at: www.honoroakparkrecreationground.blogspot.com

Route Utilisation Strategy Response

Network Rail are consulting over development of rail services beyond 2019 in their Route Utilisation Strategy for London and the South East.

Issues for consideration:

• 12 carriage trains on the Sydenham line into London Bridge
• Improved numbers of evening peak services on the Sydenham Line
• Increased frequency of services on the Crofton Park route
• Increased utilisation of the central platforms at New Cross Gate
• Integration of Bakerloo line extension options into the London and South East RUS (with interchange on the Sydenham line)
  
• Additional carriages on the East London Line
• Late evening and weekend services from central London termini

You can read the full Forest Hill Society Response here.

Honor Oak Station Improvements

You may have seen that Honor Oak Park Station is looking a bit of a mess at the moment – especially compared with the other slick stations along the London Overground line. The good news is that Network Rail is bringing forward improvement works. This includes renewing the staircase to both platforms, repairing and redecorating the footbridge and resurfacing sections of Platform 2. The bad news is that this work won’t be finished before March 2011 at the very earliest.

The problem is that work was delayed whilst Southwark Council dealt with the waste dumped in the land behind the station. Only once this work has been completed can Network Rail begin the essential job of building a new retaining wall on Platform 1. The whole platform will then be resurfaced. However, landslip behind this platform is a long-term problem and we’ve been told off the record that the job could easily take a lot longer than predicted.

So, whilst the station is in a mess anyway, Network Rail is going to “use the opportunity to bring forward some planned improvement works for the benefit of our customers and to avoid another period of work in late 2011,” London Overground (LOROL) tells us. They go on to say, “This has taken some complex planning which has resulted in a slight delay in the works commencing in earnest.  We hope that you appreciate this short delay will minimise the overall level of disruption for station users.”
As for lift access to the platforms, our advice is don’t hold your breath….

Honor Oak Park Station

Work is slowly proceeding after the embankment threatened to subside onto Platform 1. Checks are being made to see if the earthworks that have been done have stopped the movement. Once a new retaining wall has been built, it will be possible to remove the existing steel piles. They will then carry out repairs to the canopy and the platform.

It looks like station users will have to endure the narrow platform for quite a while yet.

No To Train Cuts! - The Campaign moves up a gear

Our train services are under threat again from multiple fronts.

With the cross-party support of local politicians, the Forest Hill and Sydenham Societies have been running a campaign against proposed cuts to our service on one of Southern's busiest passenger routes. We have written to the Minister of Transport, both privately and in an open letter, requesting a meeting to discuss our concerns, but while we have had a reply, he has not yet agreed to a meeting. Over 1500 people have already signed our petition.

As a result, all the civic societies along the line will be leafletting their local stations demanding action. Brockley Central, Forest Hill and Sydenham Societies handed thousands of leaflets out today and HOPRA and the Telegraph Hill Society will leaflet Honor Oak Park and New Cross Gate tomorrow. We will be encouraging all the affected commuters to sign our petition at http://nototraincuts.notlong.com/ and write to their MP (either Joan Ruddock or Jim Dowd) asking them to raise this matter with the Minister for Transport.

What are the cuts?

In December, Southern Railways plans to cease service into Charing Cross station, terminating all services at London Bridge.. This is as a result of the DfT and SouthEastern Railways agreeing to exclusive access by SouthEastern Railways (also operated by Southern Railways' parent company GoVia). Southern have tried to smuggle this change in without any announcement; there is nothing on their website regarding this change in service despite the fact that they claim to have consulted widely in their official submission to ORR, the rail regulator. This off-peak service on one of south London's busiest lines has significant demand and there was supposed to be further investigation before the service to Charing Cross was altered.

As if this wasn't bad enough, Southern Railways plan to reduce the number of trains in the afternoon and off peak which serve the Sydenham line by making the Caterham and Sutton trains fast to Norwood Junction. This means that the number of trains will be reduced from six trains an hour to four trains an hour once the East London Line starts operation in May 2010.

Southern have previously argued that the Sydenham line requires eight trains an hour formed of 12 coaches in order to have sufficient capacity to take commuters to Central London, which is where the majority wish to travel. How can a reduction from six trains an hour to four be justified (regardless of the number of coaches)? They claim that we will have additional capacity, but official modelling of demand for the East London Line service predicts severe high peak crowding from day one.

The third threat to our services comes from the possible reinstatement of the South London Line service from Victoria to either Bellingham or London Bridge. One of the options currently being considered by TfL and Passenger Focus is to cancel our loop service from London Bridge to Victoria via Crystal Palace and replace it with one via Peckham Rye instead.

Meet the Manager - Southern Railways

This Thursday, 15th October, Southern Railway are organising one of their regular 'Meet the Manager' sessions on the London Bridge station concourse from 7:30am - 9:30am. We would like as many people as possible to join us to explain to them why cuts to services is unacceptable. We hope that a large number turn up so that Southern Railway management will see the strength of feeling from their passengers. Additionally we have invited the press and local politicians to join us to hear the views of passengers.

Please join us on Thursday in opposing these cuts.

In December 2009 Southern Railways plan to cut our direct evening service (and Sunday service) from Charing Cross, running all trains from London Bridge. This is a well used service and provides a direct connection from the West End after 7:30pm. As this is an off-peak service we reject Southern Railway's claims that there is no capacity through London Bridge.

In May 2010 Southern Railways plan to reduce evening peak services and daytime services from London Bridge by over 30%, from 6 trains per hour to just 4 trains per hour. They will continue to run 6 trains per hour in the morning, meeting the demands on the line, but will not provide a similar service in the evenings, hoping that customers will switch to East London Line services or put up with serious overcrowding.

You can also join over 1,200 other people and sign the petition at http://nototraincuts.notlong.com

Campaign Agianst Rail Cuts hits the front page

Front Page story in the News Shopper

BBC Online article

South London Press

Sign the Petition at http://nototraincuts.notlong.com

NO to Train Cuts

The Forest Hill Society has launched a petition opposing cuts to our train services:

Southern Railways are planning to cut trains to Brockley, Honor Oak Park, Forest Hill, and Sydenham in December 2009 and again in May 2010.

In December 2009 they plan to cut our direct evening service from Charing Cross, running all trains from London Bridge. This is a well used service and provides a direct connection from the West End after 7:30pm. As this is an off-peak service we reject Southern Railway's claims that there is no capacity through London Bridge.

In May 2010 Southern Railways plan to reduce the PEAK SERVICES (as well as off-peak services) from London Bridge by over 30%, from 6 trains per hour to just 4 trains per hour (the same as the off-peak service). They will continue to run 6 trains per hour in the morning, meeting the demands on the line, but will not provide a similar service in the evenings, hoping that customers will switch to East London Line services or put up with serious overcrowding.

We reject the cuts to services through Forest Hill and call on Southern Railways to run the same level of service as they do in September 2009.

We call on rail authorities and local politicians to support our calls to maintain 6 trains per hour in the evening peak and direct services from Charing Cross in the late evenings.

Please sign the petition at http://nototraincuts.notlong.com

Update: BBC Online have covered this campaign on 22nd September. LBC will be covering this issue tomorrow morning.

Loss of Charing Cross Services

Below is the text of a letter sent on behalf of the Forest Hill Society to Southern Railways:

Dear Yvonne,

I read in the Southern Stakeholder Briefing that Southern now intend to stop running direct services between Charing Cross and Forest Hill. On behalf of the Forest Hill Society I wish to express my disappointment at this decision and ask Southern to find ways to reverse this decision before December 2009 when we will lose these services.

In the 2007 draft version of the South London RUS which stated in option 20.4 (p176):
“At present 2 tph direct services operate from Charing Cross to the Sydenham line between around 19:30 and shortly after midnight. These services are very well utilised. On Sundays they operate all day.
Retaining or running additional direct trains to Charing Cross would provide improved journey opportunities for all stations on the Sydenham route and alleviate crowding at London Bridge.”

The final version of the RUS concluded that regarding this option (p145)
“Not recommended for peak services. Further investigation recommended regarding off peak services.”

It is clear that this service, which transports passengers from the West End to South London suburbs, is a well used service at off-peak times. Removing this half-hourly evening service has no practical benefit in reducing congestion or improving journeys for other rail users.

It is recognised that most evening travel in the South London area originates from the West End, not from the London Bridge area. The link from Waterloo East and Charing Cross to Forest Hill provides a convenient service that matches passengers’ travelling patterns. Rather than scrapping these services you should be considering running them all day on Saturday as well as the current Sunday timetable.

The Forest Hill Society is aware that it would not be possible to run these services during peak times, but there is capacity between London Bridge and Charing Cross for the evening and weekend services, as demonstrated by their existence today. Even with the introduction of new services on the South Eastern timetable from Charing Cross, there is still off-peak capacity from Charing Cross that Southern should be utilising for the services via Sydenham.

I would like to ask what further investigations have been carried out into maintaining these off-peak services, as recommended in the RUS? Why have stakeholders not been consulted about this decision prior to the announcement by Southern? And how we can now get Southern to reverse this position before this important service is lost?

I would also like to ask what length the planned services will be from London Bridge in comparison to the services from Charing Cross, as the reduction in the number of carriages on these off-peak services would be another blow to passengers from Forest Hill and our neighbouring areas.

I hope that you will give this issue your urgent and serious consideration so that you can avoid a big disappointment for a large section of your passenger base.

Regards,
Michael Abrahams
Vice-chair, Forest Hill Society

Friends of Honor Oak Park

There are some very energetic, creative, dedicated people here in SE23 working hard to make our community an even better place to live. Take Fiona Hull. She’s one of the founders of the Honor Oak Park Action Group (HOPAG) which has made a big difference to the high street there already. HOPAG has now changed its name to the Friends of Honor Oak Park. Fiona would love to inspire some of you to set up similar schemes around SE23 so she passes on these tips.

Why we set up the group
After walking past this kind of mess for the umpteenth time, I thought to myself enough is enough.
I’m lucky that I have a close friend who lives in Honor Oak Park whom I could moan to about the state of our neighbourhood. Eventually, we decided to stop moaning and do something about it. We gave ourselves a name - Honor Oak Park Action Group - and we started the slow, painstaking process of finding out whom to talk to about the things we wanted to change. Recently, we changed our name to Friends of Honor Oak Park. This way we will be able to work more closely with Southwark and Lewisham Councils and residents on larger projects.

Rule 1: Getting started
We contacted our station manager, sent him photos of the mess outside the station and asked him to come down and pay us a visit. Seeing that we were passionate and determined, he agreed to give us £250 to plant up a drought-tolerant garden in front of the station. He arranged for the railings to be painted a nice, pale green and removed all the fly tipping and rubbish.

Rule 2: Get to know your local councillors and Council
We held a planting a planting day at the station, invited local councillors and raised money and awareness of what our group was trying to achieve.

Rule 3: Get to know your members
We set up a blog www.honoroak.blogspot.com where we could let our members know what was going on and ask them what they thought. We told them about the cleverly designed Moo Moo recycling bin. We decided we wanted one because, apart from its funky design, it increases recycling rates by 66%. We put a paypal donation button on the blog and had raised £200 in less than two weeks. We were amazed and excited. Lewisham council agreed to contribute the rest so that we could have our own Moo Moo bin.

Rule 4: Create partnerships with people who are in a position to help you
We invited Joan Ruddock MP to come down and have a look first hand at what we were trying to achieve, particularly the fly tipping issues and overflowing refuse bins in Honor Oak Park. We spoke to the Head of Environment who encouraged our non municipal approach and we now have a lovely, clean high street.
We spoke to a Director at O2 as we have an O2 phone mast painted navy blue and a cabin outside Honor Oak Park station painted dark green. We asked him to come down and see our Moo Moo bin and how we wanted the O2 mast and cabin painted black. Not only did he do this, but he put us in touch with his community funding scheme at O2. Encouraged, we applied for funding and were recently awarded £750.

Rule 5: Get informed and involved and don’t take no for an answer
Find out what’s going on at all levels, locally and nationally. There’s so much going on now at a grass roots level and we firmly believe that this is the way things are going to change. This is the way to keep inspired and motivated because you have to have a huge amount of energy and determination to get things done as some projects are not easy to get off the ground.

Transport Committee

Forest Hill Station is to get a new Footbridge to link the platforms. Yes, it really is true.
The Forest Hill Society has been working closely with Network Rail and Lewisham Council's transport planning department recently and, thanks to the "Access for All" funding programme, a new footbridge design to link the two platforms is almost complete.

This new design will replace the existing footbridge and make it covered, brighter and safer, as well as having a lift. There are many more planned improvements, especially as the Forest Hill Station and Honor Oak Park Stations change management ownership to Transport for London (TFL), as part of the East London Line tube extension.

Tenders are due to go out in the middle of this year to seek a contractor to construct the new footbridge. The plan is then to choose a contractor quickly and look to start the work by June 2009 and complete it by May 2010 (subject to tender responses).

There will be a period of disruption to the station, including a period when there will be no bridge and, on some occasions, the South Circular (A205) may also need to be closed at Waldram Crescent for a few hours very late at night for a very short period. Because of the obvious disruptions, The Forest hill Society will be working closely with Network Rail, Lewisham Council and TFL to ensure these are kept to a minimum.

The Forest Hill Society Transport Committee is looking at ways to improve roads and transport in SE23. We are pursuing various ideas with Lewisham Council, TFL, Network Rail and Southern Rail. These include Forest Hill and Honor Oak station improvements, OysterCard points, extended bus services, sensible traffic light phasing, better pedestrian crossings (Perry Vale), parking and many other issues.

BUT, we need your input and ideas so that we truly reflect a balanced view of what locals want. Contact Tony Petim, Chair of the Forest Hill Society Transport Committee, and have a chat.

Station News

Finally, and after a lot of emails from the Forest Hill Society and Councillor Paschoud, we have succeeded in getting the Perry Vale exit reopened, 80 days later than we were promised (you could travel the world in that time). Forest Hill station can now return to being only the forth most overcrowded rail station in London.

The work has still not been completed and there are no ticket barriers, so we can look forward to another closure for a short period, before September, when TfL will take over running the station.

Over in Honor Oak Park the ticket office will be closed for 2 weeks from Saturday 21st March. The new floor works started this weekend - they are doing one side then moving over and starting works in the ticket office. Southern Railway ask that you please purchase tickets in advance where possible.

Suggestion to improve the Forest Hill and Honor Oak Park railway stations

TfL, via Lewisham council, asked the Forest Hill Society what minor improvements should be made to local stations when they take over in September. Here's our list:

Forest Hill Station

• Improvements to lighting, cleanliness and general condition of the underpass
• CCTV coverage of the underpass and car park
• Better safety announcements for when a train that is not scheduled to stop at the station is passing through (the notice tends to come through a bit late)
• The ticket barrier installation needs looking at as it can become pretty congested during peak times and will get worse as numbers increase with additional trains
• Repainting and improvement in the general condition of the platform lines and shelters
• Relocation of the fast ticket machine closest to the entrance as queuing customers (using the machine and those waiting to be served at the ticket office) can cause a bit of congestion around the entrance to the station
• Reinstatement of toilets - promised as part of the upgrade programme some time ago.

Honor Oak Park Station

• The up platform – to get on the last carriage when its an 8 coach train you need to go on the narrow bit under the bridge. This is really unsafe. Extend the platform or get trains to stop right at the far end. Block the platform at the south end to prevent passengers getting under the bridge.
• Provide cover between the end of the canopy out from the stairs up to the bridge so that all of the back end of the train has a proper covered platform.
• Stairs and bridge to both platforms – there are many examples of rotten wood and uneven steps. The glass was broken sometime ago and never replaced. A major programme is required to bring the steps up to a respectable standard.
• There is very little shelter on the down platform so when it rains/snows people huddle on the steps making it hard to access the platform. More shelter is required near the front of the train.
• If there were ever toilets at Honor Oak Park, they should be reinstated to meet the upgrade pledge.

Not included, are more obvious plans such as the opening of the Perry Vale exit, and longer term plans where additional funding will be required; such as opening a new exit at the Perry Vale car park. We have heard that DfT funding will be made available for a new disabled accessible footbridge, possibly as soon as May 2010.

Help Tidy Up Honor Oak Park

Our friends in the Honor Oak Park Action Group are arranging a day of action this Saturday. Please join them to help improve the area around Honor Oak Park Station.