The concert will be in the Old Library at Charlton House
Are you a man? Can you sing? If so, GWEN ZAMMIT wants to hear from you. Her charity show, Music For A Summer’s Evening, returns to the Old Library at Charlton House in June. But she needs a man or two (or more)…
We are seeking the assistance of some male singers please. They will be joining St Luke’s Players’ contribution to the Concert. We do have some but need more. We are currently meeting in The Bugle Horn in The Village, Charlton, on Tuesday evenings at 7.30pm in the former restaurant at the back of the bar.
The concert will be on the evening of Sunday 25 June (time to be confirmed) and will raise funds for Greenwich Foodbank.
The Charlton Neighbourhood Forum covers most of the SE7 area
On Saturday November 19, the Charlton Neighbourhood Forum are holding their Annual General Meeting (AGM), and members and non-members alike are all invited, write SARAH HORNSEY and PAUL CHAPMAN.
Since our last AGM we’ve had some great news. In February the Neighbourhood Forum was officially recognised by Greenwich Council (though not without some controversy over the boundary). Since then the committee have been working behind the scenes to get the forum ready to start the real work of putting together a neighbourhood plan. And that’s where you come in!
But first some quick background. The 2011 Localism Act gives local communities the right to shape development in their areas through the production of a neighbourhood plan. That plan is put together by a neighbourhood forum. The Neighbourhood Plan, in conjunction with other Plans, can shape future development on all sorts of issues, whether that is housing, transport policies, parks and recreation, heritage or more.
Forum members come from across the Charlton area
Put simply, a neighbourhood plan is a chance to have your voice heard when it comes to how Charlton develops in the future. The opinions expressed in that plan will be as diverse and representative as the members who make up the Forum, so if you live in Charlton please join us, and spread the word among your neighbours and ask them to join too.
At present, there are just under 300 members of the Charlton Neighbourhood Forum. But we want even more! Being a member of the forum doesn’t commit you to anything. You can sign up just to receive the newsletters and read the latest developments. Or you can get involved, either in shaping the whole plan or just in the specific areas that interest you.
In the coming year we’ll be running workshops, appearing at community events, and generally trying to reach as many people in the local community as we can as the forum put the plan together.
An early opportunity to hear more is the AGM on Saturday November 19 at Charlton House, at 11am. The AGM is an annual event where committee officers are proposed and voted for by forum members. You are really welcome to come along for a chat, have a cup of tea, join (if you haven’t already), vote on committee positions, or even put yourself forward for a post!
Meanwhile, you can read more about us on our website at charltonneighbourhoodforum.org. We also have a Facebook page, and a brand new Twitter account at @CharltonNForum (although whether Twitter still exists by the time you read this is unknown).
And if you have questions, or want to drop us an email, you can reach us on info[at]charltonneighbourhoodforum.org.
The volunteers caring for the Old Pond Garden at Charlton House have been busy over the past few days – KATHY AITKEN from the Charlton & Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society explains more and how you can get involved…
Garden volunteers at Charlton House have had a break from weeding and planting this week and have instead been decorating the iron gates to the walled gardens with a big display of poppies. The poppies are made from the bases of old plastic water bottles, which were donated by local Charlton residents during the year. While it may not be quite up to Tower of London standards, it still makes a wonderful “stop and remember” point during a walk through the park.
This is the second year the garden volunteers have made the display, it is becoming a fixture in their calendar, along with the Easter bunny hunts and Halloween spider trails. The volunteer scheme only started in 2020, just before the first lockdown, and is run in partnership between Charlton & Blackheath Amateur Horticultural Society and the Royal Greenwich Heritage Trust.
It was originally set up to revive the Old Pond Garden only, but has been so successful it has moved on to cover other parts of the estate. The scheme operates as a drop-in, so no commitment is necessary. Anyone with a love of gardens can come along any Tuesday 2-4 or Thursday 10-12 and join in. Tea and biscuits provided at half time!
The sale is part of a wider community day that will also feature the Charlton Society, Charlton Toy Library, Charlton Community Gardens, Blackheath Flower Club and the Friends of Greenwich Park, with a discovery trail and crafts for children.
Inside Charlton House there will also be a World War I-themed day as part of its Meet the Collection series of events.
Proceeds from the plant sale will go towards the walled garden and the society’s other work as well as the Greenwich & Bexley Cottage Hospice.
The event runs from 11am to 3pm this Sunday.
Meanwhile, this evening Charlton Community Gardens will be hosting its own plant sale in front gardens in Inverine Road, Elliscombe Road, Sandtoft Road and Wyndcliff Road. See its website for more details.
It’s a big day at Charlton House today as its first big exhibition in over two years opens up, with lots going on all month. Here’s why you might like to take a look…
Royal Greenwich Heritage Trust’s museum and archive pop-up programme Meet the Collection begins its extended final stop at Charlton House today. The month-long event marks the trust’s first in-person exhibition and Charlton House’s longest re-opening since before March 2020.
The Living in Greenwich: Meet the Collection exhibition includes new art installations from artists-in-residence Fiona Veacock and CraftA, who worked with local community groups Mycenae House ReachOut, Listening Ears, Community Direction, and Eltham Crotchet N’ Natter to create table setting of pottery and seven textile banners. Each piece of art is inspired by Greenwich Heritage’s museum collections and archive, as well as the participants’ understanding of home.
In keeping with the theme, the trust has prepared an accompanying museum display inspired by food and home. The exhibit includes a variety of pieces and documents ranging from those preserved from Charlton House over time to Roman dishes discovered in the Greenwich Park archaeological excavation. Attendees will also be able to hear stories from Greenwich Heritage’s audio archive, as Greenwich’s locals describe the tangible and intangible things that mean home to them, in their own voices and words.
The exhibition will also mark the debut of five brand new costumed tours of the House, designed for families by historical actor and educator Hilary Wood, available for booking at a cost of £5 per person (free for those 5 and under). The line-up for these hour-long Sunday tours is as follows:
Today: Jacobean
8th May: East India Company and Charlton House
15th May: Victorian
22nd May: World War I
29th May: World War II
As well as Sundays from 11am to 4pm, the Trust will open the exhibition Wednesday to Fridays from 9:30am to 3:30pm, including craft sessions with our artists-in-residence. For a small fee, attendees will be invited to take part in a community textile (Thursday 5th and Friday 6th May) and make their own pottery work to be professionally fired (Sunday 15th May).
The trust is still operating cautiously, with the health and safety of their team and visitors in mind. Visitors can expect smaller-than-usual capacities for events, open windows to allow for the free flow of fresh air, and hand sanitiser available on site. They recommend that those visiting indoors wear a face covering where possible.
Meet the Collection is generously supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Tanner Trust, and the Garfield Weston Foundation.
Kathy is a keen amateur gardener, developing her own garden over the last 30 years. She joined the local Horticultural Society in 2014, finding it a very friendly group with a wide range of gardening knowledge. Her working life was in accountancy, and she discovered the considerable health benefits of gardening very early on. She is now Vice Chair of the Society and runs the admin side of the volunteer scheme at the walled gardens.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett was published in 1911 and became such a popular book it has never been out of print. The walled gardens attached to Charlton House are 400-year-old gems that have been under-used and neglected in recent years, becoming a truly ‘Secret Garden’ on our doorstep!
The talk will tell you about the history of the gardens and how the local Horticultural Society and the Charlton community are helping the Royal Greenwich Heritage Trust to make them beautiful again.
The talk will be followed by refreshments. We will be charging our usual entrance fee which helps towards room hire. This is £2 for members and £3 for visitors and we should be able to accept cash, cheque or contactless payments.
The talk is this Saturday, March 19 at the Charlton Assembly Rooms. It starts at 2.30pm.
A Christmas tree is returning to Charlton House this year
Charlton House’s Christmas tree makes a comeback on Thursday, with a lighting-up ceremony to be held from 4pm.
There’ll also be a Christmas market in the Great Hall from 3.30pm to 6pm, with carols and readings from St Luke’s Church at 5pm. You’ll also be able to nip over the road and climb St Luke’s tower to get a view of the capital after dark.
The event is also the launch of a new cafe inside Charlton House, Frilly’s, which will offer “a seasonal snack menu including mince pies, mulled wine, hot chocolate, and sausage rolls”.
The Charlton Champion 