Planners at Greenwich Council have recommended that councillors back a scheme to revamp Charlton Park Academy by knocking down and rebuilding its main site.
The plans, to demolish a building known as Rainbow House for bigger, modern facilities, have been backed by council officers.
A two-storey replacement will have sleeping accommodation for staff and students, along with kitchen and living areas.
Officers said: “Charlton Park Academy, as a SEN school, provides a valuable service for the local community by providing education for vulnerable children and young adults who cannot be accommodated in conventional or unspecialised schools, with a focus on complex, low incidence disabilities. The proposed development is considered to be acceptable in land use terms, and the redevelopment of Rainbow House would enhance the educational offer within the borough, by providing modern learning facilities and enhanced sleeping facilities for children with special educational needs.”
The school said its current setup has become “no longer fit for purpose and have aged beyond being reasonably maintained”. It added: “The key benefits of the scheme include the demolition of tired and not-fit-for-purpose education building and an important upgrade in the provision of a much-needed Special Education Needs and Disability facility with all modern facilities and support providing essential enhancements to the quality of SEND provision whilst at Charlton Park Academy.”
Tom Bull is the Local Democracy Reporter for Greenwich. The Local Democracy Reporter Service is a BBC-funded initiative to ensure councils are covered properly in local media. See more about how The Charlton Champion uses LDRS content.
The Charlton team pick up the trophy (not the big one on the pitch)
Charlton Athletic’s play-off triumph at Wembley on Sunday will have landed thousands across south-east London with hangovers yesterday morning. Now the many fans who have been boycotting home matches in protest at Roland Duchâtelet’s disastrous ownership of the side now face a dilemma – to buy a season ticket for Championship football next season or not?
The Addicks’ run to promotion back to the Championship – three years after a relegation caused directly by the instability caused by Duchâtelet’s calamitous running of the club – brought crowds flocking back to The Valley, with 25,428 seeing the semi-final win on penalties over Doncaster Rovers.
More than 38,000 filled the Charlton end at Wembley on Sunday to see the side come back from a disastrous early own goal, when goalkeeper Dillon Phillips misjudged a backpass from defender Naby Sarr and was help running helplessly as the ball dribbled into his own net, giving Sunderland an early advantage.
Naby Sarr & Dillion Phillips. This has to be one of the biggest blunders in the history of the football league play-offs! 🤦♂️
Thankfully for them, Charlton came back to win 2-1 & promotion to the Championship 🏆🏆 pic.twitter.com/6qGdvuPfnj
Ben Purrington equalised for the Addicks towards the end of the first half, setting up a tense second half. Just as it looked to be going to extra time, Patrick Bauer’s late, late winner saw scenes of pandemonium.
Thousands of Charlton fans will be watching the news carefully in the coming days before deciding whether to commit their hard-earned cash to watch the team next season.
The Charlton Champion‘s LARA RUFFLE COLES reviews the baby music classes held at Charlton House
I feel very passionate about music. It brings me great joy, occasionally sadness, but it always provokes an emotional reaction. And as a member of two choirs, I benefit greatly from the social interaction and continuous learning that comes with rehearsing and performing.
Given recent news stories on the state of musical education in Britain, I feel very fortunate to have had an extremely dedicated music teacher at my state secondary school. From the age of eleven I sang in the school choir, had weekly music lessons, and completed my GCSE in music. At university I studied music and ran a rock music society, before joining a choir when I moved back to London. All this stemmed from that teacher, so thank you Mrs Pamela Wright!
For my son, I want to involve him in music from a young age, and with any luck he might want to learn an instrument or join a choir when he is old enough to chose for himself.
Until fairly recently there was a sign advertising Greenwich Music School outside Charlton House, and after a quick Google I was excited to see that they ran baby music classes for expectant parents and those with children.
I was patient enough to wait until my child was actually born before booking a class, but I started taking him to their Family Music class at seven weeks. His level of interaction was (ahem) fairly limited, but it was great to get out of the house, meet other parents and carers, and spend time in Charlton Park after class.
Family Music is for 0 to 4 years and focuses learning through singing. The teacher leads the class through songs and melodies that use different volumes, speeds, and low and high notes. We sing and play using actions, scarves and cuddly toys, have instrument play time with shakers, drums and bells, and the babies and toddlers move around the room to music.
As my son has grown he has been able to participate at a greater level and now the trouble is keeping him still for more than two minutes! Thankfully, the classes are relaxed and welcoming, and even if we don’t have his full attention, he is still in a musical environment – and it isn’t as if he can turn his ears off.
You can also attend Family Music or Songs and Sounds (9 months to 2 years) at Mycenae House. I chose Family Music over Songs and Sounds due to its location, and because I love seeing him interact and learn from children who are significantly older than him. Another plus is that I’ll still be able to take him to Family Music for a good while if I have a second child. Eventually, I want to take him to the older classes offered by the school, so I am crossing my fingers that he likes music!
Greenwich Music School’s co-director Bethan Scolding tells The Charlton Champion why she set up the Early Years Music programme:
We started GMS to share our passion for music with people of all ages through teaching and education of the highest quality. Bringing together our team of specialist tutors and developing our bespoke curriculum, from babies and toddlers to professional musicians, has been fantastic – and it’s been a great privilege to see our first students progress and flourish at all levels.
The school offers a variety of courses for children and adults, and financial support is available. Please contact the school for further details.
For classes not based in Charlton itself, there are a myriad of options to choose from – Google ‘music classes for babies’ at your peril – so I’ve highlighted just a few nearby:
Blackheath Library has free Rhyme Time sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 2pm
The Conservatoire in Blackheath also runs music classes for children and adults
Bach to Baby concerts are held regularly at Mycenae House. The concerts are great fun and the Christmas concert was particularly festive. But if a room of 40 to 50 children sounds terrifying, you might want to look elsewhere…
Network Rail first told Greenwich Council about its plans for the Angerstein Wharf branch crossing, across a freight line on the east Greenwich/Charlton border, in April 2018, emails released by the track company under the Freedom of Information Act show. Several council officers were involved in discussions and three site visits were held.
Councillors for Peninsula ward – who would have known of the importance of the crossing – were not told about the issue and neither was Greenwich & Woolwich MP Matt Pennycook, The Charlton Champion has established. The council maintains “there was nothing to tell residents” at the time.
A council officer dealing with conservation was also involved in a discussion about the planned closure in December and January 2019.
Network Rail sent the council a formal notice warning of the crossing closure on 14 February 2019, but the Valentine’s Day missive went unanswered until after a neighbour of the crossing used Twitter seven weeks later to say that residents had received letters about the closure.
Greenwich then threatened Network Rail with a injunction to prevent the closure of the crossing, which is used by hundreds of people each day heading to and from Westcombe Park station. It is one of a handful of foot crossings on London railway lines, and has grown in importance since new housing was built on the Charlton side of the crossing at Fairthorn Road.
The plans, which are to accommodate a resignalling of the line to and from the Angerstein aggregates wharf by the Thames, have now been put on hold.
A sign warning of the closure was stuck to a fence at the crossing
‘A full diversion is the way to go’
Network Rail first told Greenwich Council about the plans on 11 April 2018 – 12 months before neighbours found out. An unnamed member of Network Rail’s track renewals team warning that works were planned in May 2019 that “may affect the nearby foot crossing at Farmdale Road”, asking to set up a site visit. No response was received for a week until after the Network Rail officer sent a follow-up mail, after which a site visit was arranged by Greenwich’s street works area co-ordinator. An email sent from Network Rail after this visit states “I think we both formed the opinion that a full diversion is the way to go”.
After this, a further email from Network Rail which appears to have been sent to the planning team says “we need some assistance from yourselves to help us evaluate what we can do with the crossing to ensure public safety and rail transport safety”.
Responses include an email from one Greenwich Council officer to another stating “I don’t know what the Farmdale Road foot crossing is (level/bridge) as it’s not clear on the plan”.
On 9 May 2018, a planner responds to say: “The council would be likely to object to any closure since the route is well used by local people and by virtue that the passageway continues access over the A102 to Westcombe Park railway station, a route previously under threat when the A102 was built and with that the footbridge now seen over that road. NR could, of course, provide an alternative route in the form of a subway beneath its line.” A further site visit was held on 22 May 2018.
After that site visit, a council structures and street lighting manager emails with a summary of what was discussed, including plans for Network Rail to install CCTV as part of a risk assessment. But no further response was sent by Network Rail.
Network Rail has told The Charlton Champion: “After that meeting Network Rail undertook the process to understand the status of the crossing.”
‘Our closure of the foot crossing’
Separately, in November 2018, a Network Rail officer emails to comment on Greenwich Council’s plans to locally list the crossing – a mild form of protection against development – and states: “We would be happy to discuss with you further regarding the potential listing of these items and whether that is compatible with our closure of the Angerstein Wharf foot crossing.”
In mid-January 2019, a Greenwich officer emails to set up a meeting with their Network Rail counterpart. Network Rail has said this was followed by a third site visit to the crossing on 13 February.
Then on 14 February, a formal letter was sent by email warning of the closure of the crossing.
It promises: “We will erect clear signage either side of the crossing to make it clear when the closure will commence… As we have been in close liaison with you about these works, we wanted to inform you of this.” Greenwich Council says it did not receive this letter.
No response was received until 8 April – two days after a neighbour of the crossing tweeted about a letter he had received about the plans.
The tweet was included in the email. Meanwhile, the councillors and MP were finding out about the scheme for the first time through complaints from residents.
“I am not aware that Network Rail has notified the council directly of the proposed work,” the email states, while a further mail from the head of highways cites “a number of strong high level representations today objecting to the proposed crossing closure”.
A letter from Network Rail was placed in Fairthorn Road
The council then threatens an injunction, at which point Network Rail removes its plan to close the crossing. Asked what happened to the “clear signage”, a Network Rail spokesperson said: “The closure notice and information relating to the alternative route was displayed on the over bridge on the approach to the crossing and along Farmdale/ Fairthorn Road for the recent works and the Angerstein resignalling commissioning at Easter.”
A third site meeting was held on 12 April 2019 – a year and a day after the council was first told about the plan, and a few days before The Charlton Champion sent its Freedom of Information request – with an email from Greenwich Council confirming “that self-closing gates are to be installed to ensure that the public will be reminded that in opening these that they are at a level crossing”.
“I look forward to a copy of the letter bound for stakeholders and residents and further details of the works programme during the course of next week.”
The path is a popular route to Westcombe Park station
Councillors the last to know
Many current and former Greenwich councillors have long remarked privately that they are often the last to know about issues in their areas. Furthermore, the correspondence shows that officers were unaware of the crossing or its impact on the local area – which could also explain the council’s attitude to the consequences of the nearby Ikea store, where long-promised measures to assist pedestrians and cyclists have yet to be completed.
A Greenwich Council spokesperson told The Charlton Champion: “The council did not support Network Rail’s closing of the Angerstein Wharf crossing at short notice and with no consultation with residents in April 2019. When Network Rail made their initial enquiry to us in spring 2018 we were clear that they had not provided enough information of their plans.
“When we heard nothing further we assumed that their plans had changed and therefore there was nothing to inform residents of.
“The council has no record of receiving a formal closure notice from Network Rail in February 2019. If we had, we would have challenged their proposals and briefed our elected members then.
“In April we were as surprised as residents to find out what they had done. We swiftly instructed our legal team who persuaded Network Rail to postpone their plans. We will be meeting Network Rail next month and we will go prepared with legal advice regarding the status of the path and Network’s Rail statutory obligations to keep it open.”
A half-hourly replacement bus will run between Lewisham and Plumstead on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Full services will run from Lewisham and Blackheath. Thameslink services will run from Lewisham and Blackheath but will only run north as far as Blackfriars.
The Jubilee Line and Docklands Light Railway are running a full service.
With the sun making increasingly regular appearances and a bank holiday weekend hoving in to view, we thought we’d take a quick look at the latest news from Charlton Lido:
You can start your long weekend with a Friday afternoon swim as they extend pool opening hours until 4pm today (though note they’re closing early at 4pm on Monday):
Extended pool time @charltonlido Due to the hot weather tomorrow, the pool will be open until 4 pm.
— Friends of Charlton Lido (@FoCLSE7) May 20, 2019
And – at last! – they have some merchandise to sell. Charlton Lido & Lifestyle Club branded swim caps come in four colours and are for sale at the reception for £5 each:
— Friends of Charlton Lido (@FoCLSE7) May 23, 2019
The lido’s Swim Doctor sessions – drop-in swimming classes for adults, included in lido membership fees or £3 on top of the cost of a swim – are now running 6 times a week:
Monday 7–8pm
Tuesday 9.30–10.30am and 12.30–1.30pm
Thursday 1–2pm.
Friday 7–8.30am (fitness) and 9.30–10.30 am (technique)
This writer highly recommends these classes as a way to improve your swimming as part of a supportive group of swimmers of varying experience and ability, without having to commit to regular attendance.
Inexplicably, there’s no mention of the Swim Doctor sessions on the official lido website, and you can’t book them online (as far as we can see – if anyone’s worked out how to do this, let us know!). We recommend following Tracy Swim Doctor or Friends of Charlton Lido on Twitter to keep up with the latest news.
@Swim__Doctor@charltonlido is for all swimmers that can swim 50m regardless of ability, technique and injuries. It is a great way to meet new people, learn new skills and great for your wellbeing!
Today’s 9:30-10:30 session was based on endurance swimming on average 2k pic.twitter.com/cPSOObRo69
— Tracy – Swim Doctor at Charlton Lido (@thewhitesat64) May 17, 2019
The Synergy development is now poking into the sky above Charlton
Local MP Matt Pennycook has reacted angrily after the developer behind 330 new homes being built on Victoria Way shrugged off complaints about the impact of construction work on the site’s neighbours.
Fairview New Homes dismissed a series of issues raised by Pennycook on behalf of residents about dirt, idling construction vehicles and work taking place outside permitted hours.
Its senior site manager, Matthew Hook, said “we can only assume that the points raised are generally historical” and said that Greenwich Council was happy with the cracked state of the road outside the development site, which is being branded Synergy.
After effectively being told residents’ complaints were groundless, Pennycook has now said he will name the company in Parliament as an example of bad practice in the construction sector. He is also asking for residents with complaints to get in touch with him and the company.
Residents have had to put up with dust and construction lorries
Hook also said that the points had been addressed in a meeting with the council on 25 February, and that no further complaints had been made since.
“So to summarise, all of the concerns raised in your letter have already been discussed, reviewed and mitigated following a meeting between [Fairview] and [Greenwich Council] on the 25/02/19 and to date, since the meeting we have had no further complaints or correspondence from local residents or [Greenwich Council] or any other industry bodies such as the Considerate Constructors Scheme regarding the development on Victoria Way,” Hook wrote.
However, the residents’ complaints were made to Pennycook at a roving advice surgery on 30 March, more than a month after the meeting with the council, with the letter written on 14 May.
How not to do "stakeholder engagement". One of the worst examples of a developer, in this case Fairview New Homes Ltd, simply dismissing concerns raised on behalf of local residents about poor construction management. pic.twitter.com/VoGAZYUiC8
— Matthew Pennycook MP (@mtpennycook) May 21, 2019
Pennycook has responded: “It is patently the case that local residents do have outstanding complaints about construction management on the site. Rather than seeking to dismiss these complaints as you did in your letter, a responsible developer would have engaged with the substance of each of them and given due consideration as to what more could be done to alleviate them.
“I intend to name [Fairview] on the floor of the House of Commons and use your letter as an example of bad practice in the sector as well as making additional direct representations to ministers at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.”
The source of residents’ gripes was clear on Thursday afternoon, with surfaces on the lower stretch of Victoria Way covered in dust from construction. While a site worker hosed down the entrance to the development, nothing was being done about dust and grime outside people’s homes. The wheels of a passing construction truck did not appear to have been washed.
Fairview has hosed down the road and pavement outside the site, but not outside people’s homes
Fairview has not responded to a request for comment.
Cratus Communications, whose deputy chairman is former Greenwich Council leader Chris Roberts, handled the consultation for the Victoria Way scheme. Last month, the company published a blog post on its website claiming it was “quietly revolutionising and abolishing the traditional view of ‘faceless’ developers sweeping into town and ‘doing what they like’”. “Communication with existing residents has to be managed carefully and with tact,” it added.
If you live close to the Victoria Way development and are affected by the dirt and grime from Fairview New Homes’ Synergy development, please email matthew.pennycook.mp[at]parliament.uk, and copy in matthew.hook[at]fairview.co.uk. Comments are also open below.
Tom Bull is the Local Democracy Reporter for Greenwich. The Local Democracy Reporter Service is a BBC-funded initiative to ensure councils are covered properly in local media.
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