5imon

No it's a commercial hire generator. The flats have recently had some work done so maybe they're waiting for reconnection to the mains. That was 2 weeks ago though, so it's been there for a while.

Hi Before i knock on doors, does anyone know anything about the generator outside the flats on Upland Road, 3 or 4 doors up from the junction with LL (library end)? Sure it's there for a good reason. It just sounds like an idling lorry at night, so wondering how long we have to put up with it. Thanks

That's right. GHR is reasonably quiet in the morning - never had an issue there to be honest. The junction near Greenwich market can be busy, but it's a very short hop to the cutty sark and the start of the tunnel.

you've got pretty much the same route as me..only diffs being that I go up St Norberts then Malpas, then Greenwich High Road to get to the foot tunnel. There's very little in it, but I've done various iterations and found this to be the best combination of quiet roads and time/distance.

I cycle daily from ED to Canary Wharf via the foot tunnel. Route goes ED, Ladywell, Brockley, Deptford, Greenwich. Very few major roads, mostly side streets. I strongly advise against going via Tower Bridge - it's a very unpleasant route to IoD and CS2 is an absolute nightmare in the morning. If you're heading in/out early and there aren't many people walking in the tunnel, no one really objects to people scootering their bikes, but as always mindfulness and respect for other tunnel users is crucial. Lifts are fine, but you'll have to deal with a couple of days a month where they're out of service. Victorian architecture innit. Feel free to PM me if you want to see my route. 5

On the subject of monetising parks, i'll briefly hijack this thread to point out that the consultation period for charging for the use of Southwark park carparks ends today, 13th May. Please add your comments in support, or reject the proposal as you see fit. Relevant links included in the following thread: /forum/read.php?5,2011302,page=4 Thanks all

A small bump for this thread - deadline for responses to the consultation is today, 13th May The consultation is here: https://consultations.southwark.gov.uk/environment-leisure/parking-control-measures-for-carparks-in-parks/ and the feedback form is here: https://forms.southwark.gov.uk/ShowForm.asp?fm_fid=1828 Pls provide feedback, either way. Thanks.

Hi Bels123, thanks for your message. I think the point raised at the meeting was that if there were alternative - regular bus routes, safe cycle ways etc, then this would be the case. However for some people cycling/walking/scootering is simply not an option - those with nursery-aged children for eg. Regarding the 'poorer you are the less likely you are to drive' this may well be the case - but given lack of alternatives this effectively puts this particular park a little further out of reach for lower income families, which is a shame.

Per the consultation online - "from June 2019"

Update - The consultation is now online https://consultations.southwark.gov.uk/environment-leisure/parking-control-measures-for-carparks-in-parks/

All - On Saturday I attended the meeting with Southwark Council, organised by the Friends of Belair Park. Councillor Andy Simmons attended from Southwark. There were around 30-40 people in attendance. I'm going to keep the following to 'the facts' of what I recall/noted from the meeting. Opinions expressed are not my own etc. If you also attended pls feel free to add to the below. Note that although the meeting touched on the scheme as it would apply to all Southwark parks, there was a specific focus on Belair park, for obvious reasons. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND After an introduction by the Chair of Friends, Andy introduced himself and outlined the rationale for the parking charges. This was fairly obvious - Southwark council have a budget hole and are turning over every available stone to generate revenue. Andy acknowledged this is an emotive and controversial plan, and is aware of the many reasons that there will be objections. He then specifically mentioned that objections to new council measures tend to get a lot more attention if there were alternative proposals suggested, so encouraged everyone to consider other revenue generating/cost saving initiatives. He cited other parks elsewhere in London that have turned to different solutions during these budget squeezes, eg those that chose to cut back on gardening, litter picking etc in order to avoid charging for parking. He also said that there were additional benefits to the plan, including encouraging people to leave cars at home to promote the Cleaner Greener Air scheme. The charging is yet to be decided; it is currently proposed at ?2/hr with Blue Badge holders not paying. POINTS FROM THE FLOOR He then opened the floor to questions. There were many points raised; below in brief are the principle points I noted down. If you were there and recall more pls feel fre to add - Belair Park is surrounded by 3 local schools and many nurseries who rely on the park car park as a drop off point for children. Without this there will be pressure on surrounding roads and back streets which are already congested and gridlocked. This brings into question the viability of claims of benefits to air quality and the environment. Congested back streets are more than likely to become CPZs as a result of this - Many children play in and enjoy Belair Park after school as a result of parents using the car park as a pickup point. There is a real community here - children from all schools, backgrounds, and walks of life are currently using and enjoying the park together. - Challenges were raised around exactly how much money this scheme would bring in; if there were less cars being driven to Belair Park then realistically the revenue generated would be fairly insignificant compared to the funding gap that Southwark find themselves in. - There are few other modes of transport available. Belair Park is very poorly served by public transport links; the P13 along the South Circular is infrequent. Insufficient segregated cycle lanes in the area. Those with younger children going to nurseries etc don't have any other option. - This scheme has been attempted before in 2013 and was knocked back. Andy Simmons' predecessor attended the meeting (did anyone catch her name/details?) and challenged the need to do this when Dulwich Ward were spending ?? on other schemes (eg ?42k on love Dulwich lampost signs) - There are many people who are not blue-badge holders but are challenged to get to the park on available public transport eg elderly, unwell - This will hit those hardest who are unable to afford it - families without access to local green spaces who will now need to pay. - Queries around the cost of policing/patrolling Belair car park. Andy said that there were no costs since APCOA currently provide this service free of charge, and are paid by the fines they levy. There were challenges to this statement that this was not the case, or may not be the case going fwd. - More generally the argument that privatising our public spaces is not a road we want to go down as the principle of our green spaces should be that they free to all; we already pay for them through taxation. This is the 'thin end of the wedge' and is opens the door to freely increasing charges in the future in the event of financial mismanagement of the local authorities. - Yet another hidden tax on motorists - A challenge from someone late into the meeting which was interesting: there is case law of existing parks in North London that attempted this and were told that money raised in parks is available for spending only within the parks themselves. Does anyone know the lady that raised this or know more? This is an interesting point which I don't feel Andy had a response for - If this scheme is going ahead anyway, a number of alternatives were proposed including a discounted 'annual pass' enabling those that need to continue to use the car park without the daily charge, and also amnesty periods eg 8-10am, 3-5pm SO WHAT HAPPENS NOW? The official consultation period begins today (1st Apr) and will last for 6 weeks. This is NOT a statutory consultation - ie the council is under no obligation to respond. The consultation will be available here https://consultations.southwark.gov.uk/ and everyone is encouraged to register their objections/proposals I've just checked the site and the proposal is not yet on there, but will probably be put up this week. The more people that respond to this, the more our voices will be heard so.... PLEASE MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO RESPOND!

Fantastic news, and glad to hear - DHFC has got access to the astroturf AND the stadium on an 18mth contract....superb! - In return for granting DHFC acccess to the site, the council will not follow through on its CPO to Meadow, but DHFC needs to invest in the Greendale site This last part...does this mean that the threat of housing development is still present? or have the council smashed Meadow's schemes to smithereens? Trying to work out what, if any, concessions were offered here in order to break the deadlock.

I received the same letter, RPC. I've contacted the ICO to establish what options I have.

thanks all, some good tips here. The 3yo is a boy unfortunately. Appreciate the offer though. Think we'll just do a weekend trip to Decathalon. By the looks of it I should be able to kit them out relatively cheaply. Now fingers crossed they'll enjoy the lessons..wouldn't want to put them off!