News from Crystal Palace - News & stories from the fresh air suburb - Crystal Palace, London SE19 » Triangle Talk

“IN THE NEW AGE MESSAGE IS KING”

jerrygreen85 — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 15:34:14 +0000

“IN THE NEW AGE MESSAGE IS KING”

THE PENTECOSTAL CHURCH which bought the former cinema building at 25 Church Road five years ago have engaged a major PR firm as they bid to get church and community use for the building.

The long-awaited planning application from KICC (Kingsway International Community Centre) is, er, still awaited.

The PR team which KICC have employed is called Forty Shillings.

They are based at Bank Chambers, 2 The High Street, Thames Ditton, Surrey KT7 0RY

And the address where people were asked to send their responses to the KICC survey? THE OPEN DOOR HAVE YOUR SAY FREEPOST RTCC-HTSG-EUKK

2A HIGH STREET THAMES DITTON KT7 0RY

Forty Shillings website highlights some of their past triumphs, including this one:

POLITICAL INSIGHTOur team were appointed by a housebuilder to promote an 800 home development just three weeks before Planning Committee.Some 1,800 objections had been registered and it looked a lost cause.

But our political insight told us that the site was in a ward held by Opposition Councillors which the administration had no chance of winning.We were also aware that the Council were desperate for funding from the New Homes Bonus.

We helped identify a handful of supporters so the media and political debate looked more balanced.We also prepared briefing materials setting out the benefits of the increased funding.

The Planning Committee approved the application despite hundreds of opponents attending the meeting.

The above has a parallel with Crystal Palace ward in which 25 Church Road sits. Formerly Anerley ward, since the London borough of Bromley was set up in 1964 the ward has only ever returned Conservative councillors on one occasion.

That was back in 1968 when the Harold Wilson Labour government was deeply unpopular with the voters. Veteran Cllr Mabel Harvey lost her seat by 80 votes.At the council elections that year the Conservatives also took all three seats in the then Penge ward. (Labour held Mottingham and St Paul Cray wards, the Liberals held St Mary Cray and Chelsfield ward split with one Conservative and one Liberal)

Other case studies highlighted on the PR firm’s website include:

BUILDING COMMUNITY SUPPORT

Our team were appointed to manage the consultation for a mixed use scheme on a derelict but sensitive site in the Home Counties.

Developers had tried and failed to promote development on the site for 25 years so we knew it would be controversial.Sure enough the objector groups showed up in force at the consultation activities but the majority of residents – 66 per cent – told us they supported the development.

We knew the protesters would mobilise opposition and more than 1,000 letters of objections were submitted. But we were able to mobilise a similar number of advocates to register support and to bring many of them to the Planning Committee. Many supporters had become frustrated with the opponents and wanted the derelict site improved.

The council were able to put public opinion to one side, knowing that it was divided, and to focus on the planning merits of the application. The council approved the scheme.

CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS

Our team were brought in to manage a crisis communications issue for a client.A planning application for a major development had generated over 10,000 objections and was now the subject of critical national media coverage.

The client had focussed most of their efforts rebutting the allegations made by opponents.

This allowed them to build champions in the business community and provide a stronger argument with political audiences.It also helped shift the media debate away from the perceived negative impacts of the development onto a more balanced debate about the case.

Although the application was turned down by both the Planning Committee and independent Planning Inspector, the decision was overturned by the Secretary of State, who sited (sic) the economic arguments espoused by the local business groups as grounds for approval.

Forty Shillings also outline their philosophy which includes: Today, people are influenced by what they hear from their neighbours, the media and their online social networks. Debates now take place across a wide variety of communication outlets.

We prepare you to participate in that debate. In the new age, message is king.

We help you understand your audiences so you can shape your arguments around a narrative that will appeal to them.

We help you establish an evidence base that gives your case credibility.

We help you identify supporters to champion your cause, so you are not a lone voice in that debate.

And we will execute a bespoke campaign plan that will target your message to those that need to hear it.

We listen. We influence. We win.

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COMPUTER COURSES IN LIBRARY……..AND FORMER COUNCILLORS BACK IN CROYDON

jerrygreen85 — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 14:52:03 +0000

COMING UP! HELPING IN THE SENSIBLE GARDEN IN SOUTH NORWOOD – AND THE BEST OF BRITISH CRIME WRITING IN UPPER NORWOOD!

WEDNESDAY JULY 2nd 6.30pm

Crystal Palace Transition Town and South Norwood Tourist Board will be back in the Sensible Garden South Norwood (just after the Goat House Bridge and before Ship pub on South Norwood High Street) on Wednesday night from 6.30pm.

Bring gardening gloves and shovels or spades. We should have a delivery of woodchip coming tonight (Monday) and Calum Mason of Winkworths, Westow Hill, Upper Norwood is very kindly donating some for sale posts for us to finish our railings.

We will be clearing the path, laying woodchip, finishing our railings, planting another bed and maybe applying a coat of undercoat to one of the benches or just bring your thoughts of what else we could do at the Garden and help us with some ideas on the planting side.

We will be returning to the Garden on Sunday from 1pm. On Sunday we built a bed with donated logs and soil and filled it with donated herbs. It’s an exciting challenge as Captain Sensible is going to dedicate a new bench at the site on Saturday July 26th.

WEDNESDAY JULY 2nd 7.30pm

BEST OF BRITISH CRIME WRITING

Four great British crime writers, Ray Celestine, Claire McGowan, James Carol and Oliver Harris will be reading and discussing their work at The Bookseller Crow, 50 Westow Street, Upper Norwood. Admission £3 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm

SATURDAY JULY 5th

ROSI’S TINTED SPECTACLES

Rosi Lalor / Kath Tait / Eliza K / Duke Bradley / Sun&Ferious play Antenna Studios Gallery and pop up bar. £7 on the door. Limited seats – please bring something to sit on. Antenna Studios, Bowyers Yard, Haynes Lane (top of Bedwardine Road) 7.30pm to 11pm www.antennastudios.co.uk

SOUTH NORWOOD ARTS FESTIVAL Monday July 7th – Sunday July 20th

South Norwood Arts Festival 2014 will run from 7th to 20th July. Thanks to funding from Community First we will be offering a range of activities for free or at low cost focussed on the arts and wellbeing.

The Festival will include dance, poetry, crafts, music and more, with a Festival Finale day on Sunday 20th July on Woodside Green.

View the SNAF Programme 2014

We are still looking for the following:

Can you spare some time, even an hour or two, between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Sunday 20th July to help set up, steward or clear up after the fair?
Would you, or someone you know, like to have a fair stall? Contact us if you would like to sell goods or promote a cause.
We still have space for dance performers in our Art of Dance evening, at the CYTO theatre in Oakley Rd. Contact us if you would like to take part.

Keep in touch on facebook or twitter for updates, or email [email protected] to get involved. (Source: SNAF website)

THURSDAY JULY 17th

Organ concert by Jonathan Vaughn, assistant director of music, Wells cathedral at St John the Evangelist corner Auckland Road / Sylvan Road Upper Norwood. 7.30pm Admission free – retiring collection.

COMPUTER COURSES IN LIBRARY….

FREE computer courses at Upper Norwood Library

From the library website: From next month, the lovely Joycellyn and her team will be offering free computer training workshops to our visitors. If you are interested in any of the sessions outlined below, please contact us at 020 8670 2551 during opening hours or leave your name and contact details when you next visit the library.

Courses in July 2014

Thursday 3rd July at 10am – 12pm: How to save money on utility bills and shopping online

Thursday 10th July at 10am – 12pm: Create a CV using Microsoft Word

Thursday 17th July at 10am – 12pm: How to use the internet to save time and money

Thursday 24th July at 10am – 12pm: Online safety for children

Thursday 31st July at 10am – 12pm: How to use the internet safely

Information on courses in August will be posted in due course.

PLEASE NOTE: Our public access computer system has not yet been replaced, but we are hoping to report some good news soon(ish) – watch this space!

.…AND FORMER COUNCILLORS BACK IN CROYDON

TWO FORMER South Norwood Conservative councillors were re-elected to Croydon council in the May elections.

Luke Clancy now represents Coulsdon West, Sue Bennett now represents Shirley. And Andy Stranack, who stood as Conservative Parliamentary candidate in the Croydon North by-election, was elected to Heathfield ward.

SUAREZ

The recent incident involving Uruguayan footballer Luis Suarez and an Italian opponent in the World Cup prompted national newspaper ads by Specsavers. Closer to home Good Taste food and drink on Westow Hill offered: Suarez: ” I definitely smelt some parmesan.”

News that Michael Gove has given the go-ahead for a new Crystal Palace primary school led the school’s supporters to announce: “Crystal Palace primary school has been approved!”. (Continuing the theme): “Now Luis, it doesn’t mean you’re going to an approved school…..”

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WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE IN THE NEW CRYSTAL PALACE?

jerrygreen85 — Wed, 19 Mar 2014 18:00:14 +0000

That’s the question developers who want to redevelop the Crystal Palace site have been asking – and the same question has also been posed on one of the local blog sites Virtual Norwood.

Posing the question Zirconium said the survey shows strong support for museum, art gallery, viewing platform, restaurant or café, and artists’studios.

There is 50 pc support for a cinema and seemingly a majority against retail/shops.

“Arup (the lead consultant on the project) have invited us to suggest activities which might take place in the proposed new Crystal Palace so why not get our creative thinking caps on and come up with some ideas? “OK we don’t know if it will be built but what’s the harm?

“Here’s a couple of suggestions: performance area, e.g. small theatre; indoor market in the style of wholefoodsmarket http://www.wholefoodsmarket.co.uk

In response jamesl suggested:

A very large display answering all the thousands of unanswered questions about the project.
A vault with the £100 million promised for the park in it. With a key held by the community stakeholder group.
A vast chamber to store all the unfulfilled and broken promises about the park stretching back over the years
A sound proof room to lock a certain local group in so they can rant and rave to their hearts content in front of one of those mirrors that gives a distorted perception of self.
A zoo for the white elephants
A rumour mill
The worlds biggest Waitrose, organic butchers and fishmongers
The punchline to this joke of project.

Duncanm suggested a butterfly farm while Jens’ wish would be a hotel which the local community can afford while
Magnolia suggested an education centre focusing on learning about environment/ecology, small workshop units for artists and other craftspeople, museum/ art gallery, cinema, activity centre for children themed on the park (for wet days!)

“Oh, and instead of one massive building, a small number of interlinked units set in quality landscaping.”

Biped suggested “a new tube station for the new tube line that I very much hope they will be building.” (Note: Obviously the Overground is new to them!)

QUESTIONNAIRE FINDINGS

Findings from the questionnaire used at the Crystal Palace Project drop in session on February 1st 2014 and available online from 29th January 2014. In total 387 responses were received; 178 questionnaires were filled in on the day, and 209 submitted online.

Would you like to see a new Crystal Palace developed in Crystal Palace Park?

53.6 per cent of people are supportive of seeing a new Crystal Palace developed in Crystal Palace park, whilst 27.6 pc remain unsure. 18.8 pc of people would not like to see a new Crystal Palace in the park.

What uses would you like to see in the Palace?

Museum, art gallery, restaurant/café and viewing platform were the most popular future uses, with over 80% of people wanting to see these uses in the new Palace.
Artist studios were also popular, with support from more than 70 pc of all respondents.
The least popular use for a new Crystal Palace was retail/shops, with over 50 pc of respondents saying they would not like to see this. A hotel was also unpopular; 45 pc of people do not want to see this in the new Crystal Palace. (Source: London Crystal Palace website
www.thelondoncrystalpalace.com)

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TRIANGLE TALK – BOULES COURT / RIESCO COLLECTION / LOLLIPOP LADIES etc

jerrygreen85 — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 14:10:21 +0000

BOULES COURT

Anna Lines, secretary of the Norwood Society, offers her own (personal) view on the new boules court – which has attracted a mixed reception – in Westow Park close to its Church Road frontage in the latest issue of the Society’s magazine, the Norwood Review:

“Those of you who have recently visited the top of Westow Park may well wonder how and why a sandpit (or beach volley court) has appeared on what used to be a pleasant lawn surrounded by mature trees.

“Why has it not been added to the wonderful and popular playground at the bottom? “The explanation is that this is not a sandpit (despite appearances) but a court on which to play boules, dug by the Friends of Westow Park, with the funding and blessing of Croydon council.

“It might help if you were to close your eyes and imagine sunshine in the south of France, the smell of Gauloises cigarettes wafting over you, the chirping of crickets, the clicking of metal balls…. however, the average boules court has a hard surface, topped with grit (and sometimes there’s no more than stamped earth) and it definitely does not resemble a beach.

“I expect to see children with buckets and spades sooner or later. “And let us hope that cats, dogs and foxes will not find another use for it……”

RIESCO COLLECTION / LOLLIPOP LADIES

TONIGHT Croydon council’s corporate services committee will approve plans to flog off 24 items from the Riesco collection. (OK, so no decision’s been made in public yet but…)

The item begins: CORPORATE PRIORITY/POLICY CONTEXT: The recommendations address the Council’s priorities for competing as a place and as a “Creative City” (Croydon has been trying to get City status for ages. In the capital city)

Here are some of the points made at the end of the report (the italics are mine).

There may also be reputational implications from this:

•The negative publicity surrounding the sale may impact on the reputation of the council; (What reputation? I hear you asking)

•Public perception of the Council as a safe custodian of its cultural assets may be diminished. (In the Upper Norwood area, given Croydon Conservative councillors behaviour over Upper Norwood joint library, it already has been.Hugely.)

The report doesn’t say how much will be saved by no longer storing the 24 items off site – or what that money will be used for. And whether anyone purchasing any of the items would need Government approval to take them out of the country……

Meanwhile, Croydon has made the ‘Rotten Boroughs’ page in Private Eye magazine. (Issue 1344 with Labour leader Ed Moribund and union boss Len McCluskey on the cover). The item contrasts Croydon’s decision to make ten “school crossing officers” (lollipop ladies and lollipop men to you and me) redundant saving the council £60,000 a year with the amount the deputy council leader responsible for children, families and learning Cllr Tim Pollard and his wife – fellow Cllr Helen Pollard take home in allowances. (Croydon’s website states that for the 2011-2012 financial year Cllr Tim Pollard received £45,844 while Cllr Helen received £21,510.)

Among the schools which have lost their lollipop patrols are All Saints on Upper Beulah Hill. (Schools in Conservative-held wards have also lost their crossing patrols using the same criteria).

Croydon’s website states that: “Provision of the school crossing patrol service is not a statutory duty and is carried out at the discretion of the council. “Although the council currently provides the service it remains the responsibility of parents to ensure the safety of their children travelling to and from school. “The service was recently reviewed and a decision was made to remove school crossing patrols based at traffic lights and zebra crossings.”

There is also a link to its school crossing patrol report 2013 which states: “The Schools Finance (England) Regulations 2008 prohibits the use of delegated schools budgets to provide the service. “A local education authority’s LEA budget or schools’ budget must not include the following classes or descriptions of expenditure for the purposes of section 26 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (1) (arrangements for patrolling school crossings).”

Pause for thought.

PLANNING BOUQUET…

…to the developers (and their designers) who’ve put two new top floors above Kinleigh, Folkard and Hayward on Westow Hill (to the left of Iceland) and removed the eyesore of a first floor. It now mirrors most of the other properties in that parade of shops (almost).

PLANNING BRICKBAT….

…to whoever a) designed and b) allowed the monstrosity that has replaced St Margaret’s church on Chevening Road. It looks like something which would house prison guards in a gulag and would NEVER have been allowed in Coulsdon.

(Chevening Road had another planning application earlier this year – to put a ‘healthy eating BISTRO’ in the sports pavilion on the recreation ground which lies between Chevening and Eversley Roads. The application attracted 30 comments to Croydon council, mostly against with a few neutrals and a few in favour). Full information croydon.gov planning – online planning register. 13/00540/P | Alterations use of Sports Pavilion as multipurpose indoor activity centre twinned with a healthy eating bistro | Rockmount Pavilion, Upper Norwood Recreation Ground, Chevening Road, Upper Norwood, London, SE19.

YOU COULDN’T MAKE IT UP

I’M ASSURED the following story is true. Bloke goes into Sainsbury’s on Westow Street, selects five items and then goes to the cigarette counter which states ‘five items only’ and asks for a pouch of tobacco. Assistant behind the counter then says she can’t serve him because that would mean he is buying six items. As Richard Littlejohn would say….

(A Sainsbury’s spokeswoman told News From Crystal Palace: “The till you refer to is situated in an area of our store that sometimes becomes congested, so it is specifically for customers buying five items or fewer. “Customers wanting to purchase more than five items generally use the self-scan or other manned tills nearby. “By adhering to the five item limit we aim to be fair to all our customers.”)

COUNCIL CONGRATULATES CRYSTAL PALACE FC

Croydon is officially a Premier League borough once again after Crystal Palace secured their return to English football’s top tier.
A Croydon council press release says that next season, the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and – er – Arsenal will be visiting Selhurst Park after the Eagles achieved top flight status following a 1-0 victory over Watford in the play-off final at Wembley.*
“A coolly taken extra time penalty from veteran striker Kevin Phillips was enough to see Palace clinch victory and a place in the Premier League. “Not only did the 39-year-old’s spot kick win Ian Holloway’s side promotion but it also earns Palace a cash pot of around £120 million over the next four years to invest in the club. “Palace have been absent from the Premier League since they were relegated in 2005.”
Croydon council’s leader Cllr Mike Fisher said: “Congratulations on behalf of everyone at the council to Crystal Palace. “After falling into administration just three years ago, to be back in English football’s top division is a phenomenal achievement.
“It will be fantastic to see football’s stellar names coming to the borough next season and I’m sure the players and fans will make Selhurst Park a tough venue for visiting teams.
“I just hope Manchester United can loan Wilfried Zaha back to Palace for another year – that’d be the icing on the cake!”

*The council press release makes no mention of Tottenham Hotspur or ‘The Noisy Neighbours’ aka the Blue Meanies aka Manchester City FC.

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