Agenda and minutes

Cllr Peter Bernards, Chair of the Forest Hill Assembly welcomed everyone to the

meeting and introduced Cllr Sophie Davis and Cllr Leo Gibbons.

                        Cllr Chris Best delivered the LDR presentation

In summary, the Council has to make cuts to public services. We will need to make tough financial decisions. Strong local democracy is increasingly important. The Council is asking residents about how the Mayor & Council could: 

? enhance their openness and transparency 

? increase public involvement in Council decisions 

? promote effective decision making.

You can access the online questionnaire at www.lewishamdemocracy.com 

For further information please email democracy@lewisham.gov.uk

                Hear from the applicants who have a project idea to help make a difference in Forest Hill:

1:         Project 1: Forest Hill Society- Planting and environmental improvements in Forest Hill town centre and station - £600

Project 2: Colourful Street Trees for Forest Hill- £2240

Project 3: Picturing Christmas’ and ‘Picturing Easter’: Two Community Art Workshop & Publication Projects- £2410

Project 4: Devonshire Road Nature Reserve Visitors Centre- £2500

Project 5: Forest Hill Children’s Book Festival- £1550

Project 6: Book Nooks- £700

Project 7: Raiders Netball club - £2500

Project 1: Forest Hill Society- Planting and environmental improvements in Forest Hill town centre and station - £600

The Forest Hill Society has, for a number of years, taken responsibility for maintaining planters on the platforms and caring for the forecourt entrance at Forest Hill Station and providing planters in the town centre in an effort to make these areas more attractive to both people and wildlife.

The planting and maintaining of planters is done by volunteers on a needs basis but with working groups to accommodate the seasonal changes as these occur.

If you would like to get involved contact

www.foresthillsociety.com  or michael@fhsoc.com

Project 2: Colourful Street Trees for Forest Hill- £2240

Funds are sought for the planting of 8 colourful trees in streets where there are already groups of volunteers who have demonstrated their commitment to tree planting. Some of these raised funds for their streets last year and have watered their trees successfully through the recent drought. Others have raised funds for the first time. Together, the 8 participating streets have raised funds for planting 19 trees this coming winter. This application is for funds one additional tree in each participating street.

Together, the 27 new trees will give our streets

•      White or pink Spring blossom

•      Yellow, orange and red Autumnal leaves

•      In the case of Thorpewood Avenue, the Himalayan Birch will also bring the intense white of their bark to the road throughout the year.

The entire project has been coordinated by Street Trees for Living (STfL) which is a voluntary organisation that works with Lewisham Council to plant street trees. The standing of Street Trees for Living can be shown by its award of The Forestry Commissions London Community Tree Award in 2016.

The value of matched funds. Apart from the direct benefits of the additional 8 trees the fact that we were applying for assembly funds has made it easier to raise funds from local residents: donors always like to see their money going further than their funds can afford. Similarly the award of an Assembly grant this year will make it easier to raise funds from residents next year

Project 3: Picturing Christmas’ and ‘Picturing Easter’: Two Community Art Workshop & Publication Projects- £2410

These seasonal community workshop/publication projects, facilitated by the Ichthus Forest Hill Arts Forum and open to the local community, explore how Christmas (Workshop One) and Easter (Workshop Two) have been pictured in the art, craft and spiritual/religious traditions of diverse cultures around the world – many of which are represented in Forest Hill.

Inspired by this, and assisted by experienced artists and teachers, participants will then create personally meaningful Christmas and Easter cards. Sessions and projects aimed at developing design, print-making and photographic skills will be offered. A free home-cooked lunch with live music will be provided. People of all ages, backgrounds and ability levels are welcome (we hope that stories and experiences will be shared). Beautifully-designed post-workshop hardcopy/e-publications will be co-created for circulation  ...  view the full minutes text for item 3.

After everyone listened to the presentations delivered by each project, all projects were voted in by a show of hands.

                        Tewkesbury Lodge Working Group Introduction– Lead by Cllr Sophie Davis

This working Group aims to address the frequent complaint of

rat-running and heavy goods traffic over the Tewkesbury Lodge Estate.

Also the traffic queues at rush hour, air pollution from exhaust fumes

and safety concerns for children walking to school.

The following was agreed:

·         The working group will include Tewkesbury Lodge as well as the area around Devonshire road (and other roads nearby, if requested by other members). 

·         Cllr Davis will put together a mailing list including people who attended the assembly and anyone else who contacts her willing to participate, she will then send a doodle to agree a date for the next meeting (a Saturday).

She will also tweet

·         The following provisional next steps as follows:

1.    At the next meeting, they will discuss in detail what residents want, what has been done to date, and put together recommendations (including best case scenarios and compromises)

2.    They will then send these to Simon Moss, Transport Policy and Development Manager, and invite him to attend another meeting where these can be discussed. In the meantime, Cllr Davis will meet Simon to hear more about the background.

3.    Once recommendations have been discussed with Simon Moss, and we believe they are feasible, we will put them forward to Mayor and Cabinet.

For further information or to get involved email cllr_sophie.davis@lewisham.gov.uk 

Thorpewood Avenue Working Group Introduction– Lead by Cllr

Leo Gibbons

A few minutes’ walk from Forest Hill station and the shops of Dartmouth Road, host to a local primary school, and a stone’s throw from a leisure centre and swimming pool – the lower section of Thorpewood Road is often a popular area to park for visitors and commuters in our ward.  Unfortunately, the lack of available parking on the road has long been a concern for many of its residents.

At the assembly they discussed the different issues of concern faced by those living in at the bottom and top end of Thorpewood Avenue. Suggested solutions included a second CPZ consultation across a smaller area, or a single yellow line on Thorpewood Avenue active for two hours in the middle of the day. The Lower section of Thorpewood Avenue is affected by commuter parking and parking for local amenities, while the upper section of the road has difficulties due to teach parking and aggressive parking during school-run hours. 

Provisional next steps agreed:

·         Cllr Gibbons will hold a meeting with Simon Moss to raise the concerns of the residents in the working groups and those who have contacted him elsewhere, and raise their possible solutions. 

·         Cllr Gibbons will put together a mailing list including people who attended the assembly and anyone else who contacts him willing to participate. He will also tweet. 

·         Once this meeting has taken place, he will feedback to the Working Group at their next meeting. 

·         If the Working Group are happy with the proposals, we will put them forward to Mayor and Cabinet.  ...  view the full minutes text for item 5.

·         Feedback forms – agenda items next meeting

Cllr Bernards highlighted the importance of completing the feedback forms and invited members to join the coordinating group which plans the assembly and discusses local issues and updates. If you would like to join contact maya.onyett@lewisham.gov.uk for further information.

Upcoming Christmas activities: Saturday 8^th December, Christmas tree Switch on event at Forest Hill station & Kirkdale from 4pm

SNT Update:

Crime Stats for the last three (3) months;

Burglary

Kemal.Babaoglu from the SNT asked people to ensure their sheds and garages are secured with approved locks. These offences are sporadic in nature. If anyone needs any advice on suitable locks or crime prevention in general, they can contact us and this can be arranged.

Robbery

There has been a very slight increase in the number of reported robbery incidents within Forest Hill over the last three months.

Violence against the person

The number of reported crimes involving violence over the last three months is noticeably down compared to the previous reporting period.

Theft of and theft from motor vehicle

There has been an increase of reported theft on the ward. The team have conducted numerous night duties and five separate individuals have been arrested. The proactive approach will continue.

Theft person

Unfortunately, there has been a slight increase in the number of reported offences compared to the previous reporting period.

Criminal damage

Again, an increase in the number of reported allegations made to police compared to the previous reporting period.

Total notifiable offences

22% increase in crime from the same period last year. A number of reasons can be the cause of this, firstly being that more crime gets reported to police with internet reporting becoming more regular, less officers on the street with more abstractions, crime can naturally rise.

Millennium Gardens and Town Centre

We have received several complaints from local residents living near to Millennium Gardens over anti-social behaviour and suspected drugs activity in the green to complaints of begging in the Town Centre. We have been doing a lot of work around these subjects and have identified two persons being responsible, we believe for the ASB in both locations. One of the individuals has recently been to court after being charged for several different offences and has been served with a community order. We will continue to deal with ASB, predominately in the town centre as it arises.

Regarding the ASB and drug taking in Millennium Gardens, if found committing offences, those involved could be dealt with in much the same way as previously stated for those begging. Those believed to be involved in drug taking are stop and searched regularly, if we have grounds to search at the time.

We have also had complaints from local residents with regards to these individuals setting up tents in the Millennium Green, these have now been removed from the location.

Summary

The SNT are tasked every three months by our ward panel, the members being representatives of the Forest Hill Community, to deal with specific problems affecting the community. Our last Ward Panel meeting was in September and the promises set  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.