CR-Apr2007

The Sanderstead Safer Neighbourhood team introduced to the area in 2006 is now up to its full complement of six officers: one sergeant, two constables and three police community support officers (PCSOs).

The aim of the team is simple: to make a difference by listening and talking to the local community, understanding their concerns and finding solutions. The team is based locally and spends most of its time out on foot patrol dealing with the issues that are of most concern to the local community. For this to happen, the message is clear: your Safer Neighbourhood Team wants to hear from you.

Contact details for the SNT are 020 8721 2470 or Sanderstead.SNT@met.police.uk. These contact details must not be used if you require an emergency response when you should dial 999.

To ensure the teams are responsive to local needs each area now has its own local Safer Neighbourhood Community Panel. The Panel aims to be broadly representative of the community it serves, in terms of its mix of residents, businesses, ethnic minorities, gender and age. Both Riddlesdown and Sanderstead Residents’ Associations are represented on the local panel which meets at least four times each year. Our presence on the panel is in order to represent the views of the residents on local community policing issues. This includes identifying the concerns of the local community, agreeing priorities and reviewing outcomes. Current priorities include: safety on public transport, particularly on the buses; road safety (including speeding and parking in unsuitable places, for example on bends and junctions); increased reassurance patrols in the vicinity of the school and local bus stops. For the association to represent your views we need to hear from you, so please use our website or our PO Box No. (see page 3).

Fun Day

I say it every year but I make no apologies for saying it again – the Fun Day just gets better and better and this year promises to be the best yet. This year is the Association’s 70th anniversary so we are looking to make it just that little bit more special. Last year was once again warm and sunny and around 800 people enjoyed a picnic on the Downs and relaxed to the sounds of a top jazz band. The donkey rides, egg and spoon, and sack races, Punch and Judy, swing boats and tractor rides were all a big hit with both adults and children.

We have also listened to your comments and this year’s event will have a mobile toilet unit on site, courtesy of the Corporation of London.

If you missed out last year make sure you put the date in your diary now. It is Sunday 17 June starting at 12.30 pm. We have avoided Wimbledon and all other major sporting events, so no excuses. Please remember the day is for everyone, young and old alike, and it is completely free, so bring your picnic, drink and sun cream and we will see you there.

Croydon Cable Tunnel

A year ago I reported on the construction of a new National Grid deep level cable tunnel 10 miles long and three meters in diameter running from New Addington to Beddington. With major construction sites at Kent Gate Way and Coombe Road, many residents were concerned about the volume of lorries accessing the site, the route they would take and the possible effect it might have on traffic congestion.

With work then due to commence in 2006 and to last for four years, it was decided to initiate a small working group linked to the Sanderstead, Selsdon and Croham Neighbourhood Partnership to monitor the situation. I can now report that the group has met with National Grid on several occasions and has been pleasantly surprised at the level of cooperation. For example, lorries delivering materials or carrying away spoil will use the same designated route and, to further reduce congestion, lorry access to the site will be prohibited during the morning rush hour.

To reduce the problem of lorries waiting outside the site for access and blocking the road, a one-way holding system has been built within the site. In addition all lorries that enter the site will have a wheel wash on the way out to avoid any mud hazard on the highway. With further agreements to reduce the level of noise from the 24/7 tunnelling machines and improvements to site security, the group was satisfied that National Grid was doing everything possible to reduce the negative impact on the area. We will keep you posted as the project develops; a map of the route can be found on our website

Mitchley Wood

In the last edition of the Recorder I reported that our initial offer of £25,000 to buy the ancient woodland was rejected and, before we could increase our bid, the complete 40-acre site, including the surrounding fields, was removed from the market.

After a few weeks, the fields next to the school and the one facing Mitchley Hill marked out with plots returned to the market, but the seventeen acres of Mitchley Wood did not. This situation remained unchanged until late February when we were informed that the Woods were now back on the market. I also mentioned in my last report that Wimpey was also considering selling land in the area, including the section of Mitchley Woods that included Dunmail Drive. To date, this land has not yet been put on the market but we are in discussions with Wimpey’s agent, Savills, to ensure they fully understand our interests and the needs of our local partners in the community.

By the time you read this there may well have been further developments. All I can say now is that the Association will do all it can to buy the woodland. To this end, we will be in urgent discussion with all our partners in the community action group – City of London, Croydon Parks, Whitgift Foundation, Riddlesdown School, local leaseholders and councillors – to resolve the situation. Finally on this subject I mentioned in my last report that we had applied for a lottery grant in partnership with the school. Unfortunately, despite being short-listed for the £50,000 project to be filmed for a TV programme, we only made it on to the reserve list. We are hoping to submit another bid in March. This set-back only emphasises the importance of our Woodland Fighting Fund and, in reply to the many calls from residents who want to know if the appeal is still open, the answer is ‘yes’ and we need every penny. Details on how to donate can be found on page 24.

Committee

The association has a small but dedicated committee of around 12 volunteers. We meet around six times a year and as you can see from the Recorder we deal with a very broad range of issues.

Committee meetings are open to all members but we especially welcome those who wish to be involved. Remember the Association can only represent the community if we have a voice and the committee is that voice. If you are interested or wish to know more, please give me a ring, We are also still looking for a couple of budding reporters to assist Nick in researching articles for the Recorder..

Finally on the volunteer front, is there anyone who can help us set up on the morning of the Fun Day?

Thanks for listening