Following the success of the Sydenham Community Regeneration Partnership (SCRP) we are setting up the first Sydenham Assembly on Thursday 6 March from 7.00pm – 9.00pm at the Naborhood Centre, 44a Sydenham Road (next to the Post Office).
The format will be different from the SCRP meetingsas as we want to hear your local priorities. We hope you will join in a table discussion and share what you think needs to change in Sydenham. Your views will help inform the development of a local Priority Plan so please invite your friends and neighbours to come along and join in the discussion as this is an open meeting.
The Assembly will establish an agreed description of local priorities and use this to develop positive proposals to respond to these priorities as well as determining the use of the £10,000 locality fund. If you can't make the meeting and want to let me know your priorities then please email me cllr_chris.best at lewisham.gov.uk and I will take a list along to the meeting. For an update on Sydenham issues please see my Spring Newsletter. http://tinyurl.com/2qkab2.
Sydenham Assembly - Thursday 6 March
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Chris Best
- Posts: 439
- Joined: 6 May 2005 11:37
- Location: Sydenham
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castiron73
- Posts: 132
- Joined: 24 Oct 2006 10:05
- Location: Sydenham Thorpes
Looking forward to it
Ironic that the meeting is being held in one of the high street's biggest eyesores. As a symbolic gesture of the new dawn can someone take down the grotty net curtains in the Naborhood Centre windows during the meeting and ceremonially burn them? That would improve the high street instantly - and cost nothing.
Ironic that the meeting is being held in one of the high street's biggest eyesores. As a symbolic gesture of the new dawn can someone take down the grotty net curtains in the Naborhood Centre windows during the meeting and ceremonially burn them? That would improve the high street instantly - and cost nothing.
I have put my report here: http://www.sydenham.org.uk/news_sydenha ... 08_03.html
There was a splendid turnout. Hope I don't spoil the party too much by having a few reservations about the format. Particulary as we had to forgo the usual update briefings on the Sydenham Road improvement and other stuff.
Still its early days. I'm sure they will want to continue to improve things and take all comments into account.
Of course if mine are wrong you can trust some Sydenhamites to say so here ...
Admin
There was a splendid turnout. Hope I don't spoil the party too much by having a few reservations about the format. Particulary as we had to forgo the usual update briefings on the Sydenham Road improvement and other stuff.
Still its early days. I'm sure they will want to continue to improve things and take all comments into account.
Of course if mine are wrong you can trust some Sydenhamites to say so here ...
Admin
I did not attend the meeting but have read the implementation document.
It indicates the 'co-ordinating group' should be small in number but gives no indication how the numbers are trimmed down, maybe at the next assembly meeting?
It appears the 'co-ordinationg group' plan and structure assembly meetings and possibly also report back how priorities are proceeding.
It seems the priority of the assemblies is to set priorities for their ward and feed those into the council by the end of July so they form part of the council's budget and plan. Sydenham is fortunate as I assume a second assembly will be held before the end of July to firm up what the priorities are.
Other wards may not be so lucky, they'll have the initial meeting were they will be introduced to assemblies and their co-ordinator, propose themselves for the co-ordinating group, discuss issues, select priorities and choose which go forward to the council, all at the initial meeting.
Under the old Area Forums residents could put items directly on to the Mayor's agenda. Instead Assemblies can only put one item a year before the full council, as the mayor has the final say I'm not sure how this works.
It is clearly better to have 4 meetings a year rather than the one Area Forum and it appears issues raised will be put to officers or investigated by the council co-ordinator.
I don't know if only having 6 co-ordinators for 18 wards will be an issue, and there seems to be some vagueness whether they will be assigned to a particular ward or will work as a team across all wards.
It indicates the 'co-ordinating group' should be small in number but gives no indication how the numbers are trimmed down, maybe at the next assembly meeting?
It appears the 'co-ordinationg group' plan and structure assembly meetings and possibly also report back how priorities are proceeding.
It seems the priority of the assemblies is to set priorities for their ward and feed those into the council by the end of July so they form part of the council's budget and plan. Sydenham is fortunate as I assume a second assembly will be held before the end of July to firm up what the priorities are.
Other wards may not be so lucky, they'll have the initial meeting were they will be introduced to assemblies and their co-ordinator, propose themselves for the co-ordinating group, discuss issues, select priorities and choose which go forward to the council, all at the initial meeting.
Under the old Area Forums residents could put items directly on to the Mayor's agenda. Instead Assemblies can only put one item a year before the full council, as the mayor has the final say I'm not sure how this works.
It is clearly better to have 4 meetings a year rather than the one Area Forum and it appears issues raised will be put to officers or investigated by the council co-ordinator.
I don't know if only having 6 co-ordinators for 18 wards will be an issue, and there seems to be some vagueness whether they will be assigned to a particular ward or will work as a team across all wards.
sydenham assembly
They did discuss the locality fund - and importantly whether they would consider tarting up the narborhood centre a bit and sort out the dreadful planting outside? I have suggested this before to Marion Nisbett et al but it just seems to fall on deaf ears. It would not cost that much...
Sydenham assembly
There also seem to be a lot of white heads in the pix (no offence intended to the older generation) but was there a good cross section of people there?
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stone-penge
- Posts: 292
- Joined: 5 Nov 2004 14:40
- Location: Newlands park
dodd wrote:'purpose built walls for the young to express themselves through gaffiti on'?
That's possibly the worst idea I've ever heard, and serves to illustrate just how detatched coucillors are from young people.
Indeed.
Maybe they should spend the ten grand on some plate glass, a few old cars and half a ton of bricks for the young to express themselves on and if there's any change left over then how about a set of matching dungarees and plimsoles for all the councillors?
It was great to see so many people at the meeting. This has stoked up a huge expectation that something concrete is going to be done about key issues in Sydenham.
The June meeting will be awaited eagerly. If the “committee” come back with the usual list of “Key issues - a priority list of what’s wrong with Sydenham” without any clear vision of how to put things right and a practical timed programme for doing so, I’d predict a fairly big backlash.
Let’s hope this isn’t just another talking shop. We’ve had enough consultation – let’s see action.
The June meeting will be awaited eagerly. If the “committee” come back with the usual list of “Key issues - a priority list of what’s wrong with Sydenham” without any clear vision of how to put things right and a practical timed programme for doing so, I’d predict a fairly big backlash.
Let’s hope this isn’t just another talking shop. We’ve had enough consultation – let’s see action.
I have just added Lewisham's own Press Release and their rather better pictures on Thursday's Assembly here:
http://www.sydenham.org.uk/news_sydenha ... 8_03a.html
My original report is here:
http://www.sydenham.org.uk/news_sydenha ... 08_03.html
Admin
http://www.sydenham.org.uk/news_sydenha ... 8_03a.html
My original report is here:
http://www.sydenham.org.uk/news_sydenha ... 08_03.html
Admin
Regeneration meeting
I really hope the committe come up with some simple ideas for improving the appearance of Sydenham high street and surrounds. I stongly believe that if Sydenham does not look like a dump most people won't treat it like one.
Did anyone discuss where wheelile bins are stored at the moment on the high street itself and behind shops? In my opinion if large bins are on display some people just view it as an opporunity to dump their illegal rubbish there too, and patches of land on view behind the shops are just an easy option for an opportunist fly-tipper. Fencing off these areas or planting, I think, could minimise this. I know some of this is private land but if the council could offer to do something like the above maybe they would save lots of money spent on extra collection and disposal in the future. I also think the longer flytiped items are left it just encourages others so swift collection may also save money in the long run.
Were shop fronts discussed as they have been at great length on this forum? I wondered if the council was involved when new leaseholds were taken up, and if so, if any advice was given on sinage, and the rules etc, esp now most of the high street is now a conservation area? I have no idea how this works, and obviously shops would want some individuality but couldn't some model plans be developed and contacts for people who can create quality signage etc be provided. And examples of which shops have benefited from following this advice etc.
Just some ideas...
What do you think?
Did anyone discuss where wheelile bins are stored at the moment on the high street itself and behind shops? In my opinion if large bins are on display some people just view it as an opporunity to dump their illegal rubbish there too, and patches of land on view behind the shops are just an easy option for an opportunist fly-tipper. Fencing off these areas or planting, I think, could minimise this. I know some of this is private land but if the council could offer to do something like the above maybe they would save lots of money spent on extra collection and disposal in the future. I also think the longer flytiped items are left it just encourages others so swift collection may also save money in the long run.
Were shop fronts discussed as they have been at great length on this forum? I wondered if the council was involved when new leaseholds were taken up, and if so, if any advice was given on sinage, and the rules etc, esp now most of the high street is now a conservation area? I have no idea how this works, and obviously shops would want some individuality but couldn't some model plans be developed and contacts for people who can create quality signage etc be provided. And examples of which shops have benefited from following this advice etc.
Just some ideas...
What do you think?
Democracy in Sydenham
I've just put up a rather long - hope you don't think too rambling - post on the Sydenham Assembly on my blog http://lund.co.uk/blog/?p=6