The Royal Greenwich 2015 calendar celebrating the spectacular sights of the borough is available to buy now.

Greenwich.co.uk has produced the annual calendar for the third consecutive year, selecting photos from across Royal Greenwich.

The calendar features a tall ship which took part in this summer’s regatta on the cover and inside there are photos of the Thames Barrier from a different perspective, Greenwich Park at summer solstice and a snowy Old Royal Naval College.

The view from Severndroog Castle which reopened this year also features and the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery make a welcome return.

The calendar, which was printed in the borough, is available to or you can find it at a range of local retailers.

AN OAK tree planted in memory of Vice Admiral Hardy was unveiled in Greenwich yesterday.

The planting of the English Oak marks the 180th anniversary of the appointment of Sir Thomas Masterman Hardy as the Governor of Greenwich Hospital in 1834. He was the flag captain to Lord Nelson and it was to he that Nelson famously said “kiss me, Hardy” as he lay dying.

The tree, planted by the Nelson Society, is close to the old hospital mausoleum in the grounds of Devonport House under which Hardy was buried following his death in 1839.

The unveiling was carried out by Paul Ganjou, Chairman of the Nelson Society. The new leader of Greenwich Council, Denise Hyland and deputy mayor of Lewisham, Alan Smith joined Richard Upton, CEO of Cathedral Group – owners of Devonport House – at the event.

Richard Upton commented: “I am delighted Cathedral Group has been able to plant the Hardy oak tree near to Hardy’s burial place. It was a pleasure to welcome the new leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the deputy mayor of Lewisham to Devonport House. I look forward to there being a closer working relationship between the two neighbouring boroughs.”

From L-R: Cllr Alan Smith (Deputy Mayor of Lewisham), Cllr Denise Hyland (Leader of Royal Greenwich) and Richard Upton (CEO of Catheral Group)

Local MP Nick Raynsford and St Alfege’s Chris Moody were also in attendance, along with representatives from the Nelson Society, Devonport House, Greenwich Hospital, the Greenwich Foundation, the Greenwich Society, the 1805 club and local businesses.

The blessing of the oak was carried out by Revd Susan Blackall from the Old Royal Naval College chapel.

Almighty God, bless this oak,
that it may grow in strength, beauty and resilience
and that it may inspire the lives of all who pass this way
with the example of Vice Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy,
in his heart of oak
and in his loyalty and love
for his friend, Lord Nelson, and for his country,
and for you, most steadfast and loving God:
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 
Amen.

THE FLAGSHIP of the British navy arrived at Greenwich at lunchtime today.

On a grey, wet day, the 176-metre long HMS Bulwark transited through the Thames Barrier, passed the O2 and Old Royal Naval College and then moored at Greenwich Shipping Tier.

The visit by Bulwark, under the command of Captain Dean Bassett, is one of a number of events this year to mark the 350th anniversary of the Royal Marines. The ship will also receive a visit from the First Sea Lord who is to present the awards for the Royal Navy’s prestigious Peregrine Trophy photo competition.

The ship will open its doors to the public on Saturday and Sunday this weekend. Tickets for the chance to explore the Albion-class assault ship were quickly snapped up once available but there will be exhibitions and presentations in the Old Royal Naval College grounds this weekend for landlocked spectators.

For Greenwich-based Royal Marine Callum Tacey, 22, the visit to London is a proud chance to come home with the ship he works on.

“When you get the opportunity to come in to London, it’s a good feeling to be at home again, whilst at work too.” What landmarks did he look out for as the ship came in to London? “The view of Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs reminded me of home – it would have been the Cutty Sark but we were facing the other way!”

His role on the ship is as a Signaller. “We maintain comms with the boats, make sure the radios work and we pass information on up the chain of command such as contact reports or if there are casualties. That all gets sent up the line through us,” he explains.

With the First Sea Lord on board, a spectacular air and seaborne capability demonstration will take place on Thursday evening between 8.30pm – 8.45pm.

Once she leaves Greenwich early on the morning of June 3rd, Bulwark will head to Portsmouth for a capability demonstration off of Southsea and then sail to Normandy for D-Day commemorations.

After being turned at Blackwall, the ship was towed past the O2.

She passed the Old Royal Naval College.

The stern of HMS Bulwark

Crew member Agostine, ship’s captain Dean Bassett and Royal Marine Callum Tacey from Greenwich

Greenwich as seen from HMS Bulwark

THE  LABOUR group on Greenwich Council has chosen its new leadership team following local elections last week.

Councillor Denise Hyland is the new leader of the group and Councillor John Fahy is the new deputy leader.

Hyland defeated Jackie Smith for the leadership and Fahy was victorious against incumbent deputy, Peter Brooks. They will become the leader of the council and deputy leader of the council respectively at the council’s AGM.

It’s thought to be the first time Greenwich Council has been run by a female leader. Outgoing council leader Chris Roberts didn’t stand for re-election after announcing last year he would be standing down.

The decision by the Labour group came just days after last Thursday’s local elections which saw them increase their control at the Town Hall, gaining three councillors at the expense of the opposition Conservative group.

Greenwich Tories now have eight councillors. Their highest profile loss was that of their deputy leader, Nigel Fletcher, in the Eltham North ward.

Following a meeting of the new Conservative group Spencer Drury has been re-elected as their leader and newcomer Matt Hartley replaces Fletcher as Deputy Leader.

Local winners

In the Greenwich West ward, Maureen O’Mara, Matthew Pennycook and Aidan Smith were elected. In Peninsula, Labour’s Stephen Brain, Chris Lloyd and Denise Scott-McDonald won.

The election saw the departure from the town hall of the popular Peninsula ward councillor Mary Mills after 14 years.

A NEW equestrian centre on Shooters Hill is nearing completion.

The facility will be run by Hadlow College and offer a range of equine courses for various age groups, including degree courses in partnership with the University of Greenwich.

American style barn

Equine bath

Horse gym being delivered

Surface material donated by London 2012 – it had been used in Greenwich Park.

The facility will also host a new therapy centre where horses can be referred to by vets and one of the only equine baths available in the south east.

Surface sand used at Shooters Hill has come from Greenwich Park. It made up about 1/80 of the surface material using in the park this summer and has been donated by London 2012 organisers.

Hadlow College’s Derek Payne told Greenwich.co.uk there had been an uplift in interest in equine courses since London 2012. “Especially on the equestrian sport side, for people that want to start riding or take it more competitively. Many had been looking at it for leisure but now are thinking more seriously about it as a career,” he commented.

A new “pegasus crossing” outside the equestrian centre will allow horses to cross the road in to Oxleas Wood.

The press were invited to see the new equestrian centre and also the new “sports hub” at Hornfair Park on the day that the council launched its Legacy Report.

Read Greenwich.co.uk tweets from the launch event

The report, which is available to download here, outlines the benefits that the council claims the area has received through its role as a host borough.

AFTER over four years of delivering news, photos and features for a Greenwich audience, Greenwich.co.uk will be taking a break from after Christmas.

Since starting in 2008, we’ve invested in great content from local writers, had some of the best photos and tried to keep readers informed about what’s happening in their town, and in their town hall.

We’ve attracted high profile contributors, including Andrew Gilligan and Nick Raynsford MP and even had some local stories, such as the controversy of broken in headstones in St Alfege Park, picked up by the national press and blogs across the world.

After Christmas we will be taking a break from posting news and photos to Greenwich.co.uk but we will in place of that have an exciting new forum where you can set the agenda by discussing the local issues that matter to you.

As well as the new forum, Greenwich.co.uk will also still have the only local What’s On guide you control and brilliant Charlton Athletic match reports from the incomparable Kevin Nolan.

And before Christmas, we have lots more surprises lined up and will be publishing end of year interviews with the Leader of Greenwich Council Chris Roberts and local MP, Nick Raynsford MP. We’ve also been speaking to the leader of Greenwich Consevatives, Spencer Drury and the new chair of Greenwich Lib Dems Chris Smith.

If you have enjoyed Greenwich.co.uk since 2008, remember there’s still time to get our souvenir calendar for 2013 featuring some of our favourite photographs from 2012.

AN INVESTIGATION in to the behaviour of a Greenwich Council cabinet member has recommended he apologise to a full meeting of the council but accepted he acted “without malicious intent” and “had not gained personally.”

The Standards Committee met yesterday morning at Woolwich Town Hall and took evidence from Cllr John Fahy, who was accused of failing to declare that he and the Chief Executive of Greenwich Leisure Limited were directors of the same charity, Meridian Link.

The committee found that Fahy has “no close business or social relationship” with the GLL boss and “technically” did not have a “personal interest to declare” at the cabinet meeting that saw library services transferred to GLL. The committee did, however, conclude that it would have been “preferable” if the councillor had declared his involvement in Meridian Link.

But the committee, chaired by Dr Susan Blackall, did find the Code of Conduct had been breached as Cllr Fahy had not registered his involvement with Meridian Link within 28 days of becoming a Director although they accepted this had been an “oversight” for which he had apologised.

The report concluded:

“That no further action be taken but it is recommended that Councillor Fahy makes a statement of apology to full council for his failure to register his interest in Meridian Link and to declare his involvement with Meridian Link at the November 2011 meeting of the Cabinet. In reaching this decision the Committee noted , the fact that there had been no malicious intent on his part; he had apologised for his omission and had not gained personally as a result.

Cllr Fahy told Greenwich.co.uk he was “very relieved” with the outcome.

He continued:

“This episode in my life has been a steep learning curve. I never faltered in my belief that I was not guilty of any wrong doing in this or any other matter during my period of public office which has spanned over thirty years.

“While I fully admit my failure to register the interest within the prescribed period, this was not done in any wilful way. The fact that I was removed from my Cabinet role in Olympic year was a bitter blow for me but I will continue to work tirelessly in the interests of residents of the Borough and those that elected me to represent them.”

A MEMBER OF Greenwich Council’s cabinet will this week appear before a meeting of the Standards Committee.

A meeting of the committee will take place on Monday at Woolwich Town Hall behind closed doors. Although the published agenda doesn’t name the subject of the investigation, this website understands they will be considering a complaint against Councillor John Fahy.

Cllr Fahy will be responding to claims made about his handling of the transfer to library services to social enterprise Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL) earlier this year.

The cabinet member, who was in charge of culture and preparing for London 2012 until just a few months before the Games, and the MD of GLL are both directors of a charity supporting education and sports projects in Ghana.

Cllr Fahy was unavailable for comment and Greenwich Council declined to comment.

GREENWICH COUNCIL is opposing the closure of Lewisham A&E, its leader has confirmed.

The controversial proposal to close the emergency ward at Lewisham Hospital is one of the recommendations in the NHS Trust Special Administrator’s draft report on the future of South London Healthcare Trust (SLHT).

But Councillor Chris Roberts has told this website, “We’re opposing the closure of the Accident & Emergency at Lewisham and the Maternity Unit at Lewisham.”

A draft response has been published on the council’s website and is expected to be agreed next week before being submitted as an official reply to the Trust Administrator’s consultation.

The decision to join calls for Lewisham A&E to be saved comes weeks after thousands of local people took to the streets to protest and a vocal campaign by Lewisham MPs and the council. But the leader of Greenwich Council defends the time taken by the Royal Borough to decide whether to formally oppose the plans:

“It will always be difficult if someone comes along and says ‘we’re going to shut down the Accident and Emergency in your borough.’ You will always have a tone and immediate reaction.

“But the first question, frankly, we had to ask is ‘If we say we don’t support the closure of Lewisham, does that mean you come back and close Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH)?’

“We produced a long list of questions that were added to by our Health Scrutiny Panel that we gave to the Trust Administrator and said ‘Before we say where we’re coming down on this, we want to know the answers to some of these.'”

Cllr Roberts says he now believes that the case for keeping QEH has been made, enabling them to join the calls to save Lewisham A&E:

“We’re very clear now from everyone we’ve spoken to, and we’ve had several conversations with the Administrator, that because of the existence of the PFI, which is paying for the renewal of the equipment every 5 years at Queen Elizabeth, you still have to pay that whether you keep the facility there or not so it doesn’t make financial sense to say ‘We’ve got to pay for this but we won’t have it.'”

He continues: “Because Queen Mary [in Sidcup] has already lost its A&E, on any analysis of travel times and accessibility you couldn’t really swap Lewisham for QEH but we wanted to make sure they felt that as well because whilst we don’t think they should close Lewisham A&E, we didn’t want to find that by making one argument they were just going to cut something else.”

Cllr Roberts does, however, support the idea of Lewisham’s and Greenwich’s hospital being run by the same trust.

“We’re broadly welcoming of putting Greenwich and Lewisham together in a hospital trust. One of the things that’s been missed out in the discussions is that Lewisham did bid to run QEH when the expressions of interest were sought from NHS bodies or independent providers.”

The comments from the Leader of Greenwich Council were part of a wide ranging interview with Greenwich.co.uk that will be published in full soon.