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Continental Market Coming to Greenwich in September

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A Continental Village Market will be setting up stall in Greenwich next month allowing shoppers to get a taste of produce from countries all over Europe.

The traders will be bringing with them French cheeses, charcuterie, Greek olives and tapenades, dried nuts and fruit as well as Turkish pastries will be just some of the delicacies on offer. Hot foods will include German spicy sausages, Spanish paella and Brittany crepes while other items such as wooden toys, little gifts and jewellery from Paris, lavender oils, soaps and table cloths from Provence, will also be on offer.

The market will be in Cutty Sark Gardens on Friday 4th September and Saturday 5th September from 10am – 6pm, before moving on to Eltham at Passey Place on Sunday 6th September from 10am – 4pm.

Greenwich Police Chief Signals Support For Single Patrolling

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The recently appointed Borough Commander of Greenwich Police, Richard Wood, has made clear his support for single patrolling by his officers.

Mr Wood expressed his support for the measure whilst walking the beat himself and talking to local people recently in Greenwich, Woolwich and Eltham town centres.

Commander Wood said:

“I will ask my officers to patrol singly where they can. We need to maximise the amount of uniforms on the streets even though there might be times when it is necessary to patrol in pairs because of safety. I am keen to ensure that we increase our presence on the streets of Greenwich.”

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson said back in March that single patrolling should be the “default” position although at the time, the Police Federation’s London branch chairman, Peter Smyth, told the Times that it was a “nice soundbite” but it could “leave officers open to malicious complaints”.

He added:

“Would they (single-patrolling officers) be effective if they can’t intervene in things because they have not got corroboration? If they have to wait for 10 minutes for their colleague to arrive whenever a problem arises, the whole exercise would be pretty pointless.”

Mr Wood also expressed his commitment to meeting the Met’s Policing Pledge. He said he intended to “ensure that every single point of the Pledge is met by my officers”.

What do you think? How do you think Greenwich Police are doing? Do you welcome Borough Commander Wood’s support for single patrolling?


Greenwich Borough Commander Wood talking to local people in Greenwich.

Greenwich Market To Keep Its Cobbles

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Greenwich Hospital – the charity that owns Greenwich Market – appears to have backed down in the face of local opposition over two aspects of its controversial regeneration project.

Recognising that the cobbled floor of the market is “much loved”, Greenwich Hospital has revised its planning application to include a promise that they “will carefully raise, refurbish and re-lay all the cobbles in a new configuration interspersed with new granite setts”.

The charity has also offered a concession over the Durnford Street buildings they had planned to demolish. The brickwork and building materials will instead now be salvaged and be donated for use within the World Heritage site.

Martin Sands, Director of Greenwich Hospital, said:

“Having hosted two public exhibitions and undertaken extensive stakeholder and community consultation I am pleased that we are able to respond to these specific community concerns raised about the cobbled market floor and the Durnford Street buildings. The market regeneration is designed to respect the World Heritage Site, retain the character of the Market and encourage retail diversity and independent businesses.”

If you were an opponent of the redevelopment project, do the proposed concessions meet your concerns?

Minister for London Hosts Crime Discussion in Kidbrooke

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Tessa Jowell

Minister for London, Tessa Jowell, visited the Samuel Montagu Youth Centre, SE3, on Tuesday to take part in a discussion about crime in the borough.

The meeting was attended by 60 young people from the area, Police, Councillors, Government Office for London staff, Youth Programmes Workers and Greenwich Area Youth Forum members. It formed part of a roadshow of events to highlight a new package of measures by the Government under the title “Building Britain’s Future“.

Tessa Jowell, said: “Building Britain’s Future is about talking to local people about the big issues facing the country today. It is about every part of government becoming more accountable and responsive to people’s needs in the current economic climate.

At yesterday’s event, local young people told me what more they think the Government should do to keep their neighbourhood safe. I will ensure that these views and ideas are heard by colleagues across central Government.”

Small Drop for Greenwich House Prices in June

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Land Registry figures released today show that house prices in the borough of Greenwich have continued to fall, despite an average increase for London as a whole during June.

Greenwich house prices saw a change last month of -1.2% with the average price of a home in Greenwich now standing at £236,417 – that’s down 15.9% on a year ago.

But there may be signs that the market is beginning to bottom out with prices in nearby Lewisham increasing by 0.5% and house prices across London as a whole rising by 2.0%.

Jason Lamb from King Sturge in College Approach told Greenwich.co.uk “We are finding that activity has significantly improved, and we think that this is largely due to increased mortgage availability. In addition, there is a feeling amongst the buyers that house prices have reached their floor… The main problem that we now face, though, is a lack of stock rather than a lack of buyers! High demand and low supply will, in my view, continue to dominate in the Greenwich area for some time, and this will hopefully curtail any further house price depreciation.”

Are you trying to move home in Greenwich at the moment? What are your experiences of the local housing market?

See also: Estate agents in Greenwich

Man Remanded Over Greenwich Murder

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A 20 year old man has been charged with the murder of Greenwich pensioner, Edward Highwood. Mr Highwood, 79, was found murdered in his home in Hollymount Close just over a week ago. Head injuries were the cause of death and computer equipment had been taken from the property.

Marcin Orlowski, of no fixed address, was arrested in connection with the incident on Friday. Police charged him murder and earlier today he appeared before Sutton Magistrates’ Court who remanded him in custody until he faces trial.

More Cycle Spaces At Westcombe Park

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Westcombe Park

Commuters using Westcombe Park train station are benefitting from the addition of 30 new spaces for cycles.

Transport for London has funded the extra spaces as part of a £300,000 program to increase the number of cycle spaces across London.

The new spaces are the familiar “Sheffield Stand” design, and include shelters, lighting and CCTV.

Head of Cycling, Walking and Accessibility at TfL, Peter McBride said: “We are delighted to work with Southeastern to provide additional parking facilities to encourage more people to cycle to rail stations to continue their journeys by train.

“These new facilities are part of the Mayor’s agenda to improve cycling in the Capital to help more people take to two wheels. TfL is committed to meeting the growing demand for safe and secure cycle parking and delivering the cycling revolution in London.”

Do you think there are enough cycle spaces in Greenwich? Where would you like to see additional spaces positioned?

Assembly Member Seeks Greenwich Park Feedback

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A member of the Greater London Assembly is asking for your feedback on how consulted you feel about the plans to use Greenwich Park as an equestrian event at London 2012.

Gareth Bacon – a London-wide assembly member – has distributed a survey to a number of homes (I’m not sure how many) in Greenwich asking if you have received communications from LOCOG or the Mayor about the impact of the games, or if you have been invited to any public meetings on the subject.

If you haven’t received the questionnaire and would like to respond, you can request an electronic copy by emailing liz.thompson@london.gov.uk.

Arrest Made Following Greenwich Murder

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Detectives investigating the murder of Edward Highwood last weekend have today arrested a 20 year old man who is being questioned at a south London police station.

Police revealed earlier in the week that a 17″ Hewlett Packard computer monitor with silver-grey edging had been stolen from the victim’s Hollymount Close home and appealed for anyone who may have been offered the screen to come forward. 

A post mortem on Mr Highwood, aged 79, confirmed that he died from injuries sustained to his head in the incident.

Police are still looking to get information from anyone who may have seen Edward Highwood  or who saw anything suspicious in Hollymount Close – call the incident room on  020 8721 4054.

Greenwich Named As Swine Flu Hotspot

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Latest figures on Swine Flu show that Greenwich has become one of the country’s hotspots for the virus. Statistics produced by Nottingham University’s Division of Primary Care today say that the borough of Greenwich is currently third in the country when it comes to reported cases of swine flu per 100,000 people.

Greenwich has an infection rate of 441 suspected cases per 100,000 people. Neighbouring Lewisham has a rate of 423.8  and England’s most affected borough is just over the Thames in Tower Hamlets where the rate is 792.4 per 100,000 people.

The news comes on the same day that the NHS in England has launched a new Swine Flu website and telephone service which allows suspected sufferers to get hold of anti viral drugs without visiting their GP.

Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson told the BBC today: “There is no evidence to suggest it is becoming more virulent. Most people with no underlying conditions will get over the flu perfectly well.

Symptoms of Swine Flu

  • sudden fever (a high body temperature of 38C/100.4F or above), and
  • sudden cough

Other symptoms may include:

  • headache,
  • tiredness,
  • chills,
  • aching muscles,
  • limb or joint pain,
  • diarrhoea or stomach upset,
  • sore throat,
  • runny nose,
  • sneezing, and
  • loss of appetite.

Get more information about Swine Flu

Are you worried about Swine Flu? Do you feel like you’ve been given enough information? Post your comments below.