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The Council is continuing to seek feedback on the new road layout. The link can be found here. You will also find a report summarising the outcomes of site visits and road safety audits carried out so far - this includes recent responses to safety concerns from TfL. This report will be continually updated as further monitoring is undertaken. There is also an updated design drawing showing further changes to signage and road markings at Dulwich Village to address some of the initial concerns. The link to the online form is here.
The Mayor’s office has been consulting on a planned Ultra Low Emission Zone in central London. Starting from 8 April 2019, this will apparently replace the T-Charge with an even tighter emission standard for older less efficient cars and diesels. The South Circular is the boundary. See: tfl.gov.uk/airquality-consultation
Visit to the Beth Chatto Gardens and RHS Garden Hyde Hall
Tuesday 19th June 2017. Coach from Dulwich Picture Gallery, College Road - 8.15am for 8.30 departure; back around 6.15pm. Non-members welcome.
The Beth Chatto Gardens, near Colchester, were started by Beth Chatto in 1960. She took an overgrown wasteland of brambles, parched gravel and boggy ditches, and transformed it by using plants adapted by nature to thrive in different conditions. The informal gardens which have been developed here are now an inspiration to gardeners and plant lovers all over the world.
Today the Beth Chatto Gardens comprise the Gravel Garden, the Scree Garden, the Water Garden, the Woodland Garden and the Reservoir Garden. The planting in each garden reflects Beth Chatto’s dictum - “the right plant in the right place”.
RHS Garden Hyde Hall, near Chelmsford, sits prominently on a hilltop with sweeping views across the rolling Essex countryside, taking full advantage of its 360-degree views. At the centre of the gardens there are intensely cultivated planting schemes that slowly begin to soften and blend out into the surrounding landscape.
The result is an eclectic mix of horticulture from traditional rose gardens and herbaceous borders to vegetable gardens and large sweeping borders of grasses and meadowland.
We will arrive at The Beth Chatto Gardens at around 10.45am where we will be given the Gardener’s Tour. After taking lunch there we will move on to RHS Garden Hyde Hall. Both gardens have extensive plant sales. We should arrive back in Dulwich Village around 6.15pm.
Tickets (including admissions and tour) are £30 each and may be purchased on the Eventbrite website (www.eventbrite.co.uk - search “Dulwich Society”) or by sending a cheque (payable to The Dulwich Society) and stamped addressed envelope to Will Anderson at 141 Rosendale Road, London SE21 8HE.
Non-members are welcome. Enquiries to Will Anderson
The Society responded both to Steer Davies Gleave’s original presentation at the Dulwich Community Council on 1 November 2017 and to their subsequent Dulwich Traffic Management Study where consultation closed on 24th January.
The Society has not been able to poll its membership on the proposals but has relied on its Traffic and Transport group to put its response together Subject to this, our comments on original presentation and the detailed proposals are as follows:
Following the well-attended public meeting (over 350 people were there) on 18 January to protest against Lambeth Council’s plans for two major music festivals in Brockwell Park, the Council has decided not to go ahead with the largest event, ‘Lovebox’. However, there is still no final decision on the other smaller event ‘Field Day/The Mighty Hoopla’. Most of the residents at the meeting opposed the plans because of the impact they would have both on the park itself and the surrounding residential area
Despite detailed objections from the Society the Council agreed to go ahead with this large event in Peckham Rye Park in June. There had been some confusion over public consultation and neither the Society nor the London Wildlife Trust had been approached. The Society’s Trees and Wildlife committees had raised serious concerns about the impact particularly on the woodland areas.
The junction works still require further resurfacing and road safety signage installation. This should be done this month. The Council have also set up a new website to provide information about monitoring and evaluation of the works. It contains the monitoring programme, targets and key locations/focus, as well as FAQs on the scheme. Residents are invited to fill in an online form which will give Council officers feedback about their experience of the new road layout. The link to the online form is here.
The Boundary Commission for England has recently published its second version of proposals for new constituency boundaries based on a brief to reduce the total number from 650 to 600. This would see Dulwich and West Norwood split into four different constituencies. Gipsy Hill and Knights Hill would become the northern most wards in a new Norwood and Thornton Heath constituency. Herne Hill and Thurlow Park would become the north-easterly wards in a new highly elongated Streatham and Brixton South constituency, while College, East Dulwich and Village would become part of a new Dulwich and Sydenham constituency. Lastly, Coldharbour would become the most south-easterly ward in a new Brixton and Vauxhall constituency.
The Dulwich Estate Board of Trustees has announced the appointment of Simone Crofton as the new Chief Executive. She succeeds John Major, who is retiring after leading the organisation for 16 years. Ms Crofton will take up the position on 15 January 2018.
Ms Crofton is a former Chief Executive of the Institute of Imagination and The Borough Market Trust. Her CV includes extensive leadership experience in running charitable Trusts, building community relations and managing property portfolios and development programmes. She was instrumental in making London’s Borough Market the renowned national and international food destination it is today.
In welcoming her appointment, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Martin Bagley, said: “We are delighted to welcome Simone Crofton to the role. She brings an impressive mix of experience which will prove invaluable to the future of the organisation. We have no doubt she will serve our beneficiaries and the area well. We look forward to working with her as we move towards marking our 400th anniversary in 2019.”
Ms Crofton commented: “As a regular visitor to Dulwich, I am thrilled to join the organisation at such an important milestone in its history. I will work closely with businesses, residents and the wider community to build on The Dulwich Estate’s proud history of stewardship, supporting education and the elderly, contributing to this much loved and unique area of South East London.”
The junction works appear to be largely complete. All barriers have been removed and the new permanent signals are operating. F M Conway and AECOM will return to site on 12 February, when the final resurfacing will take place. Residents will be notified nearer the time regarding exactly what will be happening. However, we are told that there will be a few operatives completing small snagging tasks throughout January.
If further specific information is needed about the scheme, or if you require any clarifications, please contact F M Conway’s resident and business liaison officer Helen McConnell Tel 07917 518 529 or email
Residents who live near Brockwell Park are very concerned over the potential impact of Lambeth’s plans for these two music festivals. If you have concerns you should contact local councillors (Lambeth and Southwark) and you can also write confirming your objections to Cllr Sonia Winifred
The deadline for comments is 24th January. The consultants have put together an online page which includes a list of all proposals and a map to help localise them. Each proposal is presented with a short description and with the opportunity to leave a brief comment. The proposals are grouped under six wide themes (some of them fall within more than one theme): Air Quality, Walking, Public Transport Accessibility, Traffic Calming, Cycling, Parking. See this web page. You can also email