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At the Dulwich Community Council meeting on 28 September, the chair read out a statement from Ian Wingfield. It said that “The cabinet member requested officers, following feedback at the last community council meeting, to reconsider various aspects of the design and related issues. In particular officers were asked to conclude the Foundation Schools Coach service study (working in partnership with the Foundation schools) and this work has now been completed and an action plan around the high priority issues has been developed. It is expected that this will lead to significant improvements in the impact of the service on the local community, including the removal of 10 of 11 coaches from Calton Avenue each morning and significantly less coach congestion on Townley Road in the afternoon
He has also secured a commitment from TfL to attend a stakeholder meeting in Dulwich in the coming weeks, and if the Quietway proposals are to proceed, the cabinet member is committed to continued working with TfL and the community on a holistic study of traffic issues in the Dulwich area over the next year.”
The School Coach Study report, jointly funded by the Foundation Schools and Southwark Council, was published on 12 September. It is available on Southwark’s website.
McCullogh Homes have confirmed to us that they are currently preparing the supporting documentation for submission to sign off the planning conditions. Their target date for a start on site is currently January 2017. They have met with Council Officers and are fully aware of the restricted delivery hours at school times in the morning and afternoon. We have also asked them to make sure that the weeds and planting on the site is properly controlled over the next few months.
On the Showroom, the Estate has now taken back the lease on this property from S G Smith. The idea of a ‘pop’ up’ shop has proved difficult to implement without substantial alteration costs and It is likely that McCullogh Homes will take the ground and first floors as temporary offices.
Residents will have been surprised to see that there are two concurrent surveys on their views of the Scheme of Management, one organised by the Dulwich Estate www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Dulwich_SOM and one by the local Liberal Democrats https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/dulwichsom
The Dulwich Society Executive Committee have great pleasure in inviting you to a party at St Barnabas Parish Hall, Dulwich Village on Saturday 8th October 2016 at 8pm. All Society members and partners are welcome.
There will be music and entertainment throughout the evening, and wine, soft drinks and canapes will be served. The cost is £10 per person.
Please return the RSVP form that was included with the September Journal and send a cheque payable to “The Dulwich Society” to Dulwich Society October Party, 11 Ferrings London SE21 7LU by 30th September 2016. If you would prefer to pay by bank transfer, please email the Secretary at
It has now been confirmed that the Crown and Greyhound will not re-open until mid-January. While the front ‘pub’ building is complete there have been further delays on the ‘hotel’ block at the rear. The Dulwich Estate has not been able to reach agreement with Mitchells and Butler over a partial handover. The good news is that, on the Half Moon, Fullers have now completed the lease and preliminary enabling work should begin on Monday 12 September.
From 1 October Southwark residents will no longer be able to use the Lambeth recycling centre there. There are local recycling facilities in the Belair Park carpark, large items will have to be taken to the main Council centre at Devon Street off the Old Kent Road.
The new gate and stair access to the subway was officially opened on Thursday 8 September. The next stage of the work is the repaving of the outside space on the Southwark side. The Subway is open for Open House on 17/18 September.
There is some concern amongst the users of Dulwich Park that the new tenant at the café will not be in place when the current one leaves at the end of October. The Society has lobbied councillors to make sure that the café remains open continuously.
Following a further safety audit, some posts are to be installed to provide a clear separation between the cycling and car lanes.
2016 marks the 400th anniversary of the historic Burial Ground which has been at the heart of Dulwich Village since 1616. Originally planned by the well-known Elizabethan actor/manager, Edward Alleyn, as part of his charity, Alleyn’s College of God’s Gift, it was consecrated by the then Archbishop of Canterbury on 1 September that year following a service at Christ Chapel at the nearby ‘Old College’ earlier in the morning.
The burial ground is unusual in having no church on site and, while clearly visible from the surrounding streets, it is not open to the public. Although burials have taken place since 1616, including victims of the 1625 and 1665 plagues, the earliest visible grave stones and monuments date from the early eighteenth century. It was declared full in 1858, and only a few more burials were allowed, the last in 1918. It remains largely untouched since that time – the quiet country church yard ambience within five miles of central London is unique.
Unfortunately many of the inscriptions on the graves are no longer decipherable but, luckily, records of the names of all those buried there are held by the Dulwich College Archives.
As part of the 400th anniversary commemoration the Society’s local history group has researched the 114 graves and monuments that are visible on the site and prepared a schedule which gives the names, details of the inscriptions and, where possible, some background on the individuals interred there. (Download the PDF)
The Burial Ground will be open to the public from 1-5pm on both Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th September. Tours of some of the most interesting graves will be offered at 2, 3 and 4pm both days. Advance booking is not required.
The Dulwich Estate issued the following press release on 12 August under the heading ‘The Dulwich Estate brings new homes to the heart of Dulwich Village’
The Dulwich Estate is pleased to announce that twelve new family homes including four ‘affordable’ homes will be built on the former Audi workshop site in Dulwich Village. The development will be built by the new freeholder McCulloch Homes Ltd, which has a strong reputation for building innovative, quality homes, during the past 26 years in the South East.
John Major, Chief Executive, The Dulwich Estate said, “We are pleased to enable these new family homes with off-street, basement, parking in the centre of the Village. The redevelopment also eliminates traffic from the Village (generated by the car repair/servicing workshop), enhancing the Village for local residents which very much matches with the ethos of the Charity’s Scheme of Management.”
Terry Phillips, Land Manager for McCulloch Homes Ltd said “We are delighted to have secured this prime location in Dulwich Village where we will build these highly desirable homes which have been carefully designed to suit their surroundings”.
Planning consent is granted for:
Eight three storey town houses (4 x 4 bed and 4 x 5 bed) with basement parking (two spaces per house).
Four affordable homes with basement parking
- 1 x 3 bed house (wheelchair accessible)
- 1 x 2 bed house
- 2 x 1 bed flats