LOCAL INFORMATION & NEWS

Extracts from previous RCDT Weekly ENews/Events Listings: March 2007

RCDT News

As RCDT enters the new financial year on 1 April the Board members are pleased to be able to report that:
• a new tenancy agreement has been approved for North Lambeth Town Centre Team to continue to be based at 20 Newburn St
• Sean Creighton will continue to be employed part-time
• a more project based development programme is being finalised, based on ideas largely generated during last year’s Festival planning
• it is developing closer working partnership relationships with a number of organisations including Alford House and Lady Margaret Hall Settlement
• that it is exploring how it can contribute the helping the effective delivery of the Council’s Communities First programme in the area

The Board members are: Danielle Arnaud, Clare Douglas, Michael Faulkner, Brenda Fraser, Dee Irving, Jane Madsen, Philip Moore, Jim Nicolson, Martin Osengor, Tim Saunders, and Comfort Wilson.

LOCAL NEWS

5 March - Friends of Kennington Park Public Meeting. St Agnes Church Hall, St Agnes Place. FoKP, Prince Consort Lodge, Kennington Park, Kennington Park Place, SE11 4AS; Tel: 020 7820 4423. Email: friendsofkenningtonpark@treesforcities.org; www.fkop.co.uk

6 March - Start of PUNKTURE-2. Think/tank exhibition of new abstract paintings on canvas, paper, board and drum skins by Philip Barker, aka philphuture: artist, composer and anarcho-punk drummer (Lack of Knowledge, The Stratford Mercenaries, Buzzcocks). Oval House Theatre Café.

10 March - Start of LIAM GILLICK: ‘The Commune Itself Becomes A Super State’. Exhibition at Corvi-Mura gallery

10 March – Start of ANNIE WHILES – CUCKOO. Line drawings of furniture and artifact. at Danielle Arnaud Gallery

13 March - Operation Freshview in Prince’s Ward. Operation Freshview is an opportunity for a range of agencies to work together, to deliver initiatives that improve the local environment, promote community safety and reduce the fear of crime, and improve the quality of life for a significant number of Lambeth residents. The Operation educates residents about their local services and also allows them to voice their own opinions. The name Freshview has been chosen as it encompasses our fresh approach to delivering services in partnership as well as encouraging residents and businesses to take a fresh view of their area. A wide range of activities are covered on the day, for example: Graffiti Removal, Bulky waste items removed, Abandoned and untaxed vehicle removal, Hedges cut back, Street lighting repairs, etc

15 March – Start of Hibernator: Prince of the Petrified Forest, by London Fieldworks
An ambitious new exhibition project by London Fieldworks, commissioned by Beaconsfield. Working with the legacy and personal myth of Walt Disney, the commission embraces the latest developments in animatronics, primal hibernation patterns and the practice of cryonics in its exploration of fantasy and death.

15 March - Prince’s Ward Investment Strategy. Report for approval at Lambeth Council Cabinet meeting. Room 8, Lambeth Town Hall, Acre Lane, Brixton. It will also discuss the revised Economic Development Strategy, and Events Strategy for Parks and Open Spaces, For paper see Lambeth website www.gov.uk go to Council & Democracy, Go to Committee Reports, Minutes & Agendas,.

16 March - Start of Eames Demetriois. Reflections in the Umbrasphere at Man&Eve Gallery.

18 March - Roots and Shoots Annual Spring Fair. 'Sounds of Spring'. A celebration of the Sounds of Spring recorded by the children at Walnut Tree Walk School and Ethelred Nursery with the help of local musicians and artists. Includes exhibition and sound installation in the Wildlife Gdn, storytelling shirt drama pieces with R&S trainees and a theatre group, organic fruit and veg, bakeries, local crafts, ,etc.

19 March - Mountaineering - Tunbridge Wells to the Andes. Back by popular request, local expert Ian Smith gives an illustrated tour of 30 years of rock-climbing and mountaineering – Kent to Kyrgystan, Jordan to the Alps to South America, taking in sandstone outcrops, sea cliffs, desert rocks, snowy peaks and more... At Durning Library, 167 Kennington Lane. Friends
of the Durning Library.

21 March - North Lambeth Area Committee. Pedlar's Acre Community Centre, 1 Opal St (behind North Lambeth Housing Office at 91 Kennington Lane). Agenda: Library Service - Fundamental Review; Youth Service in North Lambeth - an overview; Prince's Ward Investment Strategy; Crime update; Recycling Service developments.

21-24 March - ‘RAGGED CHILD’ WITH THE INNER CITY PLAYERS. Adults £6, concessions £3. Several children from Archbishop Sumner Primary School Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 are in the play, as well as some staff. It’s set in the Victorian era but has much relevance for today. Lots of good catchy songs and dancing and a powerful story!! Lambeth Mission, 3/5 Lambeth Rd.

28 March - Meeting re-Council Extended Budget Consultation. 6—8pm Waterloo Action Centre, 14 Baylis Road

30 March - Getting It Together Partnership, Innovation and the LAA. A free conference sponsored by Thamesreach and Lambeth First to help Lambeth voluntary and community groups build their understanding of the Local Area Agreement. 9.30-am-3.30pm. Morley College, 61 Westminster Rd. To book a place and for further information contact Jane Ritchie 020 7926 7520 or jcritchuie@lambeth.gov.uk

Din Associates. Din Associates, the local architects’ practice based in St Oswald’s Place closed at the end of February due to the retirement of the senior partner. DA was a local business member of RCDT.

Four Car Parking Spaces in Kennington outside Charge Zone!!! St Mary’s Newington Church on Kennington Park Rd has four parking spaces available for rent seven days a week behind the Church. £260 per quarter payable in advance (i.e. £20 per week). Yes - outside the Central Charging Zone area on the Southwark side of Kennington Park Rd! If you are interested please email: Rev’d Andrew Dodd on rector@stmarynewington.org.uk

Kennington Association Tai Chi moves to Centenary Hall. Cathy Preece (Kennington Association) writes: The regular Tai Chi class held on Thursday afternoons at 4pm has now moved to Centenary Hall, Cottington St, SE11 4RZ. This is due to refurbishment works taking place at St Anselm's to accommodate the new nursery opening there in late spring. As usual, the classes are free and all ages and abilities are welcome - just turn up in comfortable clothing.

LOCAL NEWS

Drones Jazz Continues from Strength to Strength. Every Tuesday at the Pilgrim Bar and Kitchen, 247 Kennington Lane (the corner of Kennington Lane and Montford Place). Hosted by the Ned Flanders Quartet (Marcus Hill, Tim Clark, Andrew Sweeney and Dougie Neillands), with the very special Dee Byrne on alto sax. London's friendliest jazz jam, in one of London's friendliest pubs. House band 8.15 - 9.15pm. Jam 9.30 - 11pm. All instrumentalists, drummers, percussionists, welcome to come and play jazz standards.

Two Major Conferences for Community & Voluntary Organisations being held in North Lambeth. Two major Conferences for Lambeth community & voluntary organisations are being held locally on 30 March and 2 April – see This Coming Friday and April Diary sections below.
Kennington Sure Start Closes on 31 March to be re-born as part of the Children’s Centres initiative from 1 April. A big thanks to the staff over the years for the excellent range of activities for under 5s and the way they involved parents.

Kennington Association Boot Sales. Cathy Preece (KA) writes: Thanks to Doreen and her team, we can now confirm that we are holding another Boot Sale over Easter on Saturday 7th April from 8am until 2pm at the Lilian Baylis old school site in Lollard Street (Lambeth Walk end) on the Ethelred Estate, SE11. Plot £5, Table £1, Entrance 50p. If you would like to book a plot, please contact Doreen direct on 07944 202194. For future, you might like to note that we plan to hold these boot sales regularly, beginning monthly on the first Saturday of each month.’

City Farm 30th Anniversary. Vauxhall City Farm will be celebrating its 30th birthday later this year. Watch this space for activities.

The Kennington Village Fete is Coming... Sunday 20 May. Aleander Crum Ewing, Margarita O'Malley, & Kowsar Hoque . the Fete Team write: The 2007 Kennington Fete will be held on Sunday 20th May from 12 noon ~ 3.00pm in Cleaver Square (if wet in St Anselm’s Church, by kind permission of Angus Aagaard).
Children & Family Events: The inimitable David Weeks has agreed to perform Magic again; Professor Felix is booked for a return engagement of his Punch & Judy Show.
Stalls to benefit the Fete’s fundraising will be similar to last year, including:- Books, Records & CDs, Plants & Herbs, Homemade Cakes & Cookies, Tea Stall, Bottle Stall, Champagne Tombola, The Kennington Tandoori Foodstall, Clothes (quality/nearly new), Furnishings, Antiques & Bric-a-Brac, Raffle, etc.
Personal/Commercial Stalls: Will be available at £35 each. We will be inviting last year’s stallholders to return (honey, chocolates, jewellery, belts/leather, artist-printmaker, etc) and other stallholders are welcome.
Community Groups can participate again free of charge, for example KA, Friends of Kennington Park, LMHS, Dan’s Healthcheck & Fitness, Ricky’s Sports Initiatives, etc.
Donations/Volunteers. Donations can be left c/o The Kennington Tandoori. We also welcome Volunteers who’d like to assist, run a stall, or bring a stall of their own.
Fundraising. We raised over £5,000 last year, thanks to generous sponsorship from Winkworth, which has been put towards our goal of eco-friendly Christmas lights at Kennington Cross. The Fete this year will continue the fundraising for these lights.
Contact The Fete c/o The Kennington Tandoori or KenningtonFete@hotmail.com

Thessaly Green Services offers a range of cleaning and other services to businesses and residents. This is a new social enterprise aimed to provide a range of services in the area, and is the successor to Kennington Office Cleaners Co-operative. For full details see story below.

Homeground. The new issues of the excellent Homeground magazine edited by Elaine Kramer for the tenants of Hyde Southbank on Kennington Park and other estates will be available from Stockwell Resource Centre from the week starting 2 April. Copies are available to-none estate residents as well. Articles on community planting at Larkhall Park, details of the Le Grand Depart cycle race through Lambeth on the first weekend of July, Camberwell Arts Festival in June programme, news on the anti-slavery trade work of Anti-Slavery International at Stockwell, and much much more. To get a copy email elaine@stockcr.co.uk

COMMUNITY/POLICING NEWS

Keepin’ it Real… Lambeth Youth telling it how it is… Community-Police Consultative Group for Lambeth, Tuesday, 6 March (Assembly Hall, Lambeth Town Hall, Brixton). The best part of the meeting will be given over to Lambeth Youth to speak about the reality, for them, of living, working, studying and playing in the borough: Crime… Fear of Crime…Youth Provision…Education… Jobs… Environment… Health…Flyers for the meeting have been distributed and contact made with youth groups and organisations to try to attract the broadest viewpoints on the various quality of life issues that affect the lives of Lambeth’s young people. Please try to attend - to both listen and contribute to the event. Furthermore, if you know a young person, whether it be a relative or neighbour, invite them along… they may have something to say, or hear something they would wish to support, but never knew they had the opportunity. CPCG for Lambeth -Your Shout in local policing admin@lambethcpcg.org.uk 020 7733 0878. www.lambethcpcg.org.uk  for details of future events and information resources.

LAMBETH COUNCIL NEWS

Council Sets Budget with Emphasis on Young People and Community Safety. The Council states: ‘Lambeth Council is to make major investments in youth provision and community safety next year, after agreeing its 2007/8 budget and council tax rate on Wednesday 28 February. The council agreed that Lambeth's part of the council tax would increase by 4.99%, and with an increase of 5.3% from the Greater London Authority, this means that the Lambeth Council tax rate will increase by 5.07% overall..……. This year’s budget includes the biggest investment in youth provision in the borough’s history with an extra £1.7m being invested in services for young people by 2009.’ The full story is on the Lambeth Council website: www.lambeth.gov.uk/News/CouncilTax2007.htm

CROSS RIVER TRAM NEWS

Oval Ward Councillor Rob Banks has circulated the following news of the London Assembly Transport Committee's views on the Cross River Tram proposal, as he was ‘aware this was mentioned at the KOV meeting this week but nobody was certain about what had actually been proposed by the Committee.’ The sections below come from a letter from Geoff Pope, Chair, London Assembly Transport Committee dated 2 March.

Waterloo – Oval
2.7 The Committee supports Option 2 on this route, which runs down the Kennington Road and past the Imperial War Museum. This would increase tourist and visitor numbers, boosting the local economy. This route would also serve St Thomas Hospital, providing easier access for patients and visitors. The Committee would note that Option 1 serves the Elephant and Castle, which is already served by the Waterloo to Peckham route.

Oval to Brixton
2.8 The Committee supports Option 2. Both options on this route would benefit from transport priority measures and the regenerative effects the tram would bring. Option 1, via Stockwell, would best relieve congestion on the Northern Line and assist in regeneration of the Stockwell Park Estate. However, extensive traffic management measures would be required, particularly at congested junctions, to allow the tram to run down Stockwell Road.

2.9 Option 2 is a more direct route and would better serve the poorest areas in Lambeth, including Myatt’s Fields.

Brixton Town Centre
2.10 The Committee supports Option 1, via Brixton Hill and Effra Road on this route. Although Option 2 offers an interchange with the overground station, the Committee believes it does not offer as many regenerative possibilities. Option 1 would take the tram to the centre of Brixton, serving an area to be redeveloped as Brixton Central Square. Furthermore, this option allows the possibility of the tram being extended down to Streatham, which would relieve the pressure on the bus and tube interchange, providing better public transport for a badly underserved area.

2.11 The Committee would however like to see the possibility of terminating at Brixton tube station investigated.

Potential extensions
1.6 The Cross River Tram provides many interchange points, and will assist in the integration of London’s public transport. We would also like TfL to ensure that the tram is capable of being extended north to the Holloway Road and the Arsenal Emirates Stadium, and south to Streatham and New Cross. Furthermore, provision should be made to enable the CRT to link at Holborn with the proposed Oxford Street Tram.

SLAVERY & ABOLITION 2007

March sees the 200th Anniversary of the Act of Parliament banning British ships form invoplvement in the slave trade. Although a year later the United States also made it illegal for American ships to be involved, the British Navy’s anti-slavery patrol off West Africa intercepted illegal Americna slave trading ships often flying flags of other countries. It was not until 1834 that Parliament passed the Act emancipating the slaves in British colonies. However an apprenticehsip scheme was introduced, to be ended in 1838 following abuses. Parliament also compesnated the slave owners with £20m. This year sees an enormous number of projects arouind the them of slavery and abolition, plus ongoing forms of slavery today.

Ellen Craft: MOJ OF THE ANTARCTIC: An African Odyssey
Oval House Theatre’s contribution is about Ellen Craft, who with her husband William, was a popular black American abolitionist campainer when they visited Britain. The play MOJ OF THE ANTARCTIC: An African Odyssey by Mojisola Adebayo, directed by Sheron Wray, is a piece ‘inspired by the wonderful true life story of Ellen Craft, a 19th century African-American slave woman who escaped to freedom by disguising herself as a white man. Ellen’s amazing story of race and gender cross-dressing is one of the forgotten gem’s of Black history, and the history of drag! Moj of the Antarctic extends Ellen’s amazing biography into a flight of theatrical fantasy where upon arrival in Victorian London, she finds work as a sailor on a whaling ship bound for the Southern Seas. Life on the ship is tough and even stranger is the men’s obsession with Black face minstrelsy. Eventually the ship arrives in Antarctic waters ripe for gruesome whaling, and Moj becomes the first Black woman to step foot Antarctica. This innovative total theatre piece incorporates video, text, dance, music, storytelling, song and stunning original photography created for the piece on location in Antarctica by …. visual artist Del LaGrace Volcano. Moj of the Antarctic is not only an allegorical historical show; it is an important ecological creative exploration. The performance highlights important connections between Antarctica, global warming, rising sea-levels, desertification, drought, famine and the coastal erosion of historical slave sites in Africa.’ Wednesday 7 - Saturday 24 March at Oval House Theatre, 52-54 Kennington Oval. Box Office: 020 7582 7680. www.ovalhouse.com. Free Post-show discussions on Wednesday 9, Tuesday 13 and Tuesday 20 March.
Details about Ellen and William Craft can be seen on the New Georgia Encyclopedia website: http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-622

LMHS’S KENNINGTON QUARTER PROPOSAL

See Beaufoy Institute and Lilian Baylis page on website

COUNCIL MOVES TO DECISIONS ON
LILIAN BAYLIS, BEAUFOY AND OTHER SITES

See Beaufoy Institute and Lilian Baylis page on website

VAUXHALL TO BE KEY AREA IN REVISED COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

The Vauxhall part of Prince’s Ward is to be a key area in the Council’s revised Economic Development Strategy being considered by the Cabinet on Thursday 15 March. The paper ‘Lambeth Economic Development Strategy 2004-1008 Revision’ seeks among others things to ‘tackle decline in Brixton, exploit growth in Clapham, Vauxhall and Waterloo to reflect growth opportunities’. The strategic aims are: growth in enterprise, growth in employability, opportunity through diversity. The second strategic aim includes ‘working with planners to ensure that planning policy in new development growth areas i.e. Waterloo, Vauxhall and Brixton reflect sectoral growth areas i.e. finance and business, service and creative and cultural industries’.
The third strategic aim includes ‘providing enterprise support services, to sustain investment into local community and voluntary organisations’. The paper can be seen on the Cabinet page of the Committee Minutes. Reports and Agenda page through the Community & Democracy section of the Council website: www.lambeth.gov.uk .

OPERATION FRESHVIEW IN PRINCE’S WARD – 13 MARCH

Liz Cloud, Senior Market Research and Consultation Officer, Environment, Culture and Community Safety (Lambeth Council) has sent round the following information about this coming Tuesday’s Operation Freshview in Prince’s Ward.

‘Operation Freshview last came to Princes ward in October last year where the council and its partner organisations worked on cleaning up the area. In the course of the day, the following actions were taken:

• Ten on the spot littering fines
• One arrest for possession of controlled drugs with intent to supply
• Old School site cleaned and renovated up by the youth offender volunteers
• Twelve shops inspected
• Two unregistered food premises inspected, resulting in twelve contraventions being found
• Sixteen dangerous structures follow-up inspections and thirty temporary structures inspected by Building Control.
• One hundred twenty four syringes picked up from public areas in the ward,
• One hundred and thirty six square meters of Graffiti painted
• Four hundred and seventy four square meters of flyposts removed

We would really like your feedback on where to focus our efforts this time round. Please see enclosed map for the area to be covered.

If you have time to return the email and answer the following questions, we would be very grateful. Please also come and see us on the day on Lambeth Walk (between Black Prince Road and Lollard Street). between 8am and 4pm. We will be giving out ‘stubbie’ pouches for collecting cigarette butts as well as information about our different services. We will also be collecting any bulky items of rubbish left out for collection in front of dwellings as well as carrying out several other cleaning, tidying and improvement activities.

Are there any particular areas where rubbish or abandoned cars have built up that you think need removing? (Please state whether this is on an estate or a public area)

Are there any premises where you think that Trading Standards or Environmental Health Officers should investigate (Trading Standards enforce a wide range of laws, including product safety, weights and measures, food labelling, credit, product counterfeiting and fair trading.)

Are there any areas of parking related problems that Parking Attendants should look into?

Are there any areas where there is graffiti or fly posting that needs removing?

Are there any areas where you have noticed anti-social behaviour which needs tackling?

Finally, do you or anyone you know want a free home fire safety visit from the London Fire Brigade? This could involve them fitting a free smoke alarm if needed. Please call the Fire Service on 08000 28 24 28 to arrange a visit or respond to this email’

‘We may not be able to action all your ideas on Tuesday but we will make a note of your issues and include them in the Capital Cleanup campaign which has been instigated by the Mayor. See http://www.capitalcleanup.co.uk/  for further details.

All your personal details will be kept private and confidential and will not be used for any other purpose than identifying issues in your local area.’

Liz Cloud can be contacted on: 020 7926 0145, fax: 020 7926 2486, e-mail: lcloud@lambeth.gov.uk 
website: http://www.lambeth.gov.uk

FOUNDERS PLACE DEVELOPMENT APPEAL

Sarah O’Connell (local resident) writes: The developers behind an application, Founders Place, to build on the land to the north of Archbishops Park have appealed against Lambeth's refusal of their planning application, The Secretary of State, Ruth Kelly will now make a decision on the basis of advice from her Planning Inspector, and following a public inquiry due to start on 19 April and which will last around three weeks. Much of the local concern has focussed on the impact the development will have on the Lambeth Palace Conservation area. Buildings and trees within the development site will be removed, including the former Holy Trinity School building to the north of Archbishops Park. Instead five storeys of private flats will face directly into the foliage of trees in Archbishops Park to the extent that a regular cycle of pruning will be required. The main concern is that the design of the buildings, with the main living room windows facing directly south into the trees, will cause new residents to seek pressure to have the trees pruned back further or even felled, so that they can enjoy sunlight and park views. There is no objection to development per se on this site, but a belief that proposals should be in accordance with Lambeth's planning and conservation policies, and not impact adversely on the park

If Lambeth lose this appeal, they may, as they did when they lost the appeal for a 40+ storey building by Vauxhall Bridge, have to pay the developers costs. So there are important issues, not only in the context of the Lambeth Palace Conservation area, but possibly in terms of Lambeth's future willingness to defend its conservation and green space policies robustly elsewhere in Kennington or indeed across the borough.

If you share this concern could you add your name to an online petition at  http://www.PetitionOnline.com/rclens1/

In the first instance we will use this petition to provide evidence of public concern about the impact of the development proposals on the conservation area. The deadline is 18 March. However the final decision will not be made until autumn, and so if you know of others who may be interested please could you let them know.
As the petition will be submitted as evidence to a public inquiry, we need to ask for your address. However if you are reluctant to give a full address I would hope a shortened form would be accepted.
We will also be collecting signatures on paper for those who do not have access to email. If you would like to sign or are willing to collect signatures - say if you plan to attend an event with people who are likely to be supportive - if you would be interested in attending a day or two of the inquiry or if you would like further details, please contact me at sarah@fergalh.fsnet.co.uk  or 07951 587 870. .

COMMUNITIES FIRST CONFERENCE FRIDAY 23 MARCH

Communities First is the new approach of Lambeth Council to community involvement and engagement. A Conference is being held by Lambeth Council with the support of Lambeth First and Lambeth Voluntary Action Council, to enable the community and voluntary sector to discuss what it means and how they can get involved. Conference Centre, Oval Cricket Ground, Kennington SE11 at 2 - 5pm on Friday 25 March. If you want to go please contact Andrew Fernandez at Lambeth Voluntary Action Council on 020 7737 9462. email: icm@lvac.org.uk  by 16 March.

LOCAL PLANNING APPLICATIONS:

26 February – 3 March: None

4-10 March

289-299 Kennington Lane. Approval of details pursuant to Condition 5 (Sustainable drainage) of Planning Permission 06/02732/FUL (Demolition of existing buildings and erection of a 3 storey warehouse building with 2 storey basement and 3 internal demountable mezzanine floors for self storage use (Use Class B8) and 'flexi offices' (Use Class B1), together with 9 car parking spaces, cycle stands, boundary treatment, landscaping, lighting and a cctv camera (Amended description), granted on 22/12/2006. Applicant Big Yellow Self Storage Co. Ref: 07/00907/DET. Is this the former Vauxhall Car dealer’s showroom?

63 Palfrey Place. Demolition of existing two-storey building and the erection of a two-storey plus non-habitable celler, 3-bedroom single-family dwelling house (Amendment to planning permission 06/02237/FUL with respect to the omission of habitable basement and alterations to elevations). Ref: 07/00803/FUL

36 Cleaver Street. External and internal alterations including replacement of existing kitchen with a bathroom at basement level, erection of a side extension with the creation of a courtyard and installation of a window to existing wc at garden floor level, installation of fitted cupboards to 1st floor and alterations to stairs, removal of internal wall, installation of fitted cupboards and installation of a new bathroom at 2nd floor level (Town Planning and Listed Building Applications). Ref: 07/00796/FUL

321-323 Kennington Road. Change of use of two adjoining units from a launderette (Use Class sui generis) and B1 use class respectively, to a dry-cleaning and laundry service with delivery and collection of items (Use Class sui generis). Ref: 07/00786/FUL

19 Claylands Rd. Erection of ground floor rear extension, replacement of existing kitchen window with french doors, removal of existing first floor rear conservatory and erection of first floor rear extension and raising of part of existing rear roof. Ref: 07/00698/FUL

COUNCIL BUDGET NEWS

Update on cuts to Lambeth adult services provision. Kennington Association has sent round the following information: The full Council meeting on 28th February approved the proposed budget for the next financial year (from April 2007). The proposed cut of £736,000 to the voluntary sector in Adult Services is now being implemented. However, an amendment tabled by the Labour group extended the period of consultation on two budget proposals from mid April to 4 June. These are:
1. the proposed tightening of eligibility criteria would have taken away - 500 older people; 150 people with physical disablities and 50 people with learning disabilities
2. the proposed increase in charges from the current £7.55 per hour to £17.50 per hour, with a new charge of £35.00 per day for attending a day centre
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO STOP THESE CHANGES BEING IMPLEMENTED?
1. ATTEND A MEETING TO MAKE YOUR VIEWS HEARD
A meeting about the extended consultation was not on the original list so people may well not know about it. Please circulate details so that people can go along to make their views known: Wednesday 28 March 2007 6 TIL 8pm
Waterloo Action Centre, 14 Baylis Road SE1 7AA
2. MAKE CONTACT WITH THE COUNCIL DIRECTLY. Details of the consultation process are on the Council's website. This is the link on the Council's website to the section on the consultation on the Adult Services budget proposals:
www.lambeth.gov.uk/Services/HealthSocialCare/ACSBudget.htm 3. Phone 020 7926 8200 or email acs-consultation@lambeth.gov.uk  for a questionnaire and more information.

Currently people assessed can fall into the 'substantial' and 'critical' need categories. It is proposed to adjust this to only the 'critical' need category. If agreed the Council estimates that 700 people who currently receive a service