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Friends of Havelock Rec

Newsletter 01 – Havelock Recreation Ground Not Saved… Yet

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Kerry Hood

Havelock Recreation Ground Not Saved…Yet!

The Council have not thrown the application out, and La Fontaine and the Education Funding Authority still have our park as their ‘preferred option’.

We are very grateful for the local conservative party’s support, but they don’t actually make the decision.  We want the option of building on Havelock Recreation ground to be dropped now, and not have to fight a planning application.

other news:

Heart in the Park

Not A featureless dog-toilet

At The Door (a big thank-you)

Welcome Statement of Support

What do you want to see in the Park?

Our Bio-Diversity Report

Did you know…? (local history)

15feb14 caroline heart in field

HEART IN THE PARK

FOR VALENTINE”S DAY, WE LAID A RED HEART IN THE PARK TO SYMBOLISE THAT IT”S THE HEART OF OUR COMMUNITY

Thanks to everyone who made this spontaneous event last weekend, it was actually quite moving and great fun.  It was also good to meet all my new Facebook friends!  Thanks to Emma for such a cool idea and organizing it,  Felix for marshaling us, and to Mark who took an amazing time-lapse video – if you didn’t get there, it’s still worth watching at:. http://youtu.be/VEfZ4u4MNhU  The newspaper photographer was double-booked and didn’t make the event, so we can only say he missed out there!

NOT A FEATURE-LESS DOGS TOILET

If you have the time, please can you email councillor Nicholas Bennett JP (representing West Wickham) who is Chairman of our Education Policy Development and Scrutiny Committee, to explain that our park is not just a featureless dog’s toilet, at: nicholas.bennett@bromley.gov.uk (I think, I can’t find it listed) or his business email: md@kentrefurbishment.co.uk

Remember: we are polite, and we are not anti-La Fontaine school (just that this is the wrong site)

here’s some points you can make:

* it might be a featureless dog’s toilet to him, but no park looks it’s best at 5 degrees Celsius in February; many parents are away at half term

* no local shortage in school places in this community  – ie: spaces at St Georges + other primary schools planning expansion

* less than 50% of the places – (after Looked After and Siblings are accounted for) for local children

* traffic  – (630 pupils, with 4 primary schools in half a mile, Ravensbourne secondary school, waste site, Tescos..)

* once a green space is built on it is lost forever – our community is Deprived of Urban Open Space already

And… please  PLEASE PICK UP YOUR DOGS MESS I know that there are selfless dog walkers who pick up other people’s dog’s poo, but can the few who don’t clear up after their dog do so!

AT THE DOOR

A massive thank-you to all the people who have gone from door-to-door to get petition signatures, hand out posters, and tell quite a few people about the proposal to build on our park.

WELCOME STATEMENT OF SUPPORT

from the local Conservative Party after inundation of emails.  We are so thankful for everyone who emailed and wrote to our ward councillors and MP Bob Neil (please see http://friendsofhavelockrec.org/please-write-so-this-space-remains-a-park/ on our website). BUT DON’T STOP NOW, we need more emails to thank them for their supportive statement: 

” Therefore as much as we will be supporting the school in finding an alternative we cannot support the building of a school on this site.  We will continue to work with and support residents in opposing the building of a school on Havelock Recreation ground.  We have written to the Executive to request that they do not agree to the lease on the land in principle.”

Please see the full text on: http://www.bromleytownconservatives.com/2015/02/16/havelock-rec-frequently-asked-questions/

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE IN THE PARK?

We have a survey so you can let us know what you want to see in the park (other than the wide open spaces which we want to retain).  Please let us know so we can show the council that this park is loved: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7B7RP7K.

OUR BIODIVERSITY REPORT

Judith John kindly composed a biodiversity report, with helpful recommendations, despite it being winter when most of the invertebrates and other animals are hibernating, please read it on the ‘Documents’ page of our website: http://friendsofhavelockrec.org/documents/?preview=true&preview_id=59&preview_nonce=c2b4b6220c

but some of the recommendations are:

planting a native hedge along the chain-link fence boundary

allowing the bramble patch to expand over to join up with this hedge

having swathes of wildflower / long grass especially next to the hedge

planting an ‘under-storey’ of shrubs under the mature trees

DID YOU KNOW..?

Some amazing local history facts with maps and photos uncovered by Tony Deary: 

An old map from 1909:

  1909 old map brickfield 

map from 1863 with the brick field, Homesdale road by it’s old name, Brick Kiln Lane, and the field of drying racks:

1897 old map brickfield

Photo of bomb damage in 1940. In the background of this picture you can see heaps of rubble and further back the pit.

tony deary 1940 bomb damage from fb

from Jane Evans:

“My husbands family sold the brickfield – we think late 1920s – have papers from buying not selling.  Have some anecdotal stuff – not least mires with cart horses dead in them…”

A report from the Bromley Times, from 1963, that Felix found:

“Bromley’s new oasis … what was an ugly brick works and later a tip for the local Gas Board, has now been converted by Bromley Council in to an attractive stretch of grassland which, during the long summer weeks of school holidays, should be a boon for mothers in the Bromley Common area”

The local history aspect of the park is still being worked on, and when finished, it will be on the Friends of Havelock Recreation Ground website.

Posted in campaign Events Media News Letter | Tagged campaign local-history town-green

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Have your say:

Email us at http://friendsofhavelockrec.org or at havelockrecfriends@gmail.com

Local History, Photos & Reminisces

Browse our collection of remarkable local reminisces in our oral history pages look at the park's previous incarnation as a working brickpit or a summary of it all here.

See also:

  • Bromley Civic Society
  • Friends of Whitehall Rec
  • Bromley Friends Forum
  • London Friends Network

Check out the Gallery

Early morning landscape by Jon Emmanuel
Landscape by Jon Emmanuel
IYellow Lab Daphne playing with her friend Molly
It's snowing!
evening light over our park
snow angel!
2008 double rainbow brickfield
IMG_1001-3
snowmen and snow forts in 2009
10422371_10152598816492595_4131414265842496626_n
2002jul02 tansy with little cricket bat
HotBalloon060630-3
033 field water fight
dragging the sledge back up the dip
The firemen parachuted in to raise money in 2005
fun-in-the-snow
fun-in-the-snow2
fun-in-the-snow3
fun-in-the-snow4
fun-in-the-snow snowman making
sledging-the-dip
dog in the snow
15jul01_sunset_over_brickfield_havelock_rec.jpg
14jun08 50490 view pink clouds brickfield.JPG
15feb28 dog walkers in field.jpg
andy_loakes_snow_on_the_brickfield.jpg
P1090838.JPG
15mar14-brickfield-bulbplanting.jpg
16jul18 bug-day-tent-view.jpg
14jun08 50495 view sunset brickfield.JPG
15jun29_4567-brickfield-field-bindweed-768x1024.jpg
15jun29_4583-brickfield-elderflower-768x1024.jpg
15mar14-di-and-felix-litterpicking-brickfield.jpg
16jan18_volunteers-planting-hedge-brickfield.jpg
16jun12 big-lunch-tug-war.jpg
16sep12-hoedown-2.jpg
17sep09-brickfield-hoedown-20059-baker-girl-beauty-dancing-1024x768.jpg
17sep09-brickfield-hoedown-20064-andy-emma-connie-pimms-tent-768x1024.jpg
17sep09-brickfield-hoedown-20071-girls-umbrella-rainbowjpg-1024x768.jpg
1924 o-peills-brick-pit-half-mile-SW-Bickley-Stn-looking-S-16386_synch-l.jpg
1940 havelock-rd-bomb-damage-1940-4-e1437292677505-1024x699.jpg
P7190918-3rd-bromley-on-brickfield-1024x768.jpg
see our photos in full size..

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Recent Posts

  • Do the Audio/Virtual tour of our Park!
  • Transcript of Stop 12 on Virtual & Audio Tour Featuring Memories & Local History
  • Transcript of Stop 11 on Virtual & Audio Tour Featuring Memories & Local History
  • Transcript of Stop 10 on Virtual & Audio Tour Featuring Memories & Local History
  • Transcript of Stop 9 on Virtual & Audio Tour Featuring Memories & Local History

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