Author Archives: SE16.com

Ada Salter Day 2016 – report

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A report on last month’s Ada Salter Day events by Graham Taylor:
The Ada Salter Day was a great success – from Friday evening to Saturday evening we’ve calculated there were about 400 people in attendance to celebrate Ada’s 150th birthday .
1) On Friday evening there was a performance of Red Flag over Bermondsey by the Quaker actress and playwright, Lynn Morris;
2) On Saturday morning an exhibition of 71 photos and documents relating to Ada’s life was opened by the Mayors of Southwark and Raunds, with representatives of several Quaker Meetings in attendance, along with a delegation from Raunds, Northamptonshire, Ada’s home town;
3) There was then a tour for guests led by the Rotherhithe and Bermondsey History Society of the Ada Salter Garden and the Ada Salter cottages;
4) At 2 pm came the flower-laying ceremony at Ada’s statue on the riverside near Cherry Garden Pier. About 100 people attended this part of the day. Speakers were Lorna Greene of GMB Sisters (trade unionists); Peter Tatchell (talking about Ada and human rights); Juliet Prager (Quakers in Britain, explaining the Quaker values Ada had); and Peter John (Leader of Southwark Council). Flowers were laid by the Quaker Socialists, by the Raunds Historical Society, by the Raunds Labour Party, and by the Mayors of Rands and Southwark. Sheila Hancock arrived for the ceremony but did not speak. The Quaker actresses, Sheila Hancock and Judi Dench, had been great supporters of the campaign to erect a statue to Ada in 2012-14;
5) At 3 pm there was a second performance of Lynn Morris’s play, again attended by about 80 people and once again receiving a standing ovation. This time there was also a Q & A session at the end, led by David Morris and Graham Taylor;
6) Finally, in St Peter’s church (Catholic) there was a beautiful homage to Ada by the Bermondsey and Rotherhithe Choral Society. Devised by Sue Heath-Downey, this concert presented Ada’s favourite music (she was a singer), starting with American Spirituals. Ada used to play them on the piano at Peckham Meeting after the Sunday silence and “bring the house down”. These particular versions were set by Michael Tippett, who had a connection with Ada. The finale was the rousing anthem, Zadok the Priest, by Handel, Ada’s favourite composer.
* Graham Taylor is the author of Ada Salter: Pioneer of Ethical Socialism.

Overground: Late night frequency boost for East London line trains through SE16

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Services on the East London line have been increased from two to four trains per hour between 22:00 and 23:30, on the following routes:

  • Dalston Junction to New Cross
  • Highbury & Islington to West Croydon
  • Highbury & Islington to Crystal Palace
  • Dalston Junction to Clapham Junction

 

Mike Stubbs, Director of London Overground, said: “This is great news for our customers. The East London line is becoming increasingly popular, particularly at night, with many enjoying what London has to offer. To meet this increase in demand we have boosted frequency by 50 per cent on some late night services, significantly increasing capacity.”

Rotherhithe transport: Sadiq Khan faces questions at City Hall

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_SKMembers of the London Assembly have tabled questions to the new Labour mayor Sadiq Khan about his plans for transport in the Rotherhithe area.

Florence Eshalomi, newly elected as Labour’s London Assembly member for the Lambeth & Southwark constituency (in succession to Val Shawcross) has asked the mayor:

What steps will the Mayor take to improve transport at Canada Water, specifically will he support a new pedestrian and cycling bridge from Rotherhithe to Canary Wharf, the extension of the cycle hire, additional Jubilee Line services, the improvement of the local road network and approach to the Rotherhithe Tunnel, including removal of the Lower Road Gyratory and additional bus capacity?

Meanwhile Lib Dem London Assembly member Caroline Pidgeon has asked Mr Khan the following question:

Will you re-examine the case for introducing a shuttle bus service running round the Rotherhithe peninsula to meet the growing transport needs of this area?

Answers from Mr Khan should be published soon after the Spring Bank Holiday – we’ll let you know what he says,

Lib Dems and Labour pick candidates for Surrey Docks by-election

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Southwark Liberal Democrats and Southwark Labour have selected their candidates for the Surrey Docks by-election to be held on Thursday 9 June.

The poll has been triggered by the resignation of incumbent Lib Dem councillor Lisa Rajan.

The Liberal Democrat candidate will be Daniel Whitehead (Twitter: @LibDemDan)

Labour has selected Will Holmes (Twitter: @Willtholmes) to contest the election.

The deadline for all candidates to submit their nomination papers is 4pm on Thursday 12 May. A full list of candidates will be published by the returning officer soon afterwards.

By-election in Surrey Docks ward as Lib Dem councillor Lisa Rajan resigns

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notice_of_vacancy___surrey_docks_ward-2Residents in Surrey Docks Ward will be asked to elect a new councillor at a by-election on Thursday 9 June.

Lisa Rajan – a Lib Dem councillor since 2002 – has resigned her council seat because her husband now works in Manchester.

“It is with huge sadness that I am standing down as one of the Liberal Democrat councillors for Surrey Docks,” said Lisa Rajan.

“For fourteen years I have had the greatest privilege of representing an incredible community and helping win the fights for the new Canada Water Library and the C10 bus route.

“Being a councillor needs serious commitment though and I’m very sorry that changes in my personal life mean that I can no longer serve residents the way Liberal Democrat councillors believe we should always do.

“Fourteen years after first being elected, there are still huge issues in Surrey Docks.  Most importantly, we need to make the council’s regeneration process happen ‘with’ residents and not ‘to’ them.  We also need proper infrastructure in place – GPs, schools and transport – before further huge development takes place at Canada Water.

“I really want to thank residents for their support over the years and hope they will continue to back the Liberal Democrats as the best choice to fight residents’ corner in Surrey Docks.”

Lisa Rajan is the author of the ‘Tara Binns’ series of children’s books.