Tickets for the return of Blackheath fireworks this year have gone on sale. You can buy them here.
Fireworks night is November 1st. The programme promises entertainment, fun and games and a funfair. starting from 5 pm. Visitors won’t be allowed to take their own food and drink to the event, The organisers say there will be food stalls and bars inside.
The price for adults is £16 and there are lower prices for young people and families. There is also a sign up offer of reduced prices, You can get them here.
Are you interested in the history of Lee since World War II? Paul Wright, an historian with the Blackheath Society, will be the guest speaker at the Annual General Meeting of the Lee Manor Society on October 1st.
Mr Wright’s illustrated talk will focus on the area around Boone Street and Church Street, north of Lee High Road, which was a densely populated, poor area before the war. It was heavily bombed by the Luftwaffe. In the 1950s a programme of slum clearance and demolition razed the remaining houses to the ground and replaced them with a new housing estate.
The Met police has launched a new imitative to support crime fighting by engaging the support of local communities.
Julian Matei, the Lee Green dedicated Police Community Support Officer, told a meeting of the Lee Manor Society how they hope Metengage will help residents get to know their local officers, shape how the area is policed and provide direct access for important information and advice.
The Met says Metengage isn’t just a platform for them to explain what they are doing in the area. It’s also an opportunity for residents to say what worries them so the police can take action. They say the service will be tailored to the local community.
You might have noticed that some repairs are already underway. Here’s the update:
After the original contractor backed out, the alternative offers looked frightening but a local builder, John Walsh, stepped up and offered a competitive bid with some clever cost-saving measures. With support from the Architect, the Archdeacon gave his approval, and work finally started!
With re-inspection, we found that we really needed to do something to prevent a Handen Road collapse like the one at Wantage Road, so we’ve been working on preventative repairs on the Handen section, even though it was supposed to be a stretch target. ‘A stitch in time saves nine!’ And we’ll be starting work on Wantage Road as soon as possible in September.
Our thanks for all your amazing fundraising efforts, including the GoFundMe appeal; with the addition of a £5,500 grant from a successful application to the Benefact Trust, we’ve managed to cover our original target! We’re so grateful to all 47 GoFundMe donors who stepped up and supported us and to those who gave some fantastic donations directly to the church (most of which are anonymous). We should like to mention the Rainbows, Guides, FUSS Fair, and SMAG (a local artists group).
All this amazing support means we can go ahead with the works with the back stop of running down church reserves in the short term. We’re still open for contributions to the Handen Road stretch target which would mean that can preserve the reserves for other investment in the church and community.
A huge thank you to everyone who has supported us on this long and sometimes challenging journey. We couldn’t have done it without you!
This article first appeared in the Good Shepherd Church magazine In the Pews.
