Author: Blake Foster

Twelve fire engines and around 80 firefighters tackled the blaze in Rainham Road at around 3pm today (July 10).  Firefighters will remain at the scene to dampen down the surrounding grassland. Crews from Wennington, East Ham, Leytonstone, Hainault and other surrounding Fire Stations attended the scene.  The blaze was under control just after 6.20pm.  The cause of the fire is under investigation.  A spokesperson for London Fire Brigade said: “A wildfire response vehicle was deployed at the incident. “These vehicles provide off-road capability enabling the transportation of additional equipment closer to fires on open ground. “Each vehicle carries approximately 475…

Babur, the 2AA Rosette-awarded Indian restaurant in Forest Hill, is marking the milestone on July 17. The restaurant, known for its bold flavours inspired by the Indian subcontinent, has been a staple in the community since 1985. Emdad Rahman, the owner, credits the restaurant’s success to his quiet ambition to continually strive for excellence and evolve. The establishment is celebrating its 40th anniversary. (Image: Babur) He also highlights the hard work of Babur’s dedicated team and its loyal guests, some of whom have been with the restaurant for more than 20 years. Babur will celebrate its 40th anniversary with a…

Their entire life is packed up in cardboard boxes and dad-of-four Ulienge is on high alert as he waits for a call from Lambeth Council telling him where he and his family will be placed next. Just a few weeks before, the family had received a court order on behalf of the private landlord who rents their current home to the council, telling them they were going to be evicted on Thursday, July 3. Ulienge says the stress and uncertainty of his housing situation has been keeping him up at night and he struggles to fall asleep. “I stay up…

The borough’s cabinet member for health and adult social care, Councillor Anna Wright, said demand reached its highest ever level in a single year last year. More than 5,800 residents approached the local authority throughout 2024/25, marking a 10% increase from the year before. The strain has been made worse by “significant” carer vacancies, she said, while a larger number of sector workers were also waiting for their assessments. The update comes months after Camden became the first local authority in the country to receive an ‘outstanding’ rating from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) under its new grading system. Cllr…

Julia Dagg, a member of London Renters Union Haringey (LRU), organised the protest and was among those demonstrating outside Haringey Council’s Wood Green office last Friday (July 4). Julia told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the group had hosted a ‘Moulden Globes’ awards in response to Haringey being ranked one of the “mouldiest boroughs in England”, with a protester wearing a mask with the face of council leader Cllr Peray Ahmet collecting the award. A protester holds a mask of the face of Haringey Council leader Cllr Peray Ahmet with a ‘Miss Mould’ banner. Photo: Julia Dagg Haringey topped…

These proposals include requests for roof conversions, extensions, and tree management in Plumstead, Eltham, Blackheath, and Kidbrooke. One of the applications is for a single-storey pergola and patio extension at 166 Sidcup Road, SE12 (ref: 25/2161/PN1). Several households are seeking approval for roof conversions and dormers. These include 34 Liffler Road, SE18, with an L-shaped dormer extension (ref: 25/2134/CP), and 9 Eltham Hill, SE9, with dual submissions for a single-storey rear extension and hip-to-gable roof/dormer conversion (refs: 25/2132/PN1 & 25/2131/CP). Another property, 18 Merriman Road, SE3, is applying for a rear dormer and hip-to-gable layout (ref: 25/2126/CP), along with prior…

Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, of High Road, Epping appeared at Colchester Magistrates’ Court charged with three counts of sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and one count of harassment without violence. The police were called to High Road at 5.20pm on Tuesday (July 8) where officers arrested a man. Kebatu will next appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on July 17, with a trial to take place within 56 days. Kebatu was remanded into custody until then. Source link

Ghazala Gulzar and her husband Hasham woke up at their home in Northwood Avenue on the morning of July 2, completely unaware that their BMW X3 had been taken from their drive during the night.  They made the discovery as Hasham was about to drop their six-year-old son to school, and Ghazala and her two-year-old daughter stood by the door to say goodbye.  Ghazala said: “We woke up in the morning around 7.30am and our blinds were closed. It was just as my husband was about to go outside and drop our son to school. “We just opened the door…

After a decade-long pause, The Roxeth Show will be making a return to South Harrow on Saturday (July 12), more than 45 years after South Harrow and Roxeth Ratepayers Association put on the first event in 1979. Having largely been driven by one individual, Ian Jones, a “great deal of energy and leadership” behind the show was lost when he died and, despite local charity Harrow and Pinner Lions taking over the running of it, the event came to an end in 2014. Now a team of residents has rallied to bring it back. South Harrow is a diverse part…

Plans from Radioactive Clothing Ltd, trading as Slammin Events, propose a one-day weekend event on Blackheath Common to take place annually between the last week of October and the second week of November. The application covers live and recorded music, dance performances, and the sale of alcohol on site from 4pm to 11pm on Saturdays. If approved, the event would mark the return of one of south east London’s biggest free fireworks displays, which last took place in 2018. In 2019, Lewisham Council pulled the plug on the fireworks due to a lack of funding. Although a community fundraiser helped…