Kings Cross Local Environment

Neighbourhood Link - a community messaging service from The Met

 
Neighbourhood Link is a community messaging service from the Metropolitan Police Service that provides news and information about policing activity or initiatives, crime prevention advice as well as major incidents affecting your area.

Through this service you can receive messages from your local Safer Neighbourhood Team, borough police or, in the event of a major incident or event affecting the whole of London, from other Met teams.

In order to receive messages you will need to register your details. This information will enable us to send you messages relevant to the areas you live and work. Anyone can register, whether you live, work or travel in London. Registration is free and simple to follow.

Once you have registered you will receive messages via email unless you have specified otherwise. On some occasions it may be appropriate for messages to be sent via text messages or voicemail.

Learn more about Neighbourhood Link

Neighbourhood Link is not able to receive messages and you should not use it to contact the police. In an emergency always dial 999. An emergency is when a crime is happening, someone suspected of a crime is nearby, someone is injured, being threatened or in danger.

If you wish to contact the Metropolitan police in other circumstances, for example to speak to local police or seek advice on police matters, you can call us on 0300 123 1212.

If you are deaf or have speech impairment you can use a textphone to call us. Dial 18000 in an emergency or 18001 if your call is not an emergency.

Controling Anti-Socal Behavior Associated With Liquor

The leaflet shown below was provided by Stephanie Garner-Winship, the MAGPI West Neighbourhood Officer for the Islington Anti Social Behaviour Team - Community Safety Partnerships Unit at Islington Council, Tel: 020 7527 4200.

The leaflet provides information on a new method being tried to better control anti-social behaviour stemming from alcohol.  Although the whole area designated goes well beyond our immediate area, I thought it important for all to see what is being proposed and because some of our local area is included.

 

 
 

 
 As this document was originally a leaflet that was distributed to local resident, you cannot comment as outlined below.  However you can comment by simply sending an email to [email protected] before 16 April.  Be sure to include your address so they can count you as a local resident.

 
 
 

Crimestoppers Bulletin from Islington Police

E-fit Released of indecent Assault Suspect

A man who indecently assaulted a 17-year-old girl on a bus is being sought by police in Islington.

On 25 January 2010 at about 10:40am, the victim, a student,  got on to the 253 bus near Camden Station. The suspect got on the bus by the Nags Head, Holloway Road, N7, and sat next to the victim. After a few minutes he leaned back and grabbed the victim's bottom. The victim shouted at him and went to report him to the driver but as she was speaking to the driver the suspect got off the bus and ran away.

The suspect is described as a dark skinned European man, aged approximately 25 years old, with protruding eyes. He spoke with a foreign accent and was wearing thin-rimmed glasses and a navy blue cap at the time of the incident.

Anyone who can identify this man is asked to call Detective Constable Lee Marriott on 07595 004 082 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Local Business Wins Environmental Award

Some time ago the Bulletin Board reported on one of our local business's efforts at going greener through the purchase and use of an electric vehicle - (former story).

Well, not only has it paid off economically for Aflorum (36 Caledonian Road, N1 9TD), but now they have been named Winner - Sustainable Transport, in Islingon Council's Giant Green Business Awards 2009.  Congratulations Wichet!!!!

What's going on at Argent and a new forum for local awareness

The King's Cross Railway Lands Group has been working for years for the betterment of our local area.  I'm sure that many folks who read our Bulletin Board know of their work, and a good portion of those are on their mailing list.  But some of our subscribers may not, so I've taken the libery of passing on their latest notice of things going on that local residents should know about.  If you want more information about the work they do, I would suggest getting in touch with them via their website - http://www.kxrlg.org.uk/.  There are some things you should know about as received from Michael Edwards of the Group:

To all members and contacts of KXRLG:

(i) Note info on CANAL-related events and consultation on Tuesday 23rd.  The event includes consultation by consultants working for British Waterways and Argent on what happens to the canal locally. (note, your Bulletin Board as already reported on this meeting, just click this link for details.

(ii) Argent have applied for planning approval of the designs and details of office buildings in Zone B between the two stations.  Any individual or group can comment or object. Details on the King's Cross Development Forum web site http://kxdf.wordpress.com/   Comments  to Camden by 24 March or soon thereafter.

(To facilite in this process, the Bulletin Board has inserted the following links to the actual applications on the Camden Council Website.  By clicking the links you will be taken to the specific applications and once there will find further links to see the details of what is being proposed and to comment online.  There is a lot of info, so look for the link that will take you to "View Related Documents" and then look for items that show "drawing packages".)

Building B2 – application: 2010/0864/P
Building B4 – application: 2010/0868/P
Building B6 – application: 2010/0870/P
Public realm – application: 2010/0872/P
Basements and vehicle access/ramp – application: 2010/0862/P

(iii) The London Forum and London Civic Forum are having a meeting on 30 March designed to encourage groups in London to take seriously and use the fairly new local government mechanisms - of Local Strategic Partnerships and the associated paraphernalia of plans and documents.  Many people have dismissed all these "reforms" as just another way to by-pass local democracy and give more power to officers and the paid officials of private and "voluntary" corporations.  But Peter Eversden who leads the London Forum thinks we can and must brave the bullet points and use this machinery. There are also Tory proposals to get the hang of.  Just turn up if interested.
Please come to an open meeting for this subject on 30 March 2010 at 6pm for 6:30pm in the Gallery, 75 Cowcross Street, EC1, near Farringdon station.
 
There will be talks on the proposals of the Government and the Opposition for empowerment of citizens in their relationship with local authorities.  The event will cover topics such as Petitioning, Participatory Budgeting, Councillor Call to Action and other opportunities arising from the 'Communities in Control' White Paper, the Sustainable Communities Act 2007 and the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009.
 
There will be time to discuss the developing role of community and civic groups, the associated issues and networking with other local voluntary groups.
 
A talk on the Government's Empowerment policies will be given by Deirdre McGrath of the London Civic Forum and a speaker has been invited to talk on Community Development Networks.

Greenwall to go ahead

We've been keeping quiet about the greenwall project on Wharfdale Road for a while. Fundraising didn't go as well as we'd hoped; perhaps in the current financial climate fewer grant givers are willing to support new charities like King's Cross Community Projects despite the considerable amount of expertise shared by our trustees. However, LB Islington has come to the rescue and are enabling us to go ahead on the design and build elements of the project.

We've had to cut our cloth to suit the reduced amount we'll be able to spend. Unfortunately it's the youth training and community consultation parts of the project that have had to go. We still hope to work with the Winton School gathering ideas from local children, as well as running a cut down community consultation exercise for everyone living and working in the immediate vicinity. We'll be leafleting in and around Wharfdale Road asking for your ideas, concerns and general input.

Our first step will be to invite tenders from artists and sculptors working in steel, particularly corten steel, to design and construct a massive three tiered planter. We want our artists to be inspired by our local community and its history. We have a list of artists we will be approaching, all with some link to the area. If you would like to recommend an artist or sculptor for inclusion on our tender list we'd be very happy to hear from you.

We'll be agreeing our project timetable in the next week or so and will post the details here as soon as we know more.

King's Cross Community Projects would like to thank everyone that has registered their support for the greenwall project over the past couple of years. We won't keep you waiting much longer before construction starts!

Open day at King's Cross garden

The National Gardens Scheme (NGS) was founded in 1927 to raise money for the nurses of the Queen's Nursing Institute by opening gardens of quality and interest to the public. Each year the NGS publishes the reknowned, 'Yellow Book' which lists all the gardens you can visit.

 

Our very own horticulturalist, Mike Jackson of Wharfdale Road, had his garden included in the Yellow Book for the first time last year. The hugely successful first open day was mobbed by visitors all appreciating Mike's work and some of the hidden or just overlooked treasures of green King's Cross. Mike's garden is usually only open by prior appointment, however this year Mike will host an open day where you can just turn up and view.

If you'd like to come along to Mike's garden at 1 Battlebridge Court, just turn up on 20th June any time between 2pm and 6pm. You'll need to make a £2 donation to NGS funds - worth every penny. The open day forms part of an Islington garden day out, if you'd like to visit all four gardens you'll need to donate £6 which includes your refreshments.

Safer Neighbourhoods Panel Meeting Moves to King's Place - Next Meeting 18 March

With the closing of the Blessed Sacrament Church's Community Hall, the Calenonian Ward's Safer Neighbourhood's Panel will be moving to a new venue at King's Place.

This ongoing panel attended by local residents and chaired by our Councilor Paul Convery, meets with members of our Safer Neighbourhood's Policing/Community Support Team to discuss local activities and set local policing priorities for the Ward.

The next meeting will be taking place on 18 March in the Wenlock Room on the lower level of King's Place, the large glass builing located at the intersection of Goods Way and York Way.

The new meeting room has been donated by King's Place as part of their ongoing efforts to build stronger ties with the local community.  For those of you who have never visited the building this is a great opportunity to take a look inside and attend an important local meeting.  Download map and directions - Download Map

For more information about what takes place at these meeting you can download the Minutes of the last meeting - Download SNP Minutes of 26 Nov meeting

 

Police Appeals - Do you know anything about these situations?

The Bulletin Board has receved emails requesting help from the general public who might know something about the incidents mentioned below.  We thought we would help by passing these request along to our readers.

Stolen school mini-bus

Islington Police are appealing for the public’s help to identify a man in connection with the theft of a mini-bus from a school in the N7 area of Islington.

On 23 November 2009, an unknown man went to the school, purporting to be there to pick up the school bus to be serviced. The keys were handed to him and he  made off with the minibus. When the school called the service station to find out when the minibus would be returned they discovered that the man who had taken the keys in the morning was not from the service depot and that he had in fact stolen the bus.

At 13:43, on 23 November, a man was caught on CCTV at a service station in Hornsey Rise, N19 where he obtained petrol and drove off without paying.  The minibus was later found abandoned in Albany Street, NW1 on 24 November.

         

Police are keen to speak to anyone who can identify this man. If you have any information call PC Darren Rose in the Burglary Squad on 020 7421 0150 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

_________________________

Dog Attack

Officers from Islington CID are appealing for witnesses to come forward after a guide dog was attacked by another dog in Caledonian Road, N1, on 27 February 2010.

Between 10am -11am, the victim, who is partially sighted and aged in his mid 30s, was walking past William Hill Bookmakers in Caledonian Road when a dog, which was apparently not on its leash, attacked his guide dog.

The victim’s dog was bitten on the ear and required veterinary treatment. He has now fully recovered.

Although the victim could not see the other dog or its owner, he heard passers by saying that the attacking dog was not on its lead.

The dog is described as being similar in size to the victim’s dog, a Labrador.

Due to the victim’s limited vision he has not got a description of the suspect or the dog involved.

If you have any info on this incident, please get in touch with Investigating Officer Detective Constable Sam Harris in confidence on 0207 421 0195 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Another new foodie destination for King's Cross Road

Yesterday I stumbled upon Niven's, at no. 157. It's a petite lunch bar with a communal table at the back and a small range of comestibles in pretty packaging. There were gourmet salads, hot food and baked treats on offer; the likes of beetroot and gorgonzola salad, Israeli couscous, rich tagines and some nice homely looking tarts and cakes. I was told they'd opened a few weeks ago.

Sadly my lunch was spoken for, so I'll have to sample the food and coffee another time.

As yet I can't find a website or reviews, but there's a blog writeup from a friend of the business.

As with most new openings on the funny old strip that is King's Cross Road, hopefully it will thrive and endure — and help revive a tricky spot that certainly has its bleak moments.

See also:

New Restaurants on Kings Cross Road transform South of KX as a direction for food