Albert Square and St Stephen’s Association

Thank you to everyone who took part in Saturday’s Trash and Treasure event. It was great to see so many stalls set out on the street, and business was brisk throughout the morning before the heavens opened at lunchtime.

The event will return next year!

The ASSA Trash and Treasure street sale will take place this year on Saturday 12th May, between 10.30am and 1pm. All local residents in the ASSA area are welcome to put up a stall outside their house and sell, swap or give away their unwanted goods. It is free and fun to take part so please join in, and spread the word to your friends and family locally.

A revision club aimed at helping local students preparing for their GCSEs and A-Levels is being run in the Mursell Hall, with the first session taking place on Wednesday 14th March between 4.30pm and 6.30pm. Please go along for free help and advice from university and graduate students, who specialise in Maths and Science but can provide advice on all aspects of revision.

Picture credit: Michael Flynn

At the recent ASSA committee meeting, it was suggested that we start a regular monthly pub meeting, where neighbours can get together informally over a drink and get to know each other a little better. We’ve agreed that we will meet on the first Tuesday of each month, starting next week on Tuesday 6th February, from 8.30pm in The Canton Arms. Please do come along if you are free.

The next meeting of the Stockwell Forum is taking place on Wednesday, 31st January at 7pm, and will be held at The Stockwell Centre, 1 Studley Road. The Stockwell Forum meetings, run by the Stockwell Partnership with support from Lambeth Council,  are an opportunity for everyone who lives and works in Stockwell or has any other connection to Stockwell to find out news and views.

On the agenda at the January meeting is an introduction to the Morley College courses being offered at The Stockwell Centre and details of the Lambeth Portuguese Community Wellbeing Partnership. The full agenda is available here.

The first formal planning application for the redevelopment of the South Lambeth Estate has been submitted. This application is for outline planning permission for the whole development (e.g. location and size of buildings) and detailed planning permission for the first phase of the development (i.e. the new building to be constructed between Wimborne House and Dorset Road).

This application is crucial because it establishes the look and layout of the whole scheme.

ASSA (the Albert Square and St Stephen’s Association) has discussed this proposal and the committee is in favour of the development as a whole.

The committee is keen to urge interested neighbours to write to the planners themselves because we believe the more responses received the greater the impact will be.

Submissions must be made to the planning department on-line at

https://planning.lambeth.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=makeComment&keyVal=P0T7CFBOIX100

Submissions must be made by 26th January 2018 and can be made anonymously

The Watoto Children’s Choir is performing a free concert at St Stephen’s Church on Sunday 28th May at 6.30pm – all are very welcome to attend. You can register for free tickets here

Watoto Children’s Choirs have travelled extensively since 1994, sharing a message of hope for Africa’s orphans and widows. To date, the choir has toured six continents and performed to enthralled audiences in schools, retirement homes, churches, parliaments, state houses and royal palaces.

The Choir is comprised of 18 children and 10 adults from Uganda. Each child in the Watoto Children’s Choir has suffered the loss of one or both parents and now lives in a Watoto village.

Accompanied by a team of adults, the choir presents Watoto’s vision and mission by sharing personal stories, music and dance. While on the road, the children act as advocates for the millions of other African children who have experienced the same heartbreaking pain and suffering as them.