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Thamesmead

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Thamesmead
Southmere Lake
OS grid referenceTQ475805
• Charing Cross9.4 mi (15.1 km) W
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLONDON
Postcode districtSE2, SE28
Post townERITH
Postcode districtDA18
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London

Thamesmead is a district of south London, England, located in the London Boroughs of Greenwich and Bexley. It is situated 9.4 miles (15.1 km) east of Charing Cross.

Thamesmead is the name given to a group of disparate mainly social housing developments built from the late 1960s onwards mostly on former marshland on the southern banks of the River Thames between the more established towns of Woolwich and Belvedere. Originally planned to have 60,000-100,000 residents, it is now estimated to be on target for a final population of around 50,000 people.[1]

History

Most of the land area of Thamesmead previously formed about 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) of the old Royal Arsenal site that extended over Plumstead Marshes and Erith Marshes.[2] There is some evidence of prehistoric human occupation of the area - flints, animal bone and charcoal were found in bore holes around Western and Central Way in 1997 by the Museum of London Archaeological Service (MOLAS).[3] In Roman times the river level was significantly lower, and work by MOLAS in 1997 around Summerton Way found evidence of field ditches and pottery and quernstones from Germany dating from around the 3rd or 4th century. After the Roman era, river levels rose again and the area reverted to marshland.[4] According to Hasted, some areas of this marshland were drained by 1279 by the monks of Lesnes Abbey.[2]

Between 1812 and 1816 a canal was built to take materials from the River Thames to Woolwich Royal Arsenal. Much of this canal has been filled in, but part remains in Thamesmead West and is now called the Broadwater.[5]

Much of Thamesmead was initially built by the Greater London Council (GLC) for rent to families moving from overcrowded back to back Victorian housing (also referred to as slums) in south eastern parts of Inner London. The area had been inundated in the North Sea Flood of 1953, so the original design placed living accommodation at first floor level or above, used overhead walkways and left the ground level of buildings as garage space.[6] The first residence was occupied in 1968, but already there were rain penetration problems.[7] The pre-1974 parts of Thamesmead are a mix of modernist town houses, medium-rise and 12-storey blocks system-built in concrete, which have featured in various films due to their 'rough urban look'; the design of the newer buildings is more traditional and in brick.[6]

When the GLC was abolished in 1986, its housing assets and the remaining undeveloped land was vested in a non-profit organisation Thamesmead Town Limited (TTL). TTL was a private company with an unusual form of governance. Its nine executive directors were local residents; as is normal, they periodically submitted themselves to re-election.

In 2000, TTL was wound down and two new organisations were created. In broad terms, Gallions Housing Association took over the ownership and management of the housing assets whilst Tilfen, later Tilfen Land, took over the remaining undeveloped land. Tilfen is jointly owned by Gallions and Trust Thamesmead.[7]

District heating and cable radio broadcasting were pioneered in Thamesmead. The District Heating System was decommissioned around the turn of the millennium, with those properties connected to it having wet radiator systems installed by the landlord.

Concept

Thamesmead built at the end of the 1960's. Efforts were made to solve the social problems that had already started to affect earlier estates. These were believed to be the result of working class communities from different areas being uprooted from close knit communities, then sent to remote estates many miles from where they lived so they knew nobody. The design of the estates meant people would rarely see their neighbours as they would have done in 'back to back' Victorian housing they probably lived in before. The solution proposed was that once the initial residents had moved in their families would be given priority for new housing when it became available. However this fell afoul of 'race discrimination legislation' [8] as the initial residences were almost certainly white this selection procedure reduced the chances of applicants who weren't white so when challenged in court by the Commission for Racial Equality it was judged to be illegal.

Other radical ideas were those of the GLC division architect Robert Rigg, including one taken from housing complexes in Sweden, where it was believed that lakes and canals helped to lower levels of crime and vandalism, mainly among the young. This led to the use of water in the estate as a calming influence on the residents.[8]

Failings

One design failure was the almost complete lack of shopping facilities and banks, with only a small number of 'corner-shop' sized outlets initially being built in Tavy Bridge. From the start Thamesmead was cut off from Abbey Wood the nearest town with shopping facilities by a railway line over which a 4 lane bridge was built to overcome this in the early 70's. It was then cut in two by the building of the A2016 a 4 lane dual carriageway by-pass of the Woolwich to Erith section of the A206 though on leaving Woolwich only got as far as the industrial part of lower Belvedere (the extension to Erith was opened in 1999). Still, residential building continued, this time on the other side of the A2016, which effectively cut this part of Thamesmead off from any form of rail travel to central London.

Despite the early proposals for the Jubilee Line Extension to go to Thamesmead [8], via the Isle of Dogs and the Royal Docks. Thamesmead was forgotten about and after getting as far as the Greenwich Peninsula, the line then heads north to Stratford, London (via Canning Town and West Ham), despite Stratford also being on the major Central Line tube link into London. The main alleged reason for this decision was that a lot of the bankers working in Canary Wharf lived in Essex and could change from National Rail to the Jubilee Line at Stratford, London and West Ham. Unfortunately, at the time (and probably to this day), more cleaners than bankers resided in Thamesmead and so they were left to rely on the bus.

Thamesmead is also cut off from the north of the River Thames and is in the centre of the 15 mile gap between the Blackwall Tunnel and the Dartford Tunnel/QE2 Bridge. Various proposals have been made for a new river crossing, the closest of which was in the late 1980s, when there was a controversial proposal to alter the shape of London's South Circular inner orbital road so it would run through Oxleas woods. Houses in Plumstead were compulsorily purchased but the plans fell through. Since then, Thamesmead has grown significantly, limiting the number of potential sites for a new river crossing.

Geography

A view of Thamesmead Housing Estate today, a location familiar to fans of Beautiful Thing, A Clockwork Orange and Misfits

It has five distinct areas:

  • Thamesmead South is in Bexley and is the location of the original development built in the late 1960s to early 1970s. The buildings are almost entirely of concrete, in a Cubist/Brutalist/Mordernist style, and include a number of high-rise blocks. It is east of Harrow Mannor Way (A2041) and south of the A2016.
  • Thamesmead Central is in Greenwich and was first developed in the early 1980s in the ring between the A206 and A2041. It originally consisted of large, sprawling, concrete and red brick, eight- and nine-storey estates overlooking the A2041, and three-storey red-brick town houses. It has spread west of the A2041 and now also includes a number of red and yellow brick homes built from the 1990s onwards.
  • Thamesmead North is split between Bexley & Greenwich and is north of the A2016 and east of the A2041. Built from the 1970s onwards, it was initially made up of town houses in grey brick; more recent builds are in red & yellow brick.[9]
  • Thamesmead West is in Greenwich near Woolwich and Plumstead (Between Whinchat Road, the A2016 & the banks of the river Thames) and was built from the 1990s onwards. It is a significant distance from the original development and consists mainly of medium density residential development with yellow brick fascias, with towers along the riverside.
  • Thamesmead East is in Bexley between Yarton Way and the A2016. It was designated mainly for industrial development[1]; however, this can be confusing as the Thamesmead East ward of Bexley Council covers Thamesmead North and Thamesmead South.

Housing is still under construction both by Gallions Housing Association (for rent and part rent/part buy) and by private developers (for outright sale). Water remains an important feature of the several parks and open spaces. Homes there are still relatively affordable by London standards, reflecting, in part, the poor transport infrastructure. The area is also under the flight path to and from London City Airport, which is a particular issue in West Thamesmead where the planes are at their lowest.

The Tavy Bridge area is now being redeveloped by Gallions in partnership with Wates Group; the plans include homes with dwelling space at ground floor level, making them susceptible to any future flooding.

Thamesmead now features a retail park finished in brick archored around a Morrisons Supermarket there is also a shopping parade which has mainly serviced based outlets such as hairdressers and estate agents. It contains a clock tower and lake, which may seem rather twee and contrived. Some of the original overhead pedestrian walkways have been demolished for reasons of public safety and some ground floor garages have been unfilled, as incidents of crime deterred their use as parking space.

Trust Thamesmead is a registered charity set up to provide community services across Thamesmead. It runs six community centres and runs a variety of projects promoting social development and work and training projects.[10]

Thamesmead West contains Gallions Ecopark[11] a pioneering small social/affordable housing development with homes built to high energy efficiency and environmental standards.

Part of Thamesmead West is also sometimes referred to as "Gallions Reach Urban Village". This can lead to confusion, as it is on the opposite bank of the River Thames from Gallions Reach DLR station and Gallions Reach shopping park. There is no Docklands Light Railway, London Underground or rail station in Thamesmead West.

Early 21st century new build properties in Thamesmead West have been blighted by social problems and mass repossessions,[12] attracting national attention.[13]

Belmarsh prison and the audacious, decorative and inventive sewage processing works at Crossness, built in the Victorian era, are on the western and eastern edges of Thamesmead respectively. The southern boundary is the covered South London Outfall Sewer, which has been landscaped as an elevated footpath called the Ridgeway.

In November 2007, Bexley Council marked Thamesmead's 40th birthday with a motion proposed by local Councillor David Leaf and seconded by Councillor John Davey.

Nearest places

Demography

In common with the rest of London, the ethnic make-up of Thamesmead has changed dramatically since it was first built. Initially, it was one of the most homogenous estates of its type in London, being predominately White and working class. Being cut off from the tube map and at the very edge of the metropolis meant Thamesmead was definitely not first port of call for immigrants arriving in London. The housing selection policy that favoured relatives of existing residents reinforced this aspect. However, after the fall of Saigon and the American withdrawal from Vietnam in the late 1970s, a small group of Vietnamese refugees built a community in the area. In the 1990s, another ultimately much larger wave of emigration from West Africa (predominately Nigeria and Ghana) began, growing to a point where national newspapers talked of advertisements on Nigerian Television describing Thamesmead as a key UK destination [8]. However, the figures below (possibly from the 2000 UK Census) don't seem to support these claims. But with news stories of it being the 'fraud capital of the UK' [14] where according to Chatham House, "an entire street in the town [existed] where there was evidence of people being involved in fraud at every address." Indicate the difficulty in getting a wholly accurate picture of the residents of Thamesmead. Thamesmead also adjoins the Thistlebrook travellers site which is situated just inside Abbey Wood.[8]

Ethnicity breakdown:[citation needed] White British 67%

Black or Black British 20.9%

Black African 16.2%
Black Caribbean 4.0%
Black Other 0.7%

Mixed Race 3.0%

White and Black Caribbean 1.4%
White and Black African 0.6%
White and Asian 0.5%
Other Mixed 0.6%

Asian or Asian British 5.5%

Indian 3.6%
Bangladeshi 0.9%
Pakistani 0.4%
Other Asian 0.6%

Chinese or other East Asian 3.4%

Chinese 2.2%
Other East Asian 1.2%

Culture

The local football team is Thamesmead Town F.C. who play at the soon to be redeveloped Bayliss Avenue ground. Thamesmead were champions of the Kent League in 2007/08, and were then promoted to the Isthmian League Division One North. Thamesmead Town have a small but dedicated following that are known as The Thamesmead Hardcore.[15]

The Thamesmead Riverside Walk runs alongside the Thames through Thamesmead West, Thamesmead Central and Thamesmead North and is part of both the Thames Path Southeast Extension and National Cycle Route 1.[16] Thamesmead is also one of the starting points of the Green Chain Walk, which links to places such as Chislehurst and Crystal Palace.[17]

The Tavy Bridge area of Thamesmead South, including Southmere Lake, was used as a setting for the Stanley Kubrick film A Clockwork Orange and also the Channel 4 film Beautiful Thing.[1] British TV Drama Misfits was also filmed in Thamesmead.

There are a wide variety of active community groups and local bands (The Bargains and a member of post-rock act From The Sky (band)) and a short-range commercial radio station - 106.8 Time FM - that grew from the original cable (subsequently FM) service "Radio Thamesmead".

Places of worship in the area include the Thamesmead Ecumenical Parish, with shared buildings and co-operation by the Methodist Church, Church of England, United Reformed Church and Roman Catholic Church.[1]

There is a combined swimming pool, fitness centre and library run by Greenwich Council and Greenwich Leisure Limited in Thamesmead Central (The Thamesmere Centre). Bexley Council run a library at Binsey Walk near Southmere Lake, and sailing and canoeing are run at Southmere Lake in Thamesmead South by Southmere Boating Centre (with Greenwich Yacht Club) and sailing only by the YMCA in association with Erith Yacht Club. Trust Thamesmead run an indoor climbing wall (The cave) near Southmere Lake. The Thamesview Golf Centre in Thamesmead North has a nine hole course and driving range, and the Crossway Gymnastics Centre is located in Byron Close.[18] Fishing at Birchmere Lake in Thamesmead West is organised by Thamesmead Town Angling Club. Fish include tench, bream, carp and pike.[19]

Transport

Thamesmead's location between the Thames and the South London escarpment limits rail transport and road access points. Thus Thamesmead has no underground or surface rail links. Most residents rely on bus services to reach the nearest rail stations.[citation needed] There is a disused railway trackbed from Plumstead which once served the Royal Arsenal. Buses serving Thamesmead include services B11, 177, 180, 229, 244, 380, 401. 469 and 472, and the night bus N1.

Nearest railway stations

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Thamesmead on the 'Hidden London' website, accessed 27 May 2008 Cite error: The named reference "hidden" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Bexley Local Studies Centre Note 5 - Thamesmead, accessed 27 May 2008
  3. ^ Museum of London Archaelogical Service site summaries 1997, accessed 27 May 2008
  4. ^ Museum of London Archaelogical Service site summaries 1997, accessed 27 May 2008
  5. ^ Greater London Industrial Archaelogy Society, notes from Bob Carr October 1992, accessed 27 May 2008
  6. ^ a b Thamesmead, A Potted History, by Marc Anderson, on Greenwich 2000 website, originally from Thamesmead Gazette July 1995, accessed 27 May 2008
  7. ^ a b Thamesmead History on Trust Thamesmead website accessed 27 May 2008
  8. ^ a b c d e http://www.michaelcollins.info/Michaelcollins.info/Index%20/8AF83FE5-33F1-4CA9-AE7D-6E1AFA41AECE.html
  9. ^ Appendix 1, section 7 of the Tripcock Point planning report 9Sep2005 (Planning document PDU/0514/03, relating to London Borough of Greenwich Planning Application 03/2618/O) Online rtf version available here, accessed 27 May 2008
  10. ^ 'About Us' on Trust Thamesmead website, accessed 27 May 2008
  11. ^ Gallions Ecopark in Thamesmead
  12. ^ Financial Times Article - October 2008 - "Requiem for a dream home"
  13. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/8193884.stm BBC News - "The Fraud Capital of the UK", accessed 11 August 2009
  14. ^ "The fraud capital of the UK". BBC News. 11 August 2009. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  15. ^ http://www.thamesmeadtownfc.co.uk/#/supporters/4522366507
  16. ^ Thames Path Southeast Extension on TfL website, accessed 27 May 2008
  17. ^ Green Chain Walk website, accessed 27 May 2008
  18. ^ Leisure & Sport page on Trust Thamesmead website, accessed 27 May 2008
  19. ^ Birchmere Lake details on 'Go Fish' website, accessed 27 May 2008
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