Reducing congestion and improving air quality in Wimbledon

Delivery of personal online shopping parcels is becoming a hot topic in London, with the London Assembly recently releasing a report on congestion which called for workplace bans on personal deliveries.

Have you considered having your personal shopping delivered to a central location?

Many Wimbledon retailers offer Click & Collect and there are also various alternative parcel collection points covering all the major providers of this service in Wimbledon Town Centre:

Collect+ and Parcelly at Retail 24, 24 The Broadway

Hubbox at Kingsmere Dry Cleaners, 36 Wimbledon Hill Road

Doddle at 17 The Broadway has Amazon lockers and offers a free return service with some retailers. Doddle also offers a service for larger businesses to provide a collection point for all their staff which helps to minimise traffic and disruption at their offices

Consolidating personal deliveries to convenient parcel collection points is better for businesses, for air quality and for congestion.

Andrew Scott Robertson enjoys another award-winning year

It’s been another award-winning year for independent Wimbledon estate agent, Andrew Scott Robertson with national recognition in the raterAgent Top 50 estate agencies in the UK for customer service.

The awards recognise the UK’s top estate agencies for customer service. Bill McClintock, raterAgent chairman said, “These are the industry awards that matter as they are based entirely on genuine reviews from customers who have experienced the agent’s service first-hand. All reviews have been verified thoroughly under our Triple Lock Transparency Check so our company and individual winners have every reason to feel proud that the exemplary service they give their customers has been recognised. We congratulate all our 2016 winners.”

Andrew Scott Robertson Managing Director John King said, “It is testament to the hard work and dedication of the whole team that we have picked up such a prestigious award for the second year running. We hope that knowing that Andrew Scott Robertson has not only engaged with such a transparent and trustworthy site – but also that we have been placed in the Top 50 National Estate Agencies based upon our customer’s reviews on it – tells you all you need to know about our approach to our service. At the very least this should encourage anyone looking to move in the area in 2017 to consider Andrew Scott Robertson as their agent in the process.”

Andrew Scott Roberston is at 50 Wimbledon Hill Road, SW19 7PA.

No Tram service between Wimbledon & Mitcham from 11-20 February

Tram services between Wimbledon and Mitcham will close from 11 to 20 February for essential track renewal works between Morden Road and Dundonald Road stops.

The work consists of 750m of track replacement between Morden Road and Merton Park, and replacement of both the embedded track and the signals through the Dundonald Road crossing. The work at Dundonald Road will involve the closure of the road for the duration of the period, with access to residents only. During this time a road diversion route will be in operation.

TfL has organised a drop-in session for residents and customers who wish to find out more:

Venue: Merton Park Primary School, Church Lane, Wimbledon SW19 3HQ
Date: Tuesday 24 January
Time: 5 – 8pm

Renewing the infrastructure at these locations will provide a reliable, smoother service to Tram customers and will reduce the need for large scale maintenance of the track for many years to come. A bus replacement service will be in operation, calling at Wimbledon, Morden Road and Mitcham Tram stops only.

For more information please visit Transport for London’s website.

Wimbledon Community Association launches new website

Wimbledon Community Association (WCA) has recently launched a new website, wimblecomm with a focus on its mission to connect people with venues that provide community space for hire, and to develop an online community hub that enables sharing of news, best practice and networking in our local communities. WCA welcomes details from venues wanting to publicise community space for hire. Listings are free for non-profit venues (terms and conditions apply). Members of the public can also search the new site for a range of venues to suit their needs.

If you are a non-profit or commercial organisation with community space for hire in Merton please contact WCA to register your venue.

Wimbledon Community Association is based at 66 Kings Road, Wimbledon SW19 8QW.

Tel: 07534 518 473
Email: general@wimbledoncommunity.org

Neptune opening in Wimbledon soon

Neptune has chosen Wimbledon for the location of its third London store, alongside Fulham and Chiswick.

Neptune Wimbledon will be opening on The Broadway next month and Love Wimbledon is thrilled to welcome this iconic British interiors brand to our Town Centre. The Neptune Retail Design team is currently creating an exciting new shop to showcase the brand’s timeless aesthetic with a courtyard city garden and modern apartment concept including a self-contained kitchen, living and bedroom space with exposed concrete ceiling. Inside will feature four kitchen as well as two bedroom settings complete with adjoining washrooms, a large accessories area with lighting display and Neptune’s iconic Flower Shop. There will also be an area dedicated to the Neptune Tailored service and design offices, offering customers an extensive selection of textiles from its fabric library as well as an array of house-blended paints.

“We’ve been keeping a close eye on properties in the Wimbledon area for a while now and have been waiting for the right opportunity,” explained Gary Temprell, Director of Retail at Neptune. “The interest in Neptune in and around London keeps on increasing and so we wanted to make the in-store experience with us more accessible so residents, and visitors to Wimbledon can get to know Neptune and our designs properly.”

Founded in 1996 by friends John Sims-Hilditch and Giles Redman, Neptune is an interiors retailer recognised for its exacting standards, design-led aesthetic and expert craftsmanship. Perhaps most well-known for its kitchens, every Neptune piece is designed for a lifetime of use, with is trademark look rooted in British heritage.

Neptune Wimbledon will be at 168-178 The Broadway, SW19 1RX (formerly occupied by Gerrys of Wimbledon).

Diesel levy across Merton to tackle air pollution

Merton Council is set to introduce a new diesel levy in April 2017 in response to a national health emergency and the Mayor of London’s pledge to cut air pollution in the capital. Merton will be joining Islington, Kensington and Chelsea and Camden, which have already introduced a surcharge for diesel vehicles.

Before the levy can be implemented there will be a statutory consultation starting tomorrow, Thursday 12 January and ending on Friday 3 February. Love Wimbledon would encourage all BID businesses to respond to this consultation.

See full details of the consultation here.

The Council’s research has found that diesel vehicles in Merton contribute disproportionately to local air quality emissions. This was based on real-life on-road emissions rather than the manufacturers’ specification. The Council is encouraging people to move away from diesel and towards less polluting vehicles. Recognising the difficult financial climate and in response to concerns raised by the Scrutiny Panel about giving people enough time to change their vehicle or have it serviced, it has been decided to phase in the surcharge incrementally. On 14 November 2016 the Cabinet agreed the following:

  1. The introduction of a levy charge for all diesel vehicles that have a Resident, Business or Trade parking permit with the introduction of  £150 surcharge phased over a 3 year period (£90 in 2017-18, £115 in 2018-19 and £150 in 2019-20).
  2. Resident parking permit charge for electric vehicles to be set at a discounted rate of £25pa.
  3. Council to review the impact of the diesel surcharge for a period of 2 years, with a view to the introduction of comprehensive emissions based parking scheme which could link permit pricing to the vehicle’s environmental performance. Merton Council is committed to ensuring any money raised through such a scheme in the borough would go towards tackling air pollution, local sustainable transport initiatives and necessary infrastructure such as cycle lanes.

See full details and reports relating to this decision here.

The result of this consultation will be published on Merton Council’s website.

Cyber Crime advice for SMEs

The Metropolitan Police Service FALCON (Fraud and Linked Crime Online) team has produced an updated version of the Little Book of Cyber Scams which offers advice to small and medium sized enterprises on staying safe in the cyber world. The Met Police also offers general Advice to Business on safety and security and reminds the public of their hotline numbers:

In an emergency call 999
For non emergencies call 101
For the Anti Terrorist Hotline call 0800 789 321

New Wimbledon Theatre launches Creative Learning Programme

New Wimbledon Theatre is throwing open its doors open with a brand new programme of educational classes this spring. Creative Learning at the New Wimbledon Theatre offers a series of events and courses with opportunities for people of all ages, including Lunchtime Choir, Adult Acting Classes, Musical Theatre Workshop for Over 50s and Stage Combat Masterclass for youngsters.

This marks the start of a really exciting time for New Wimbledon Theatre as it offers a fantastic opportunity for all in the local residential and business community to have fun and awaken their creativity in this prestigious venue. New Wimbledon Theatre is the eighth largest theatre in London and the West End venue of the suburbs and we are privileged to have such a unique and precious institution right in the heart of our town centre.

Keep checking our website for details of upcoming events.