Constituency update – March 2024
Dear friend,
I hope you’re keeping well. Here is an overview of what I have been up to in Croydon and beyond over the last few weeks. As ever, I am here if you want to get in touch with any problems or issues, or if you want to pass on your views or ideas. Do get in touch. My email is sarah.jones.mp@parliament.uk
Fight to tackle fly-tipping continues
In January I launched my campaign to clean up Croydon after statistics revealed that Croydon is the second easiest place in England to fly-tip and get away fine-free. Official statistics show that Croydon Council issued just 10 fixed penalty notices despite recording more than 22,000 instances of fly-tipping last year. I want to ensure those who make the mess, clean up the mess.
Speaking up for Croydon in Parliament
Earlier this year I secured debate in Parliament on how we need to get serious about tackling fly-tipping in Croydon. You can watch a clip here. Please get in touch with what more you think should be done. I will commit to working with everyone across the council to see change happen. My campaign calls on Croydon Council to set up:
- Mega Skip Days. Provide freely available skips on certain days of the year so residents can get rid of unwanted items for free
- Fly-tipper’s Wall of Shame. Use roaming CCTV to capture and publicise images of fly-tippers with posters around hotspot areas
- Fly-tipping Strategy. Develop a fly-tipping strategy for Croydon to tackle the problem across the borough, work in partnership with local people, and use existing powers more effectively. Harsh penalties and fines should be properly enforced.
First success of fly-tipping campaign
I am delighted that work has already started at the former Sports Direct gym on Purley Way, which has become a notorious fly-tipping hotspot in recent years. Huge thanks to Councillors Ellily Ponnuthurai and Rowenna Davis, as well as local residents for their tireless campaigning to rid Purley Way of fly-tipping over the last two years. This blight on our communities should not be treated as some inevitable feature of city living. We still have a lot of work to do, but I’m thrilled that progress has already been made. You can see a local news article here.
Fighting to save Croydon’s Libraries
I am very disappointed to hear that Croydon Council and Mayor Jason Perry are planning on consulting on the closure of Bradmore Green, Broad Green, Sanderstead and Shirley libraries. Libraries are at the very heart of our community and play a vital role in supporting residents, especially families with children and older people. I urge you to share your feedback, which you can do here. You can also pick up a paper survey from a Croydon library – check library opening times here. The consultation closes on 19 April.
Marking National HIV Testing Week
There has been a horrific rise in sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea and syphilis following years of cuts to public health. It was great to meet the Croydon team who are combatting this – Croydon’s Integrated Sexual Health Centre. Lead Nurse Mahdi and his team see approximately 30,000 patients a year and offer a ‘One-stop-shop’ where anyone can get immediate tests, diagnosis, and treatments (without needing a prescription). Their Open Access and Confidential service means that patients can self-present to their services without a referral or without needing proof of address. They also have an Outreach Team who engage with vulnerable groups including young people in our community. More information about their services can be found here.
MET commissioner comes to Croydon to talk about Facial Recognition
Live Facial Recognition technology in Croydon has recently been used successfully to protect the public from dangerous criminals wanted for robbery, sexual offences, and other highly harmful offences. Whilst these are good results, I know that people have been skeptical about what facial recognition means in terms of privacy and racial profiling. I recently attended a community meeting with the Commissioner for the MET Sir Mark Rowley. New technologies mean that the facial recognition is now incredibly accurate to each individual. In addition, facial recognition is only used to search for wanted individuals – it is not used speculatively in any way. This was reassuring but we will continue to ask questions to make sure technology is being used as it should be.
Recognition for local heroes
It was such a privilege to hand over a letter from King Charles III to five tram staff who helped save the life of 87-year-old Rosina Marshall, a retired NHS midwife. Rosina told me last year about five extraordinary members of tram staff who rushed to help her after she fell and became stranded on the tram tracks in 2021. At Rosina’s request, I wrote to the King, who surprised us all with the most wonderful letter. His Majesty praised their remarkable actions and thanked them for their selflessness, professionalism, and exemplary care. You can see the full story here.
Croydon Arena Redevelopment plans continue
Stakeholders and I met again recently to discuss proposed plans regarding the future of the Croydon Arena site. I’m sure many of you will know of the venue from sports days, football matches or athletics meets in the past, but in recent times it has become increasingly dilapidated. After bringing together a variety of stakeholders from the Arena, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace in the Community, and the connected Oasis Academy Arena school, it was good to hear that the running track has been repaired to a reasonable standard. All in all, it was a hugely constructive meeting, and we hope that there will be big things in store for the Arena in the future, so watch this space!
Celebrating the grand opening of the new Men’s Shed at St Francis
It was great to be with the St Francis community for the grand opening of their brand-new Men’s Shed. The Men’s Shed concept started in Australia around 1999 to try and tackle loneliness and isolation amongst men of all ages. For a long time, research has shown the negative impact of loneliness and isolation on a person’s health and wellbeing. Surveys from mental health charities are finding that millions of people report feeling lonely on a daily basis, but that men in particular find it more difficult to build social connections than women, and unlike women of a similar age, less older men have networks of friends and rarely share personal concerns about health and personal worries. Men’s Sheds seek to reduce isolation and feelings of loneliness, and they allow men to deal with mental health challenges by rebuilding communities. In many cases, they save men’s lives. There are now roughly 2,000 Sheds across the world. For more information about Men’s Sheds, please see here.
Plans to transform Brickfields Meadow
It was great to visit Brickfields Meadow with staff and pupils from St Thomas Becket primary school recently. The school are ambitious to set up a Friends of The Park group with local residents in the hope of transforming Brickfields Meadow which sits right next to the school grounds. With issues ranging from uncontrolled dogs, illegal fishing, dogs fouling, and antisocial behaviour, this is an issue that comes up time and again when I speak to residents in the area. Match days at Selhurst Stadium appear to exacerbate the issue. I will be writing a joint letter with the school to go to local residents to see how many people would be interested in joining an action group to clean-up the space, and the school have said they are happy to be a hub for a proposed Action Day. There is so much potential there. If you want to get involved please email me.
Marking the start of Ramadan
It was a pleasure to be invited to the Hyderi Islamic Centre at the beginning of Ramadan for their Annual Interfaith Iftar on the topic of Islamophobia Awareness Day. I know the amazing work that the Muslim community does in Croydon, not just during this holy month but throughout the year. I am proud of the diversity of faiths, cultures, and backgrounds of the people in Croydon that makes our community stronger. Ramadan Mubarak to all in Croydon who are observing.
Community discussions on peace and harmony
Thank you to the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in Croydon for welcoming me to the Baitus Subhan Mosque recently to speak at their Voices for Peace event. At a time when we are witnessing such horrors unfold around the world, I’m grateful that we can come together as a community to acknowledge and pay respect to the tragic loss of life resulting from wars across the world, both past and present. The current situation in Gaza is desperate. That is why I supported Labour’s amendment for an immediate ceasefire. Since the attacks on October the 7th I have met with many people in Croydon across schools, mosques, synagogues, churches and with many individuals. I will continue to have these conversations, and my door is open to anyone who wants to meet with me.
Celebrating International Women’s Day
I was honoured to mark Internatational Women’s Day by attending some inspiring events with women and girls from across Croydon. Thank you to the pupils and staff at Coloma for a powerful discussion about how we can tackle bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. I had a brilliant morning with parents and carers at Chestnut Park Primary, joining Stella Osans from Croydon Mencap and Susanette Mansour from Croydon Vision, celebrating the amazing women of Croydon. And finally I heard some amazing speeches from the young girls at Croydon Soroptimist for their Loud and Proud competition. Issues ranged from mental health, artificial intelligence, the environment, homelessness, and diversity. Huge congratulations to the winners!
1st – Zina Ibeto from Fairchildes Primary School
2nd – Bailey Bangerter from St Peter’s Primary
3rd – Fearne Skilton from Gresham Primary
TackleLondon launch at Meridian with the Matt Ratana Foundation
It was amazing to join the Matt Ratana Foundation at their TackleLondon at Meridian High School earlier this month. They are doing incredible work supporting and inspiring young people through rugby. The foundation brings pride to Croydon every day as they carry on their vital work and honour Matt’s legacy. Born in New Zealand, Matt was a serving Metropolitan Police Officer in Croydon when he was killed in the line of duty in 2020. Matt worked tirelessly as rugby coach for all ages and mentor to young people. He spoke often to his various teams of the importance of ‘Whānau’, which in Maori means, your community, your family. You can learn more about the amazing work the foundation is doing here.
Delivering on casework
Since the beginning of this year, I have received over 5,000 casework-related emails from constituents. Of these cases, almost a third are housing-related with issues ranging from damp and mould to people living in overcrowded accommodation. I continue to see a broad range of issues from incorrect PCN charges, Cost of Living issues, and educational concerns.
Recently I was approached by a concerned neighbour of an elderly gentleman who has no immediate family in the UK. The gentleman is losing his mobility, sight, and hearing and nervous about letting anyone help him. The rapid response team reassured him and took him to Parkview Nursing Home for a brief visit whilst they gave his house a blitz clean and took care of some plumbing repairs. He now has a dedicated experienced social worker and is getting the appropriate help at home that he needs.
I also secured a refund of £2,503 for a lady who had been incorrectly over-charged by her housing association.
I have also been helping a young boy of 10 years old who is a British citizen, who got caught stranded in Afghanistan at the Kabul airport in August 2021. Unfortunately, the authorities made an error in his application. This led to two and half years of working in partnership with the Children’s section of the Refugee Council Croydon to help get him home. Thankfully his visa has just been approved and he will be flying home to his family shortly.
One gentleman I’ve been supporting had been in an awful road traffic accident and has been living in dire circumstances for weeks and was facing imminent homelessness because the DWP made a mistake with his payments. I was able to get the DWP to back-pay him £6,000.
We have received over 130,000 emails since my election in 2017. A huge thanks must go to my small team for all their hard work, and their continued ability to get results.
Contacting me for advice or support
If there is anything I can do as your MP to support you, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. My team and I are always on hand to offer any advice and support that we can offer. If you think I can help, please email me at sarah.jones.mp@parliament.uk – Alternatively, my office phone number is 0208 191 7066. Lines are open Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 10-12 and 2-4. Or you can always pop by the office on Blackhorse Lane Monday – Friday between 10 and 4.
