From croydonadvertiser.com

NHS England has released its latest figures looking into the standards of GP surgeries across England, ranking each surgery based on several criteria.

Earlier this week, we revealed which surgeries in Croydon had been ranked as the 10 worst surgeries in the borough, and now we can reveal which surgeries will have a lot more to smile about.

The latest results make particularly good reading for Mitchley Avenue Surgery, in Sanderstead, which has not only been ranked as the best in the borough with an overall patient satisfaction rate of 98.5 percent, but is also the 58th best in the whole of England.

Dr Simon Woolf has been at the surgery for around 25 years, and it looks as though he has made a real difference to his patients, 98.9 percent of whom said they felt like he listened to their problems.

And it’s not just Dr Woolf that the patients are pleased with, as the receptionists were also given a 98.5 per cent approval rating.

Sanderstead councillor Yvette Hopley said Dr Woolf has become a part of the community, and is far more than just the local doctor.

“He is an incredibly experienced doctor who spends a lot of time making sure he gets to know all of his patients,” she explained.

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FROM CBEA2018  @ croydonawards.co.uk

The finalists in a new award to celebrate Croydon’s most inspirational young people jumped at the chance to meet their competition for the first time.

Any rivalries were quickly shelved as the enterprising 18 to 25 year olds got on like a house on fire! A total of eight entrants have been shortlisted for the new Croydon Business Excellence Awards Inspirational Young Person of the Year category, sponsored by London Borough of Croydon.

Going for gold – left to right – Tyrell Davis Doughlin, Imad Khan, Tom Martin, 
Laurence Grant, Fabio Schifano, Michelle Williams and Kasra Soltani.

Meeting at the Croydon offices of awards organiser White Label Creative, they spoke about their excitement at being shortlisted and their ambitions for the future.

“I’m very excited to be shortlisted,” said Tom Martin, 19, a trainee site manager with Barratt, who is committed to helping others at work and in his free time. “It’s been great meeting the other finalists as well. Having them tell me about themselves and sharing their life choices was quite amazing.”

The shortlisted group includes Tom; Tyrell Davis Doughlin, 18, project manager of London Roads Cultural Festival; Laurence Grant, 25, director with Shaking Hands; Imad Khan, 23, who works with the Croydon: Choose Your Future campaign; Rebecca Russel, 22, construction industry Tradeswoman of the Year (who couldn’t make the meeting); Fabio Schifano, 25, a young LGBT+ campaigner and trustee of Croydon Pride; Kasra Soltani, 21, a surveying student at Croydon College, and Michelle Williams, 23, a business administration apprentice at Croydon Council.

All of the group live in the borough and were nominated by employers, family, friends or colleagues. They were chosen because they inspire other young people through their enterprise, energy and positive attitude in their work and community.

Many have overcome many obstacles and difficulties, like Kasra Soltani, 21, a student at Croydon College. He only came to the UK from Iran four years ago and learned to speak English by watching TV box sets. He said: “I’m really passionate about trying to effect change in the world to make life better for other people.”

Business Administration Apprentice Michelle Williams, 23, was so delighted with her shortlisting, she screamed with excitement when she got the news at work. “I’ve never been in a position like this before and I’m really looking forward to the opportunities that will come out of it,” said Michelle, who works with the South London Commissioning team at Croydon Council. “In the future I’d like to run my own company showing young girls how to be more confident and successful in the world no matter what their circumstances.”

The youngest of the group, 18 year old, Tyrell Davis Doughlin

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What is thought to be Croydon’s first-ever animal education centre where you can learn how to look after and care for exotic and domestic animals is to open next month.

The ARC Centre will be home to all kinds of different animals, including meerkats, albino skunks, sugar gliders, African pygmy hedgehogs and African pygmy goats.

The business will be based at Greenvale Primary School, on Sandpiper Road, in Selsdon, and plans to open on September 10.

It allows families to learn basic veterinary skills such as administering medicine and trimming claws and hooves, as well as how to look after animals in their natural habitats.

Louise Wilkinson, co-director of The ARC Centre, told the Advertiser she believes it can educate both adults and children while having fun at the same time.

She said: “People can learn about exotic and domestic animals in their closest natural habitats as possible.

“For example, there will be a rain forest experience where there will be parrots and monkeys so children and adults can learn how they live.

“The rain forest experience with be humid and that will help children learn about the animals and their homes.”

The centre offers a desert experience which replicates the heat of the Sahara Desert, as well as a meet the meerkat experience.

Other animals looked after at the centre include African grey parrots, chameleons, scorpions, tarantulas, bearded dragons, leopard tortoises, rabbits, chickens and guinea pigs.

Louise will run the centre with co-director Iain Greenwood, and the pair are planning to hold an official opening later in the year.

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the-arc-centre

From Andy Datson @ croydonadvertiser

There’s good news for parents of children about to start the new school year at primary schools across Croydon.

That’s because most primary schools in Croydon have either been awarded “good” or “outstanding” grades in their most recent Ofsted reports.

The vast majority have been rated as “good”, but nearly a quarter of all primary schools in the borough have achieved the highly coveted “outstanding” grade.

Unfortunately, however, it’s not all good news, as 11 Croydon primary schools have most recently been given a “requires improvement” rating, and one school, The South Norwood Academy, has been given the worst possible grade of “inadequate”.

n a statement sent to the Advertiser shortly after its report was published on March 5, the school said: “The outcome of the recent Ofsted inspection is hugely disappointing and upsetting for the staff, parents and our children.

“The school’s priorities have been to focus on the core curriculum, to create an environment where our children are proud to be part of an energetic, vibrant community, where they feel safe and supported and where our school values underpin everything we do – the Ofsted report does not reflect this.”

One of the most recent success stories is that of Chestnut Park Primary School, which was recently given an outstanding rating just three years after opening.

Upon receiving the rating, Chestnut Park head teacher Esther Brooks said: “To be awarded outstanding in all areas is a great achievement by everyone here at Chestnut Park Primary School.

“All our staff, governors, pupils, parents and the whole team are celebrating the news and looking forward to building on such wonderful success.

“We strive to bring out the very best in all our pupils and the Ofsted report has highlighted numerous areas of which we can all be extremely proud.”

You will notice that some relatively new schools are missing from the list below. That is simply because they have not yet been inspected and given a rating.

These are the current Ofsted ratings for every primary school in Croydon

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Westfield development is seen as crucial to the town’s economy and it is hoped Westfield’s arrival will have a positive knock-on effect, with other businesses moving here as the town’s regeneration picks up pace. Below is How Croydon’s Westfield Hammerson shopping centre could look.

FROM Newsbeat @bbc

Stormzy has announced that he will fund two black British students to go to the University of Cambridge.

The Stormzy Scholarship will pay for tuition fees and provide a maintenance grant for up to four years of an undergraduate course.

The rapper says: “It’s so important for black students, especially, to be aware that it can 100% be an option to attend a university of this calibre.”

The rapper will fund two students this year and two in 2019.

Explaining why he set up the scholarship, Stormzy tells Radio 1 Newsbeat: “In school and college I had the ability and was almost destined to go to one of the top universities.

“But that didn’t happen for myself… so hopefully there’s another young black student out there that can have that opportunity through my scholarship.”

He adds: “I always said that there’s a whole bunch of academically brilliant, excellent students who also need an incentive.”

Cambridge has been criticised for not admitting many pupils from a black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) background.

In June, the university asked for help from schools and parents to increase the number of black British students it enrols.

It was after the Financial Times found that some Cambridge colleges didn’t take in any black students from 2012 to 2016.

The university says that it admitted 58 black students on to undergraduate courses in 2017.

“We’re going to have young black students who are academically brilliant and smashing it, and they should just have that opportunity to walk into a university like Cambridge,” says Stormzy.

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FROM Emily Hennings @ yourlocalguardian.co.uk

The Royal Mail is launching a trial of the UK’s first ever parcel postboxes.

Small businesses and marketplace sellers will be able to post pre-paid parcels through securely designed parcel postboxes, in the same way that they currently post a letter.

The Royal Mail said it will be the first potential major change of use for the postbox in its last 160 years of existence.

With a wider aperture and secure design for mailing larger items, the parcel postboxes make the posting of larger pre-paid parcels safe and convenient, said the Royal Mail.

The trial launches on Monday in Northampton and Leicester, and will run until November.

Royal Mail will then

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FROM Crystal Palace News @ cpfc.co.uk

This Thursday, 16th August, you have the opportunity to meet some of the first team squad during a signing session at the club’s official kit supplier, PUMA’s flagship store in Carnaby Street between 4pm & 5pm.

You can buy the new Palace home shirt instore or bring your own Palace merchandise to get signed by new signings Max Meyer and Cheikhou Kouyate, first-team captain Luka Milivojevic, plus Christian Benteke and Patrick Van Aanholt.

The home kit, which will be worn against Liverpool next Monday, is billed as ‘The Palace Fade Stripe’ referencing the innovative feature on the traditional red and blue stripes whilst the away kit is the ‘Palace PUMA Sash.  The sash celebrates the 40th anniversary of one of the most memorable seasons in the club’s history when the “Team of the 80s” won promotion to the First Division.

Come along and show your colours at the store in Carnaby Street, whose address is 52-55 Carnaby St, Carnaby, London W1F 9QE.

Arrive early to avoid disappointment.

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From BBC News @ BBC.co.uk

Labour’s housing minister has called on the Government to fund Croydon Council’s “essential” project to install sprinklers in the borough’s tallest buildings.

Sarah Jones, MP for Croydon Central, launched a national campaign calling on the Government to deliver funding promised to councils in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire.

More than 740 flats have been successfully retrofitted with sprinkler systems so far in Croydon as part of an installation programme for the council’s 25 tallest blocks and one eight-storey sheltered housing block.

Croydon Council has requested a Government contribution to its sprinkler programme three times, all of which have been rejected. The council has allocated £10m upfront from its housing maintenance budget.

Ms Jones said: “It’s unacceptable that more than a year after the Grenfell tragedy, the Government are withholding the support they promised to councils for essential fire safety works.”