About Us
The Tanners Hill Tenants Residents Association is run by voluntary Tenants and Leaseholders in order to try and improve the quality of life on the Tanners Hill Estate. It also provides a way for us to engage and liase with Lewisham Homes and Lewisham Council in order to provide the quality of service that is required of them, and to voice our concerns if they do not live up to this requirement.
It also provides a means for us to apply for funding for projects in order to improve our estate. For example, since Lewisham Homes sold our Meeting Hall in Pearsons Avenue to the Addey and Stanhope School, it has been much more difficult to hold regular TRA Meetings. We spent a lot of time and effort working on a project to adapt and use Number 82 Tanners Hill as a meeting space, which would have acted as a central hub, and enabling us to set up regular drop-ins, organise youth activities, run a creche, an after-school club, a gardening group, etc etc. However, after we were given the go-ahead, it was made financially untenable for us to do so, and since then, many other residents associations have folded, and many community halls are under threat of closure and financial cuts. Despite this, the Tanners Hill TRA remains committed to continue to represent the residents of our Estate!
There has always been an interesting mix of people living on the estate, making up a vibrant community. Its roots lie in ‘The Heston Estate’, now Heston House; which was built before the war, and at the time considered to be luxury flats, with laundry rooms in the basement (now derelict…. WHY?!). Deloraine House followed after the war, built on the site of a sewing machine factory (without Lifts! Maybe post-war austerity?!).
The Estate has now grown to include homes in Florence Terrace, Omega St, Heston St, Heald St, Pitman House and the big row of flats near the bottom of Tanners Hill. It’s occupants include Families with Babies, Teenagers, Students, Elderly People; and many Nationalities and Cultures are represented. There has been a big increase in property development in the surrounding areas, but many of our residents feel that our estate is being neglected. Many residents are also not happy with the results of the long over-running “Decent Homes” Project, or the quality of some of the repairs carried out, or the level of anti-social behaviour, for example, but feel that they are powerless, and unable to do anything about it on their own.
This is why our Residents Association (TRA) is so important. We can make a big difference to the quality of life for all the residents of our Estate, from the youngest to the eldest – by getting to know our neighbours, and combining our efforts to make sure improvements are made. The more people there are at TRA meetings, and the more people that contribute, the more likely it will be that our issues will be dealt with.
We all benefit from cleaner and safer streets, and a sense of community, and we can all contribute; by putting those bags of rubbish or those chicken bones in the bin rather than dropping them on the floor (which encourages rats and cockroaches, and further rubbish), or reminding our children not to drop litter, or by saying Hello to our neighbour on the stairs to encourage a friendlier atmosphere. Sometimes, a little bit of effort goes a long way!
This Blog has been a continual ‘work in progress’, and we are working on a new updated web site in order to adapt to the new circumstances caused by the Covid pandemic, which do not allow us to have meetings in public. We hope to include a bulletin board for residents to keep in touch and a linked instagram page for residents’ photos, along with more regular posts, and links to useful sites and resources.
However, a web site is only as good as the information that is posted, so so if you have any ideas or material that you think would be of interest to other Tanners Hill residents, or to Deptford residents in general, please get in touch. We look forward to hearing from you…
You can contact us at…
admin at tannershilltra dot org
…or alternatively click the word comment below.
Tanners Hill Residents Association Committee:-
Chair:- Barry Still
Vice Chair:- Naomi Groves
Treasurer:- Colin Connor
Secretary:- Gillian Lewis
Block Reps:-
Deloraine House:- Gillian Lewis
Florence Terrace:- Colin Connor
Heald Street:- Shannon Clarke
Heston House:- Barry Still, Nuala Walsh, Laura Burman
Omega Street:- Ted Trott
Pitman House:- Volunteer required
Tanners Hill:- Shannon Clarke
Area Panel Reps:- Colin Connor,
* * * * * * *
Hello!
I’m a resident at Heston and am wishing to base my 3rd year BA project on the story of Heston and Deloraine House. If you have time, I would love it if you were able to get in touch and answer some questions I have. My email is ************ [removed to prevent junk mail].
All the best, Lola.
Hi Lola!
Thanks for your enquiry, that sounds like an interesting project to undertake. Deptford has a rich and interesting history, and I would be happy to attempt to answer any questions. Several of us who volunteer our services to the Residents Association have lived on the Estate for over 35 Years, so between us we should be able to provide you with some background and some leads to get you started. Perhaps we could post some of your findings in an article on this web site?
It would be great to hear from anyone else who has any knowledge of the history of Heston and Deloraine House, and/or Tanners Hill. If you are able to contribute any information, please write a comment (click ‘Comments’ below) or send us an email to admin at tannershilltra dot org.
Hi who do I contact about access to the shared garden round the back of delorian house?
Thank You
Abbie
Hi Abbie, unfortunately the garden at the back of Deloraine House is closed to residents, due to two separate water leaks which caused major flooding. It has only just been repaired, despite being reported on several occasions by residents and the TRA for over a year, and we have been told it will take at least three months to dry out before they can inspect the repair and restore the grass area.
Now I am back in UK, when is the next meeting please
Hi Ted, welcome back! The next meeting is the AGM on 9th July. We will email you with further details, and look forward to catching up.
Comments are now working…
Excellent website Barry!
Thanks for your feedback, Joe. I am hoping to spend more time updating and improving the site in the near future, and your comment has given me encouragement.
Have you ever thought about doing the text in yellow, that would show up on black
Thanks Ted, I’ll look into changing it. I wish it was straightforward, but it means changing the template code in WordPress, which involves delving into stylesheets and code!
In the edition of “Neighbourhood News”, back page regarding Collection point for lumber etc. where do tenants of Omega Street put their lumber? On the street out front..
A valid point, Ted. The caretaker’s office is very close to Omega Street, and as far as I know, they are able to help you. The info in the Neighbourhood News edition was an effort to help guide residents of Heston and Deloraine House, who sometimes put lumber in the bins – I sometimes end up taking electrical goods out of the refuse bins to the lumber point behind Pitman House myself!
Can you please change the colouring of this bit as I had trouble reading it, black on black not very good!!!!!!!
Thanks for your comment, Ted.
Yes you are right about not being able to read the black text on black background – when I set the page up it was a white background, but WordPress have changed the templates that are used for the ‘Theme’ used for the site, which is causing the problem. That area of the page is set up by the WordPress program itself, and I don’t have direct access to change the wording or the background colour. I will seek advice on how to edit the template in order to get my original white background back, as the photo at the top of the page is also partly covered by the black dots – which also weren’t there origionally.
If you select the text in that area with the cursor and the shift key, it reverses the colour of the background, so you can read the text. This is a useful tip, as it has helped me out many times over the years.
Thank you again, Ted, you are the first person ever, in over a year, to actually bother to post a comment to our web site. The feedback helps to keep me motivated to develop and improve the blog, which is pointless if no-one else reads or contributes to it.
Barry
PS This is what the text says:
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