Lewisham News
The latest Lewisham news: planning decisions, council and crime updates, business and community stories, each linked back to its official source.
Top story
Blackheath Station Car Park Listed as Community Asset
Lewisham has listed Blackheath station car park as an asset of community value, and fresh consultation letters on the 45-home plan went out on 21 September.
More stories
St John's
St John's Plaque Honours the 90 Killed in 1957 Rail Disaster
A maroon plaque to the 90 people killed in the 1957 St John's rail disaster was unveiled at the station on Saturday, in front of about 150 people.
Planning
Former Lewisham College: 802-Home Towers Split Councils
Officers advise Lewisham to refuse 802 homes in towers up to 30 storeys by Deptford Creek, while Greenwich's advise approval. Committees vote 24 September.
House prices
Lewisham House Prices Up £3,434 as London Falls 3.3%
The average Lewisham home was £488,658 in July, up 0.7% in a year while London fell 3.3% and Lambeth 6.3%. Flats are the borough's only type losing value.
Jobs
Lewisham Claimant Count: 14,610, London's 7th Highest
14,610 people in Lewisham claimed unemployment-related benefits in August, a 6.8% rate against London's 5.5%. Over-50s are the only age group rising.
Health
Lewisham Named NHS Trailblazer, One of Six Sites in England
Lewisham and Greenwich are one of six NHS trailblazer sites in England, testing a new way to fund care closer to home. A six-month business case phase starts now.
Downham
Downham McDonald's Asks to Open 5am to 1am, Every Day
The Garden Gate drive-thru wants opening hours of 5am to 1am seven days a week, a month after winning its 1am planning fight. Objections close 2 October.
Honor Oak
Offload Challenge: 60-Club Charity Ride Calls at Honor Oak
Rob Shotton is cycling to 60 London rugby clubs in six days, 21 to 26 September, towing a water butt for mental health charity LooseHeadz. GKT's ground is on the route.
New Cross
Ten To Six: New Cross Cafe Film Heads For Japan And Mexico
The 14-minute drama shot at Corner cafe on New Cross Road won an audience award in Italy and screens in Japan and Mexico this autumn. London date: 3 October.
Business
Lewisham Business Awards: All 96 Finalists, Vote By 2 Oct
Voting is open in all 12 categories of the Mayor of Lewisham Business Awards. The full list of 96 finalists, and how to vote before 9am on Friday 2 October.
Catford
Catford Man Charged With Murder After Death in Lambeth
The Met has charged Leroy Heffron, 38, of Sangley Road, Catford, with murder after Thomas Carey, 39, died at an address in Poynders Road, Lambeth.
Catford
Catford Regeneration Reset: What The £2.5m Plan Buys
Mayor and Cabinet approved the Catford reset on 9 September. The 2021 masterplan built on moving the South Circular is dead; the £2.5m plan funds crossings, lighting, the market and the Cat instead.
Lewisham Council
Lewisham Smoke Rules Unenforceable, Council Report Admits
Lewisham cannot prove a valid borough-wide smoke control order exists, so wood burner rules cannot be enforced. A new order, covering boats too, is coming.
Sydenham
Sydenham Children's Home Plan: £1.68m For 200 Kirkdale
Lewisham has no children's home of its own and pays over £7,300 a week per place. A 5-6 bed council home at 200 Kirkdale is due to open by April 2028.
Council
Lewisham Resurfacing 2026/27: The 28 Roads on the List
Kirkdale, Baring Road and 26 more are on Lewisham's 2026/27 resurfacing list. The £6.9m programme also funds five new Healthy Neighbourhoods in design.
Business
New Cross property firm Eden Estates wound up by High Court
The High Court wound up Eden Estates (London) Ltd of Lewisham Way on 12 August. The Official Receiver is now liquidator; what landlords and tenants should do.
New Cross
Besson Street: 383-Home Decision Now Due by 29 January 2027
New Cross's Besson Street scheme would grow from 324 to 383 homes and its tallest tower from 12 to 18 storeys. The council has until 29 January 2027 to decide.
Ladywell
Ladywell Station Plan: Vacant Shop To Get Own Front Door
Plans would refurbish Ladywell station's vacant shop, turn a window into its own entrance and repair cracked walls. Decision due by 24 September.
Catford
St Dunstan's College Plans £10.5m Pool And Sixth Form Centre
St Dunstan's College wants an eight-lane 25m pool, climbing wall and sixth form centre in Catford, doubling its leisure space. Decision due 2 December.
Business
New Lewisham Businesses: 200 Companies Registered in August
200 companies joined the register across Lewisham in August: new restaurant firms at Lewisham Gateway and on the high street, plus 13 community ventures. Who they are.
Travel
Lewisham Station Closed 26-27 September: What Runs Instead
No Southeastern trains at Lewisham or on the Bexleyheath line on 26 and 27 September, and the DLR to Bank is off the weekend before. The replacement buses.
Catford
Catford Gaming Centre: 47 Gambling Venues, Council Fights Back
Lewisham counts 47 gambling premises and says 38,000 residents are affected. The Catford Broadway gaming centre it refused was won on appeal, and a new application is now in.
Ladywell
Ladywell Fields Cafe Wins Alcohol Licence, 8pm Weekend Close
Fields Cafe can now sell alcohol until 6pm on weekdays and 8pm at weekends. Councillors granted the licence on 26 August with four conditions, including Challenge 25 and staff supervising outdoor drinkers.
Grove Park
Padel in Grove Park: 3 New Courts, £30 an Hour, No Membership
Bannatyne Health Club on Marvels Lane has opened three padel courts that anyone can book through the Playtomic app: £30 a court off-peak, £40 at peak, rackets £5 to hire.
Deptford
Landmann Way waste site restarts a week after the fire
SSSI Limited resumed work on Landmann Way on 25 August, from a separate building and at reduced capacity. Mattresses will no longer be stored overnight; the fire's cause is still open.
Housing
Hill named Lewisham's £1.5bn housing partner for ten years
Lewisham Council has appointed The Hill Group as its strategic development partner until 2036, starting with 113 affordable homes in Catford and 278 homes at Achilles Street.
Bank holiday
Lewisham Bank Holiday Bins: No Shift Rule, Check the Tool
Lewisham publishes no bank holiday bin rule, so no day is guaranteed to shift. What that means, the next two bank holidays, and when Landmann Way actually shuts.
Sydenham
Longton Avenue flats approved: 20 homes, none affordable
Councillors backed a five-storey block of 20 flats opposite Sydenham Wells Park on 12 August, against 41 objections. The developer will pay £67,246 instead of building affordable homes.
Downham
Downham McDonald's can open until 1am after council vote
The Garden Gate McDonald's on Old Bromley Road can stay open an hour later, seven nights a week. Councillors voted unanimously on 12 August, with conditions on noise, parking and litter.
Ladywell
Ladywell Fields cafe alcohol licence decided Wednesday
Councillors decide Wednesday whether Fields Cafe can sell alcohol in Ladywell Fields, after one objection and four added conditions. The 7pm meeting is public.
Deptford
Landmann Way fire: 100 firefighters, bin rounds normal
Fifteen engines tackled 50 tonnes of burning waste on Landmann Way on 18 August. Unlike June's fire, bin rounds and the recycling centre are running normally.
Jobs
Lewisham Claimant Count Falls to 14,715 as Under-25s Rise
Lewisham's claimant count fell by 215 over the year to 14,715 in July, while the UK total rose. But the borough's under-25s went the other way, up 70.
House prices
Lewisham House Prices Slip to £491,259, Flats Down 0.8%
The average Lewisham home was worth £491,259 in June, just £2,698 more than a year earlier. Flats fell 0.8% over the year while terraces rose 2.3%.
Blackheath
Blackheath Fireworks 2026: licence names 7 November
Lewisham decides the Blackheath Fireworks licence on 8 September: 17 residents objected, the police did not. The 7 November date, the hours and the conditions.
Lewisham
Riverdale Sculpture Park bridge plan filed, works in 2027
Lewisham wants to replace the southern footbridge over the Ravensbourne with an 8.5m-wide crossing. A decision is due by 3 September, delivery in 2027.
Lewisham Council
Lewisham adult social care scores 59% in first CQC rating
CQC has rated Lewisham Council's adult social care requires improvement at 59%, four points short of good. 1,122 people were waiting a median 148 days for a review.
Catford
Home Bargains Catford: Still No Opening Date, 21 Sept
No opening date and no alcohol licence for 10 Beckenham Hill Road as of 21 September, and the store has dropped off Home Bargains' own locator. The hours last published.
Food hygiene
390 Lewisham food firms still have no hygiene rating
Nearly one in six food businesses on Lewisham's register awaits a first inspection, the fourth-highest share in London. What that means before you order.
Business
ADW Blackheath surveyors face 19 August winding-up hearing
A creditors' petition to wind up Albert D Wellington Ltd, the RICS surveying practice at 52 Lee Terrace, is listed at the High Court on 19 August. The firm can oppose it.
Crime
Lewisham shoplifting almost triples in a year, June data
Police logged 177 shoplifting reports within a mile of central Lewisham in June 2026, up from 63 a year earlier. Total recorded crime rose 16 percent to 1,200.
Food hygiene
Lewisham food hygiene ratings, July 2026: a perfect month as all 20 inspected businesses score 5
Every Lewisham borough food business rated in July 2026 got the top hygiene score of 5, from the Stage Door Cafe on Catford Broadway to the Railway Tavern in Bellingham and school kitchens in Lee and Deptford. 20 ratings, no fails.