The front door of a house was destroyed by fire in a possible arson attack in Crawley in the early hours of yesterday morning (Tue 23 Sept).

Fire crews were called to the maisonette in Titmus Drive, Tilgate and having extinguished the blaze found that there was evidence that it had been deliberately started.

There were 5 people in the property at the time, but no one was injured.

[Anyone with information about the incident is asked to email 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk, call 101 or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.]

Travellers from East Surrey will face four years of “commuting hell” during work to rebuild London Bridge station, a rail users’ group has said.

The refurbishments mean that many trains will be diverted to Victoria for the duration of the works.
London Bridge station is being refurbished as part of the Thameslink upgrade next year.

Stephen Trigg, from Reigate, Redhill and District Railway Users’ Association, said East Surrey commuters would suffer unfairly because of the disruption.

He noted that the biggest change is that there are going to be only five trains in the morning peak to London Bridge instead of the usual nine and they are all going to be slower trains,

Southern said the refurbishment of London Bridge imposed constraints on service capacity but that the completion of the Thameslink programme will bring more capacity and more trains to stations in East Surrey

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-29312445

Crawley’s won gold and category winner prizes at the South and South East in Bloom Awards.

The town picked up the gold award in the small city category, scoring a total of 178 out of 200 points.

The judges commented on how Crawley’s Let’s FACE it! has inspired neighbourhood groups to plant and tend beds and borders near their homes.

This has had a very positive effect and has encouraged many to participate in the environment.

The judges also noted that Crawley is generally a very clean town with very little litter evident.

They reserved special praise for the town’s community participation, noting excellent involvement throughout the year of various sectors of Crawley’s community on many projects.

Two men have been charged after a man was stabbed in Crawley on Friday afternoon (19 September)

Walter McHugh, of Sullivans Drive, Crawley was arrested and charged with ABH and possession of an offensive weapon and will appear at Crawley Magistrates Court on Monday (September 22). And Nikesh McHugh, a student also from Sullivan Drive, has also been charged with ABH and will appear at Crawley Magistrates Court on October 8.

Police had been called to St Joan Close, where an injured man was on the roof of a garage after being involved in a fight in Perth Close around 2:45pm

The man was taken to Hospital with stab wounds to his neck and stomach. His injuries were not serious and he was released from hospital the next day.

He was arrested on suspicion of affray and possession of an offensive weapon and bailed until November 8.

[Anyone with information or saw what happened is asked to contact police on 101@sussex.pnn.police.uk or call 101 quoting serial 969 of 19/9.]

http://www.sussex.police.uk/whats-happening/latest/news-stories/2014/09/22/two-men-charged-with-crawley-stabbing

A special concert both to commemorate the Centenary of the start of World War One and celebrate the 70th birthday of British composer Karl Jenkins will be staged by the Reigate & Redhill Choral Society in Reigate in November.

A performance of “The Armed Man – A Mass for Peace” will take place at St Mary’s Church in Reigate on Saturday 8 November.

The choir’s also inviting local singers to participate in this historic concert by joining a Choral workshop on Saturday 25 October at the United Reformed Church Hall at Shaw’s Corner in Redhill.

Reigate & Redhill Choral Society is keen to welcome new members and is holding two ‘Open Days’ on Tuesday 23 & 30 September at the United Reformed Church Hall in Redhill from 7.45 – 9.45pm.

[Details on all the Reigate & Redhill Choral Society’s 2014/15 season events – and how to book tickets for the of “The Armed Man” concert at St Mary’s Church on Saturday 8 November – are available at www.rrcs.org.uk]