Boy, 16, repeatedly stabbed outside church after birthday party

Crime reporter(wp/es):
A teenage boy was stabbed repeatedly at a birthday party in Plumstead in a suspected gang-related crime.

Detectives from Greenwich Gangs Unit are investigating after the 16-year-old boy was found with multiple stab wounds outside the church on St Nicholas' Road on the night of Saturday, April 1.

He was rushed to a central London hospital for urgent treatment and has since been discharged.

Officers believe the victim had been attending a birthday party in the Greenwich area before he was stabbed.

They are appealing for anyone who may have mobile phone footage of the stabbing, believed to have happened just before 11pm, to come forward.

A second teenage boy – aged 17 – was arrested and charged with grievous bodily harm in connection with the incident.

The police appeal comes as another man – aged in his 20s - was stabbed to death with a machete in a brutal suspected murder in Plumstead on Monday.

Police officers rushed to Bournewood Road – just a mile down the road from St Nicholas’ Church – following reports of a knife attack at around 4.30pm.

The victim was pronounced dead at the scene and witness described how the man was found inside an address close to the junction with Wickham Lane after being attacked with a machete.

Former Hounslow teacher who raped 13-year-old girl in 'horrendous' attack

Pic:Former teacher Stephen Thomas, 30, has been jailed for 17 years /Met police
Crime reporter(wp/es):
A former teacher who raped a 13-year-old schoolgirl and sexually abused another girl in south-west London has been jailed for 17 years.

Stephen Thomas, 30, a former teacher at a school in Hounslow, subjected two teenage girls to “horrendous ordeals” over nine years, including raping a 13-year-old in summer 2015.

He was only caught when the girl’s father, having become suspicious after seeing messages on his daughter's Facebook account, caught him sexually assaulting the teenager in June that year and called the police.

Having arrested Thomas, officers discovered during their investigations that there was another victim to his sick abuse.

While teaching in Hounslow in 2008, Thomas started a relationship with a 15-year-old girl who was studying at the school.

He was no longer teaching when he began abusing his second victim in January 2015.

Stephen Thomas, 30, a former teacher at a school in Hounslow, subjected two teenage girls to “horrendous ordeals” over nine years, including raping a 13-year-old in summer 2015.

Thomas was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with a child, one count of rape of a female under 16 and one count of inciting a child to engage in sexual activity following a two week trial at Isleworth Crown Court.

He was sentenced to 17 years in prison on Monday.

Detective constable Phil Cotter, investigating officer from the Metropolitan Police's sexual offences, exploitation and child abuse command, said: "These offences committed by Thomas are of an extremely serious nature and have had a significant impact on the lives of the victims and their family. 

"He committed these offences whilst in a position of trust and manipulated the victims to satisfy his own means. I hope the sentence gives the victims and their family some sort of closure for what has been a horrendous ordeal."

Police investigate 'unexplained' death of baby boy in Tolworth

Crime reporter(wp/es):

Police have launched an investigation into the death of a four-month-old baby in a south-west London suburb.

The Met said the death was being treated as "unexplained" and is being investigated by specialist child abuse officers.

The baby boy was taken ill at an address in Tolworth on Monday morning and was rushed to a south London hospital. 

He was pronounced dead just before 9am.

Police were called to the scene by paramedics and released a statement saying: “At this early stage, the death is being treated as unexplained pending a post mortem examination.

“Officers from the Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command have been informed and are carrying out enquiries into the circumstances of the death.”

No one has been arrested.

Richard Rogers plans 100,000 sq ft British Library extension

Pic:Star architect  Richard Rogers  ,AFP
Educational reporter(wp/es):

Star architect Richard Rogers has teamed up with the British Library as part of a multi-million-pound scheme to transform London’s Knowledge Quarter.

Plans include a 100,000 sq ft extension to the library and the creation of a “bespoke headquarters” for the Alan Turing Institute, the national centre for data science research named after the Second World War code breaker.

There will be a new entrance for the Grade I listed building in St Pancras and more exhibition space, increasing access to its vast collection of books, newspapers and records.

The proposal, with developers Stanhope, also includes new facilities for school trips and the writers and academics who use the existing site.

It is part of a wider development of a 2.8-acre site north of the library that will offer commercial firms the chance to set up shop at the heart of what has been dubbed the Knowledge Quarter. This is made up of an alliance of  80 cultural and science organisations including Google, the University of the Arts and the British Library, all located within one mile of King’s Cross, Euston Road and Bloomsbury. 

Stanhope, which has been involved in major developments including the extension of Tate Modern, is also working on the regeneration project at the former Television Centre in White City. Lord Rogers’s firm, Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, designed the British Museum extension.

Roly Keating, the British Library’s chief executive, said: “We are delighted to have secured such high-calibre partners to help realise our vision of the British Library’s London campus as a truly open, creative centre for knowledge. Sir Colin St John Wilson’s Grade I listed building was one of the great public projects of the last century, and this new partnership will help us to preserve and respect its unique character while creating much-needed extra space both for our growing public audiences and the dynamic research communities in London’s Knowledge Quarter.”

The plans for the development are expected to be revealed in the next 18 months. Culture Secretary Karen Bradley said: “The British Library is one of our finest cultural institutions, housing an unparalleled collection of knowledge. 

“This innovative project will increase access to the library’s first-class collections, providing new exhibition spaces, learning opportunities and facilities for visitors from Britain and around the world to enjoy. It is a significant commitment to digital research and data science, and I am pleased the expansion will provide a bespoke headquarters for the Alan Turing Institute.”

Property market takes hit with slowest price rise for five years

Pic:London house prices are rising less quickly than elsewhere

Staff reporter(wp/es):

London’s property market has slowed dramatically with prices rising at their slowest rate for nearly five years, according to latest official figures.

The average cost of a home in the capital rose just 3.7 per cent to £474,704 in the year to February and actually slipped slightly in January, the latest data from the Land Registry reveals.

In four boroughs prices are now falling year on year and double digit growth - the norm for much of London last year - is now confined to Havering and Kensington & Chelsea.

The biggest falls were in Tower Hamlets, where they dropped 2.9 per cent in a year, Brent, where they fell 2.3 per cent, Islington with a 1.9 per cent fall and Hammersmith & Fulham, which dipped 0.2 per cent.

The data suggests that the slowdown that started in the most expensive central areas following sharp increases in stamp duty is now finally spreading out to the suburbs.

House price changes across London

Unusually prices in London are now rising less rapidly than the rest of England, where the average rise was 6.3 per cent.

Russell Quirk, founder and chief executive of online agents eMoov.co.uk, said: “Although many have been quick to attribute a slowdown in the market to fears of Article 50 and buyer uncertainty, the latest data from the Land Registry would suggest a more natural adjustment is currently happening to the market.

“Prices across the board have generally continued an upward trend despite a slower start to the year than usual, but it is no coincidence that both London and the South East have seen some of the only falls in monthly property price growth. 

“Both have considerably higher average house prices than the rest of the UK and what we are currently seeing is the property market in these areas realigning itself with the rest of the country, having seen an abnormal level of inflation over the last year.”

House price changes across the UK

However, the number of sales remains depressed with just 6,665 in December down almost a third on the 9,700 recorded in the same month in 2015.

The number of properties going on the market - already at historically low levels - slumped after the Referendum in June.

The Land Registry figures came as Government data showed that the official rate of inflation remained unchanged at 2.3 per cent last month, raising hopes that the acceleration in price rises that followed the Brexit vote may not be as bad as feared.

But Jane Tully, director of external affairs at the Money Advice Trust, the charity that runs National Debtline, said that even this level of inflation could be enough to hurt many overstretched families

She said: “Many people will struggle to cope with this small but significant erosion, and our concern remains for a minority who are at risk of tipping over into problem debt as a result.

“Coupled with high levels of household borrowing, this trend comes at a worrying time and will require a joined up and sustained approach from the advice sector, lenders and government to ensure that those in need receive the support that can help them get back on track with their finances.”