Orpington museum archive plans will 'tarnish beauty and deprive community of space'
Following its decision to relocate Bromley Central Library to the former Topshop unit in Bromley High Street earlier this year, Bromley Council announced its intention to build a new archive and museum store that would bring together the borough's entire museum and art collection under one roof.
According to council documents, the new one-storey archive facility would cost around £3.9 million to construct and measure 630m².
It would be located within a depot in Priory Gardens, Orpington, replacing the existing museum and art store and a building used by the council's environment department and idverde, Bromley's parks and ground maintenance contract holder.
The new archive would only be publicly accessible as part of special events such as the Open House Festival and Heritage Open Days, with Bromley residents able to view its contents by request and appointment at the new Bromley Central Library.
Bromley Council has stated the facility would meet 'high environmental and fire protection standards', it would be located away from public view and it would not be built on public park land as it is contained within the depot.
The council also said the existing mature trees around the depot would be retained and new hedges and trees would be planted to enhance the biodiversity of the site.
After the announcement of the archive plans in May, Cllr Yvonne Bear said: 'It is important that we take the necessary steps to preserve our heritage, with these plans ensuring important local relics of our past remain available to residents as needed long into the future.'
Following the release of these plans, a petition was launched in opposition to them. As of July 4, it has gained over 1,800 signatures.
The petition 'Say No to the £3.9 million Warehouse in Priory Gardens' calls for the money to be invested in the Priory Gardens depot 'in a way that enriches the lives of the community' and 'adds growth to local businesses and economy'.
The petition reads: 'If allowed to proceed, this project will not only tarnish the beauty and serenity of this historic site but also deprive the community of a public space that could serve as a valuable social and educational resource.
'Instead of creating a closed-off archive storage facility, we could aim to establish a community garden hub, a children's crèche, an educational centre and community garden.
'Such a hub would provide a place for educational workshops, allow collaborations with local businesses, and enhance social interaction across all age groups. It has the potential to foster a collective sense of belonging, strengthen community ties, and enrich lives in Bromley Borough.
'Bromley Council must reconsider their decision and prioritise projects that align with the community's needs and wishes. According to studies, access to green spaces can improve mental health, enhance community engagement, and boost local economies.
'Priory Gardens holds the potential to be so much more than a garden—it can be a sustainable community space that benefits everyone.'
The petition was started by Caroline Jeffrey, a member of the Friends of Priory Gardens, a group devoted to preserve, promote and protect the Grade II listed Arts & Crafts and Italianate style gardens.
The group does not support Bromley Council's archive proposal, saying it would 'degrade' the gardens with a 'monolithic warehouse' and it has promoted the petition objecting to it.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
18 minutes ago
- Yahoo
'This is a merger out of distress, not progression' – can ABF-Hovis deal bolster UK bread businesses?
Leaf through at least the last ten years of Associated British Foods' annual reports and it's clear the UK bread market has been no cakewalk for the food, ingredients and retail group. There have been years in which ABF has reported year-on-year revenue growth from its Allied Bakeries arm in the UK but the last decade has been mostly one of sluggish sales and of striving to turn a profit. ABF's struggles in UK bread have long begged questions about its future in the category. Back in 2019, then finance director John Bason, after reporting the third consecutive year in which Allied Bakeries had made an operating loss, told Just Food the company remained committed to the market and ruled out a sale. And the debate stretches back at least as far as this correspondent has covered the food sector. In ABF's 2008 financial year, the Kingsmill bread brand owner said Allied Bakeries had performed 'poorly' in the face of rising commodity costs and fierce competition in the UK bread market (it was ever thus). Some City analysts had begun asking whether ABF should remain in bread, a business central to the start of the company in the 1930s. Fast-forward five years to 2013 and there was speculation ABF might swoop for Hovis, then owned by UK manufacturer Premier Foods. Robert Lawson, the managing partner at European consultancy Food Strategy Associates, remembers the opposite transaction was mooted when he was at Premier in the late 2000s. 'The synergies were significant – consolidation of factories and of the two businesses' expensive direct-store-distribution systems delivering on a daily basis, rationalisation of the management teams running the businesses, consolidation of mills and procurement synergies. On top, there was also the opportunity to rejuvenate Hovis's aged bakery network, which even then was much older than ABF's,' Lawson says. This week, a deal did come to pass – and was something of a surprise to some industry watchers. When ABF announced in April it was putting Allied Bakeries up for strategic review – and, days later, said it was in talks with Hovis's owners, the private-equity firm Endless – many onlookers assumed the group was set to leave the UK bread market. 'Getting bigger in bread is probably not what investors want to see,' Barclays analysts covering ABF said in a note to clients on Friday (15 August). 'No doubt investors would have preferred ABF to have exited UK bread altogether but this wasn't really a realistic option given the structure of the industry with market leader Warburtons family-controlled and Hovis owned by private equity.' City analysts estimate ABF has lost hundreds of millions of pounds in the over-supplied and stagnant UK bread market in recent years. Demand for sliced bread has been soft for a number of years, while Kingsmill and Hovis, with their product ranges largely centred on conventional fare, have faced a trio of competitive threats: private label, more artisan products like sourdough and the strength of the privately owned Warburtons, which has built the largest branded business on solid marketing and innovation. 'We reckon that Allied has lost anywhere between £500m ($673.4m) and £750m over the last 15 years in UK bread,' Shore Capital analyst Clive Black tells Just Food. 'If it hadn't been for the envelope of ABF, [Allied Bakeries] would have been probably closed some time ago. Those numbers are the accumulated trading losses, the redundancies, restructuring and impairments that have taken place. At the moment, we would suggest it's losing on an annualised basis somewhere between £25m and £40m a year.' UK competition scrutiny ABF believes the combined Allied Bakeries and Hovis business can be a more robust operator. 'This transaction will create a UK bakeries business that is both profitable and sustainable over the long term. Supporting the Hovis and Kingsmill brands with well-invested and efficient operations will also enable innovation and growth,' George Weston, ABF's CEO, said on Friday. 'This solution will create value for shareholders, provide greater choice for consumers and increase efficiencies for customers.' The completion of the transaction is subject to the approval of the UK's Competition and Markets Authority, which will likely look closely at a deal bringing together two of the largest branded players in the country's bread market. Shore Capital's Black believes the CMA should let the transaction through, pointing to the choice presented by private label, by regional manufacturers like Roberts Bakery and Jackson's Bakery and, of course, by Warburtons. 'This is a merger out of distress, not out of progression,' he says. 'If it doesn't take place, I think there will be very substantial, potentially irrational, rationalisation. If it does take place, then a necessary evil will probably occur. I don't think it is detrimental to the UK shopper's interest.' When Lawson was at Premier, the mooted cost benefits of an Allied Bakeries-Hovis combination made the idea of a deal 'compelling'. He adds: 'The view then was that [competition approval] was unlikely. Today, Kingsmill is a much-diminished presence on shelf so retailers no longer have the same ability to punish the consolidation with brand rationalisation – and there is limited alternative to retailers of branded suppliers, so the synergies may hold.' ABF does not disclose detailed sales and profit numbers for Allied Bakeries. In the group's 2024 fiscal year (the 12 months to 14 September), Allied Bakeries saw a 'much-reduced operating loss' amid what ABF called 'improved sales and operational performance'. However, when the Sunblest brand owner announced its results for the first half of the company's current financial year in April, it appeared Allied Bakeries was again finding the going tough. 'Our UK-focused businesses declined overall,' the Ryvita crispbread and Jordans granola maker said. 'As expected, this was primarily due to lower volumes and sales in Allied Bakeries, which resulted in an increased operating loss. Allied Bakeries continues to face a very challenging market.' Endless snapped up Hovis from Premier and US investor Gores Group in late 2020. Companies House, the UK business register, has two full years of financial results since the change of ownership. The most recent set of numbers cover the 52 weeks to 28 September 2024, when revenue stood at £446.8m, down almost 9% on a year earlier, an operating loss of £2.9m (compared to one of £3.2m the previous year) and a net loss of £4.7m (against one of £3.6m). 'The group has achieved positive financial progress despite continued tough trading conditions,' commentary alongside the figures reads, highlighting improved EBITDA. 'These results highlight our focus on managing the cost base in a highly competitive market and demonstrating good progress during the year, which will continue into 2025.' Cost synergies to be captured Should the CMA clear the deal, how might ABF go about creating that long-term 'profitable and sustainable' UK bakery business its CEO touted last week? Barclays' analysts believe the synergies ABF might extract from the deal 'could be very significant'. They argue the £50m in cost savings suggested by unnamed industry sources to Sky News 'could be conservative', adding: 'The acquisition will combine the production and distribution activities of the two businesses, driving significant cost synergies and efficiencies with the aim of creating a sustainable and profitable UK bread business in the long term. It could free up money to invest in the more interesting parts of market – high-protein breads, breakfast goods. If ABF could turn a £30m loss into a £20-30m profit on a two- to three-year view and pay around £75m for the business, that would be an attractive payback.' At Shore Capital, Black is sceptical about the prospect of substantial revenue synergies but says ABF could look across the business, from the C-suite, through manufacturing and distribution and onto product ranges, in order to find efficiencies. 'Once they've worked out the assortment, starting to put the production plan together, which ultimately may lead to the closure of bakeries or the rationalisation of lines,' he suggests. 'Then, perhaps under the radar, but most significantly, combining the distribution model. Like milk, bread is one of the few products that is still delivered to store and combining distribution with materially improved vehicle utilisation means saved costs. From the centre right through to the distribution process, removing duplication, going to a single business model and taking a lot of costs. Whether this deal actually does make for more innovation in product and for the development of brands in revenue-based synergies remains to be seen. I've been around too long to trust revenue-based synergies.' Now it's over to the CMA where competition officials will sift through the financials of both businesses. Warburtons will be watching closely. 'It is hard to argue that manufacturers have the whip hand over retailers given the scale of industry losses,' Barclays adds. "'This is a merger out of distress, not progression' – can ABF-Hovis deal bolster UK bread businesses?" was originally created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. 擷取數據時發生錯誤 登入存取你的投資組合 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤 擷取數據時發生錯誤
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
KBRA Assigns Preliminary Ratings to RRE 6 Loan Management DAC (Reset)
LONDON, August 20, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--KBRA UK (KBRA) assigns preliminary ratings to five classes of refinancing notes issued by RRE 6 Loan Management DAC, a cash flow collateralised loan obligation (CLO) backed primarily by a diversified portfolio of Euro-denominated corporate loans. RRE 6 Loan Management DAC is managed by Redding Ridge Asset Management (UK) LLP ("RRAM UK" or the"collateral manager"). The CLO originally closed in March 2021. This transaction will reset the terms of the CLO, including the stated maturity, non-call period, reinvestment period, note interest rates and notional balances. Proceeds from the issuance of the new CLO notes will be used to redeem the outstanding notes in full and to purchase new assets. The CLO will have a 4.5-year reinvestment period and a 13-year legal final. The ratings reflect initial credit enhancement levels, coverage tests including par value and interest coverage tests, excess spread, and a reinvestment overcollateralisation test. The collateral in RRE 6 Loan Management DAC will mainly consist of broadly syndicated leveraged loans and bonds issued by corporate obligors diversified across sectors. The target portfolio par amount is €400.0 million with exposures to 162 obligors. The obligors in the portfolio have a K-WARF of 2451, which represents a weighted average portfolio assessment of approximately B. RRAM UK is a UK-based subsidiary of Redding Ridge Asset Management LLC, an independent asset management company established and seeded by Apollo Global Credit Management, LLC (Apollo) in 2016 to manage CLOs. The RRAM UK management arm currently manages more than €8.6 billion in assets across nineteen European CLOs. The rating on the Class A-2-R Note considers the timely payment of interest and ultimate payment of principal by the applicable stated maturity date, while the ratings on the Class B-R, C-1-R, C-2-R and D-R Notes consider the ultimate payment of interest and principal by the applicable stated maturity date. To access ratings and relevant documents, click here. Click here to view the report. Methodologies Structured Credit: Structured Credit Global Rating Methodology Structured Finance: Global Structured Finance Counterparty Methodology ESG Global Rating Methodology Disclosures Further information on key credit considerations, sensitivity analyses that consider what factors can affect these credit ratings and how they could lead to an upgrade or a downgrade, and ESG factors (where they are a key driver behind the change to the credit rating or rating outlook) can be found in the full rating report referenced above. A description of all substantially material sources that were used to prepare the credit rating and information on the methodology(ies) (inclusive of any material models and sensitivity analyses of the relevant key rating assumptions, as applicable) used in determining the credit rating is available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) located here. Information on the meaning of each rating category can be located here. This credit rating is endorsed by Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited for use in the European Union. Information on a credit rating's endorsement status is available on its rating page at Further disclosures relating to this rating action are available in the Information Disclosure Form(s) referenced above. Additional information regarding KBRA policies, methodologies, rating scales and disclosures are available at There are certain issuers, entities or transactions rated by KBRA Europe or KBRA UK that may be or have relationships with Shareholders and/or Shareholder-Related Companies, as that term is defined in KBRA's Shareholder and Shareholder Related Companies for KBRA Europe and KBRA UK Policy and Procedure. Relevant disclosure information may be found here. About KBRA UK Kroll Bond Rating Agency, LLC (KBRA), one of the major credit rating agencies (CRA), is a full-service CRA registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an NRSRO. Kroll Bond Rating Agency Europe Limited is registered as a CRA with the European Securities and Markets Authority. Kroll Bond Rating Agency UK Limited is registered as a CRA with the UK Financial Conduct Authority. In addition, KBRA is designated as a Designated Rating Organization (DRO) by the Ontario Securities Commission for issuers of asset-backed securities to file a short form prospectus or shelf prospectus. KBRA is also recognized as a Qualified Rating Agency by Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission and is recognized by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners as a Credit Rating Provider (CRP) in the U.S. Kroll Bond Rating Agency UK is located at 1 Connaught Place, 2nd Floor London, England. Doc ID: 1010921 View source version on Contacts Analytical Contacts Gabriele Gramazio, Senior Director (Lead Analyst)+44 20 8148 HyunKyeong Kim, Associate Director+1 Jerry Jurcisin, Director+1 Eric Hudson, Senior Managing Director, Co-Head of Global Structured Credit (Rating Committee Chair)+1 Business Development Contacts Miten Amin, Managing Director+44 20 8148 Mauricio Noé, Co-Head of Europe+44 20 8148 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
The state pension age could rise even higher. Here's what the experts think
How would the government make up that gap between people leaving the workforce and receiving their state pension? The government could be paving the way to increase the state pension age to 70, according to reports. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) could follow Denmark's example and link life expectancy to the state pension age, with the country already having pushed the age at which citizens can claim their pension up to 70. The potential plans have been raised as the government undertakes a pensions review to determine the state pension age for decades to come. Independent reviewer Dr Suzy Morrissey is leading the consultation, which has to happen every six years under UK law. Currently, the state pension age is already set to rise to 67 from next year and is scheduled to rise again to 68 between 2044 and 2046. Here's what we know about what is being considered - and what the experts think. What is the government considering? The review is looking at automatically adjusting pension ages to reflect life expectancy increases. The justification is that the move would help keep the public finances sustainable and distribute retirement fairly across generations. Countries employing this method also say that by linking pension age to life expectancy, there is a consistent balance between working years and retirement years for each generation. Denmark, Finland, Italy, and the Netherlands already follow this model, with Denmark set to raise the state pension age to 70 in the 2040s. However, there are some vast differences across these nations. Denmark has a more generous, mainly state-financed national pension, but it has significantly higher pension costs. Pensions take up about 17% of gross domestic product (GDP) spending in the country, compared to around 12% in the UK. Additionally, in countries like Finland and the Netherlands, employers pay a larger share of pension contributions than in the UK. Denmark is an exception where the state finances much of the pension. Finland and Sweden also fund part of pensions through dedicated assets, which helps prepare for ageing populations, unlike the UK's largely pay-as-you-go system. Meanwhile, Italy is believed to be struggling as it is known for having a very ageing population and relatively high pension spending, according to an international pension systems report. Difficult to justify? When analysing the benefits and drawbacks of linking state pension age to life expectancy, Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown and pension columnist for Yahoo Finance, said that it's clear putting up the state pension age would work in the government's favour. The government currently spends more on the state pension than on any other benefit, accounting for 12.2% of its GDP in 2023. Added to this, the government remains committed to the triple lock, a policy guaranteeing that the state pension will increase each year by the highest of three measures: inflation, average earnings growth, or 2.5%. "Pushing up state pension age to 70 would help the government to contain the burgeoning state pension bill," Morrissey told Yahoo News. "Increasing the state pension age could help ease the pressure on public finances, especially given the government remains committed to maintaining the triple lock," Lily Megson-Harvey, policy director at My Pension Expert, told Yahoo News. However, there are a lot of important factors that need to be considered, the expert said – including workers' longevity and health. The health life expectancy index is used to record not just the average life expectancy of a person, but the length of time the average person leads a full and healthy life. According to the latest government figures, this stands at 61.5 for a man, and 61.9 for a woman. "We've seen increases in longevity slow down in the aftermath of the pandemic, and this could make such a large increase difficult to justify," Morrissey said. "As recent data shows this figure is currently around 62 years of age, so the reality is that there are many people who will not be in a position to keep on working into their late sixties and beyond as their health simply won't allow it. "The state pension forms the foundation of many people's retirement income and thought needs to be given as to how to make up that gap between leaving the workforce and receiving their state pension." As the Centre for Ageing Better has highlighted, the main reasons older workers leave or cannot re-enter the workforce are down to health problems and disability. Added to this, many people struggle to find employment later in life. The UK employment rate for people aged 55 to 64 is only 65%, compared with 75–81% in similar European countries, showing that older workers have significantly lower employment rates than younger or middle-aged groups. Older workers are much less likely to be employed than those aged 35 to 49, with the biggest gap in areas like the North East, where there is an almost 20% difference. Morrissey told Yahoo News: "Many people feel overlooked in the job market later in life and this is a huge issue for them personally as well as the job market as a whole. "It is vital that more is done to keep older workers in work for longer so they can pass on their experience and skills while enabling them to continue to build their financial resilience. "We need to see more done to train older workers in new skills as well as the provision of more flexible working practices to enable those who are willing and able to keep working to do so," she added. What about lowering the pension age? Pension reform and age increases have been a long-standing source of controversy. Most recently, the government rejected calls for compensation for Waspi women, who argued they were inadequately informed about the state pension age rise, and either needed to work for additional years or face financial hardship while waiting for their pension. Former shadow cabinet minister Diane Abbott thinks the touted increase is "morally unacceptable", pointing out that almost a third of people never make it to the age of 70. Dr Will Stronge, CEO of the Autonomy Institute, also takes this view. "Raising the state pension age to 70, while intended to preserve fiscal sustainability, risks disproportionately penalising those in poor health, precarious employment or caregiving roles, many of whom cannot continue working until such an advanced age," he told Yahoo News. "It would exacerbate existing inequalities, especially among women, low‑income groups, and those with interrupted work histories who already face inadequate pension coverage. "It also undermines efforts to ensure dignified retirement and social cohesion in an ageing society, shifting burdens onto those least able to bear them." Stronge said that "instead of pushing the age higher", there is a strong case for lowering the pension age. "This is for health, wellbeing and wider care responsibility reasons. At the least, we should focus on reforms that strengthen pension adequacy, encourage fair contributions, and support healthy work-life balance," he added. Megson-Harvey echoes this. "Increasing the state pension age risks deepening inequalities. Many people, especially those in physically demanding jobs or with lower incomes, may struggle to work longer or save enough privately, making them more reliant on the state pension," she said. "This is precisely why long-term pension reform must include access to affordable, personalised financial advice, so that everyone, regardless of income or background, can make informed decisions and adapt their plans with confidence when the rules change." The government declined to comment.
