Barking & Dagenham Film Society

The society meets to see and discuss a film or films on the last Thursday of each month at the Malthouse Studios in Abbey Road, Barking. They don't seem to have a website, so e-mail bdfilmsoc@gmail.com for more details. Don't turn up for a film without booking.

Annoying block off in riverside path corrected

http://stibasa.blogspot.com/2008/04/annoying-block-off-in-riverside-path.html. I reported back in April about this "construction mis-alignment". It has been improved with ramps from the riverside path up onto the plinth (if that's what you call it).

Abbey Green

A new group 'Friends of Abbey Green' is advertising for members - I saw a poster in the Florist's at Barking Station, but I can't find anything on the web. They say that a "substantial number of mature existing trees and silver birches outside St Margaret's School could be cut down and may be replaced with saplings as part of the Town Centre Action Plan".

There's a meeting on Saturday 24 January at 10am at St Margaret's Church centre where you should be able to find out more.

When looking for it I did find this rather nice panorama of the Green (which is in Broadway / Abbey Road).

http://www.bbc.co.uk/essex/content/panoramas/barking_abbey_green_360.shtml

Annoying block off in riverside path

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=dock+road+barking&sll=51.536279,0.081478&sspn=0.358771,0.928345&ie=UTF8&ll=51.532001,0.076046&spn=0.011213,0.029011&z=15&iwloc=addr

Locals know the path from the southern end of Abbey Road along the Roding to the A13 and then alongside the A13 to Gascoigne Road. Some while back it was formalised with a proper surface and smart parapet and fence. I came down if from the Gascoigne Road end today, only to find a fence (not a temporary type) across the path at "The Waterfront" development of flats at the end of Abbey Road (in fact in Dock Road not shown on the map).

There are steps down to Abbey Road on the western side of the fence, and the path continues on the western side with steps up and down that surely can't be disability discrimination act compliant. I climbed through the fence and continued round to the barrage (which can be crossed from that side, though there is construction site fencing still on the West Bank side).

I don't know what this is all about. Temporary restrictions owing to construction are to be expected, but why build a permanent fence across a brand new riverside path - and not bother to warn people that there's no access to Abbey Road from Gascoigne Rd using the path?