April 2012 Archives

It was another successful week for Kensington and Chelsea College student Ruth-Ann St Luce who won a vocal battle on BBC talent show The Voice.

Ruth originally earned her spot on the show after auditioning with a moving rendition of 'Run,' made famous by Leona Lewis, to an all-star panel of Tom Jones, Jessie J, will.i.am and Danny O'Donoghue, from which singer Jessie J went on to pick Ruth-Ann for her team.

But things heated up last weekend as the show entered the battle round, forcing contenders to sing against each other with the loser eliminated from the show.

Two suspects wanted for robbery and for theft of petrol were arrested during a police operation last week.

Officers in Kensington and Chelsea were taking part in the day-long Operation Cubo - a Met-wide crackdown on uninsured drivers and criminal activity.

A woman had to be rescued from a fire in Kings Road, Chelsea on Saturday (28) morning.

Four fire engines and around 20 firefighters were called to the blaze at about 10am, which started in a restaurant and spread to a flat above.

Checking out the hygiene standards of restaurants and takeaways will become easier for customers with a new ratings system.

The national Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, set up by the Food Standards Agency, replaces the 'Scores on the Doors' grading system operated in Kensington and Chelsea since 2008.

Hundreds of students from across west London joined charity the Holocaust Education Trust last week on a visit to the former Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz.

Among them were youngsters from Kensington and Chelsea and their MP, Sir Malcolm Rifkind. EMMA HESELTINE joined them on the harrowing trip to Poland

As a journalist, it can be easy to become desensitised, but I'm not sure anything could have prepared me for this visit.

A cannabis farm was uncovered by police during an early morning raid on a flat in North Kensington.

Officers executed a warrant under the Misuse of Drugs Act in the early hours of Friday (27) in St Marks Road, where more tan 60 mature cannabis plants were found being cultivated in one of the rooms.

As well as the cannabis plants, the police seized drugs-related paraphernalia, including hydroponics, which help grow indoor plants, and a lighting system to boost growth.

Councillor Baroness Ritchie, who has served residents in Brompton ward since 1998, has died.

Shireen Olive Ritchie, 62, who joined the House of Lords two years ago, had been ill for some time before she died this week.

A Conservative councillor, she was a member of several council committees, as well as dedicating her time to improving social care and the treatment of both women and children across London.

Part of Portobello Road will be closed to vehicles on Saturdays from next week, as part of a trial to reduce collisions between pedestrians and traffic.

Portobello Road is one of the most popular tourist attractions in London and sees more than 100,000 visitors a week. Unfortunately it has one of the highest accident rates in the borough for collisions involving pedestrians.

Police have released CCTV images of three men they would like to speak to following a violent robbery in Notting Hill.

On Friday April 13, a 49 year-old man and his wife were assaulted in the driveway of their own home by a group of men who went on to steal the couple's £50,000 Jaguar.

According to officers, the men deliberately set off the victims' car alarm at about 2.45am in order to attract their attention.

Residents who use a North Kensington Day Centre fear it could close after 30 years due to a funding cut.

The Pepperpot Day Centre in Thorpe Close has had its funding from Kensington and Chelsea Council reduced from £156,000 to £100,000, leading users to worry it might be forced to close down.

But the council has said that despite the drop in funding, the centre is too highly valued in the borough to close down.