Poverest adult education centre faces closure
Published Thursday 12 November 2026
Help choose our Club or Group of the Year, plus plans to close Poverest Adult Education Centre and raise course fees.
Top Updates
Help choose our Club or Group of the Year
Vote for your Club or Group of the Year by 11.59pm on Sunday 15 November (UK time). Thank you for nominating your favourite local clubs and groups. We’ll announce the winner in the Orpington Oatcake on Thursday 19 November.
Poverest Adult Education Centre closure recommended
Bromley Council officers recommend closing Poverest Adult Education Centre on Poverest Road, Orpington, to cut costs. Senior councillors are due to decide on 25 November. Some vulnerable learners’ classes could move to The Link youth centre in St Paul’s Cray from September 2027; locations, places and timetables remain unsettled. In the consultation covered in October, 236 of 288 people answering the main question opposed closure.
Bromley adult education fees could nearly double by 2028
Bromley Adult Education College proposes fee rises from September 2027 to increase income. For example, a 20-hour course costing £85.20 would rise to £116.80, then £158.80 in September 2028. Automatic free tuition would end for lip-reading, English for speakers of other languages and courses for adults with special educational needs and disabilities; eligible learners could still study free. A £100,000 hardship fund is proposed. Councillors will review the plans on 18 November; a senior council officer will decide, on a date yet to be confirmed.
Bromley’s Waldo Road recycling centre to reopen on 23 November
Bromley’s Waldo Road recycling centre will reopen on Monday 23 November, accepting most items it took before the closure but no garden waste. You’ll need an appointment; booking details are still to come. It will initially use a smaller area. The temporary weekend recycling site at Baths Road will close when Waldo Road reopens.
Dates For Your Diary
Saturday 21 November 2026 · 1pm–3pm · free
Disability Pride show at Bromley United Reformed Church
Disabled performers will bring music, comedy, poetry and dance to 20 Widmore Road, as Bromley Online reports. Everyone is welcome; registration is optional. British Sign Language interpretation, captions, step-free access and an accessible toilet will be available. Register or request transport or dietary arrangements in advance: info@xbyxbromley.org.uk or 020 8650 2102.
Saturday 5 December 2026 · 10am or 2pm · £45
Christmas wreath-making at GEA Hall, Petts Wood
Make a Christmas wreath with Friends of Crofton and Sparrow Woods at 36 Woodhurst Avenue. All ages are welcome; materials, instruction and refreshments are included. Advance booking and payment required: friendscroftonandsparrowwoods@gmail.com or 07968 269008.
What's On
Saturday 14 November
Sensory Storytime at Orpington Library, 10am–11am · free · booking required. Sensory stories for ages 4–7, including children with additional needs, accompanied by a parent or carer. Book one ticket per adult-and-child pair, plus extras for others; bring booking confirmation. Do not attend with COVID-19 symptoms or a positive test.
Brooks Williams concert at Orpington Liberal Club, 8pm–11pm · £12 concert ticket, plus club entry where applicable. Country, blues and folk with guitarist Brooks Williams. Tickets: Steve Wehrle, 07801 089375. Club entry costs an extra £1 at the bar, except for club and CAMRA members.
Sunday 15 November
Petts Wood Antiques Fair at Memorial Hall, 9.30am–2.30pm. Browse over 40 antiques, collectables and vintage stalls at 200 Petts Wood Road, BR5 1LA, with jewellery, artwork, ceramics and silverware among the finds.
Bromley High Street Christmas lights switch-on, High Street entertainment from 2pm · lights and fireworks 6.30pm · free. Chesney Hawkes and The Hoosiers will perform. No ticket needed. Bromley Online reports a market, food stalls, funfair and school and dance performances. See the stage programme.
Tuesday 17 November
Vital 5 health checks at The Walnuts Leisure Centre, 8.30am–11.30am · free. Mytime Active’s health checks on Lych Gate Road take up to 30 minutes, covering blood pressure, weight and mental health, with drinking and smoking advice. For over-18s, excluding pregnant women. Book: bromleywellbeing@mytimeactive.co.uk; walk-ins depend on availability.
Roadworks and Transport
No Charing Cross trains this weekend; Sunday buses on Grove Park route
No trains will serve Charing Cross, Waterloo East or Cannon Street on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November. On Sunday, accessible buses will replace trains between Lewisham and Orpington, serving Grove Park, Elmstead Woods and Chislehurst. Charing Cross–Sevenoaks trains will not run; other trains will still serve Orpington.
From Monday 16 to Thursday 19 November, trains will not stop at Lewisham after about 11.25pm each night.
Temporary traffic lights on Crofton Road
Resurfacing means two-way temporary traffic lights on the A232 Crofton Road at Starts Hill Road. Work is due to finish at 3pm on Saturday 21 November.
Planning Watch
Shop extension and flat approved on Orpington High Street
Bromley Council approved a rear shop extension and conversion of former offices into a two-bedroom flat at 92–92A Orpington High Street, near Moorfield Road, on 5 November. A plan to manage construction traffic and protect pedestrians is required before work starts; the rear terrace must have privacy screening.