Pugins Place
Woolwich singers a charitable organisation which although
has a constitution that commits it to not discriminate on the grounds of
religion spends most of the year rehearsing and performing Christian songs
which thereby excludes members of the community who are not Christian.
It has recently
started rehearsing a new song called Pugins place. They are rehearsing for a
competition which ends in a church in central London in March.
Pugin was a famous
victorian architect who built biggish houses and his son also pugin was a
mediocre architect who designed a church in woolwich which has a school
attached and some other buildings including a seminary circa about 1870.
The church, St Peters
in Woolwich, is currently being refurbished and developed, new slate roof
repairs and new space in roof, maybe £ 1/4 - 1/2 million which is being paid
for by the national lottery, this is clearly a misuse of public funds as should
be being spent on good causes like sports projects, projects for disabled kids
etc so it is a disgrace the £££ multi billion catholic church is not paying for
its own works.
The school is long closed but a building at the back is
being planned to be used by a homeless charity WSUP. This is clearly needed as homelessness grows but projects like WSUP must assert their independence as there is a clear link between childhood abuse and adult alcohol and drug misuse and homelessness.
The song pugins place is a part of rebranding exercise which
describes the site as a whole as being being built for the people and used as a
drop in for friends. The old school labelled now as a community centre is
strictly controlled and only given to groups who have a connection to the
church and give a donation, not hired out. The rebranding of the whole site
including the church seminary where many priests who have been trained there have
had allegations of abuse and a victorian catholic school with all the horrors
of brutalisation of children.
The church
development is nearly finished but we must not allow as the Independent enquiry
into Institutional abuse winds its long winded way into the distant future for
a cover up to take place in front of us supported through public money. The
Catholic church has yet to answer for its numerous crimes and must be held in
suspicion and contempt until it does so.