5 February 2026

Different views of Clarendon SEND School


Clarendon SEND School is set well back from Meadlands Drive which makes it hard to get a good view of it from there so I went into The Copse to take a look from the side. The details of the building are hidden but the size and scale can be judged.

The new building will clearly impact on The Copse because of the height and the extent of that impact will depend on the finish of the building and the cover provided by the trees.



There is not much to see from behind the school, other than construction clutter, and the final view matters less as it can only be seen from the access road to Ham Polo and the German School.

4 February 2026

Little birds


Every walk along Sudbrook Lane is brightened by this decorated post which changes several times a year. The current display is of little birds, perhaps a portent of spring.

3 February 2026

Blue doors


My wanders through Ham take me to some less visited places, such as behind the Meadowview blocks of flats in Ashburnham Road. Here I was impressed by the straight lines and the hue of the bricks so was compelled to take this picture.

But, before I posted it I checked whether I had done so before and was disappointed that I had indeed done so, back in 2021.

Then I noticed that the garage doors once brown were now blue so I had a reason to post the picture after all.

2 February 2026

Extending The Cottage


I get planning alerts from Richmond Council for applications near me so I was aware that there were proposals for The Cottage on Ham Common and was not surprised to see evidence of work stating there.

1 February 2026

New path and more


Now saved from planned demolition, 14 Cedar Heights is being visibly improved. The rather formal path to the front door is perhaps the most obvious change and it is easy to mis that where there are now brown weatherboards there used to be white render.

30 January 2026

Two signs


My near obsession with the variety of signs in Ham has somehow overlooked these two in Parkleys, while neither is remarkable the difference between them is interesting and in the competition between the two the upper one wins because of the better colour and use of lowercase.

29 January 2026

Clear out


The clutter in the front garden all but obscures the house behind which is clearly having serious work done to it.

28 January 2026

Faded sign


There are a few signs like this in Wates Estate which have been rendered meaningless by their faded illegibility. I am not sure if they still apply but there is no enforcement and no attempt has ever been made to dissuade me on my many wanderings through the area

27 January 2026

Blocked path


A month ago I was cheering the newish footpath along Church Road, running past the Richmond Chase development, only to find it blocked today by a fallen tree. I have reported it (using FixMyStreet) so I hope that it will be cleared before too long.