Tooting Newsie Weekly Newsletter
Live Italian music, a Living Wall, Green Plaque nominations, lots of new openings, and so much more in Tooting this week!
There's lots happening at Streatham Cemetery (which is actually in Tooting) in the coming months, including a litter pick and a wildflower walk, both organised by the Friends of Streatham Cemetery (FOSC), a local group working to improve the condition of the cemetery as a burial ground and develop it as a haven for wildlife.
The group are also organising a storytelling event on 1st November 2025 and invite contributions from those who have family or friends buried at the cemetery to come together for the day and contribute stories, music and food to remember them. The group would love to reflect the diversity of Tooting and everything is up for discussion.
To find out more about these events and FOSC's other work, visit friendsofstreathamcemetery.org.uk
Streatham Cemetery can be found on Garratt Lane, SW17 0LT, and also has an entrance on Broadwater Road.
The next Mega Skip Day takes place from 9am this Saturday 15th March, in seven locations around Wandsworth, including several in Tooting.
Mega Skip Days are an opportunity for people to dispose of bulky items for free. Large skips are placed in neighbourhoods around the borough for all local residents to use.
The skips are open to residents of the London Borough of Wandsworth only. Proof of address may be required on the day.
The skips will be in the following places:
• Ritherdon Road, SW17 8QD
• Blakenham Road, SW17 8NZ
• Burtop - by Maskell Road, SW17 0LF
• Plough Terrace, SW11 2UJ
• Brathway Road, SW18 4BB
• Wildcroft Road, SW15 3AP
• Ashburton - car park area below shops on Cortis Road, SW15 6DA
More info, including details of what you can bring and when the skips will be open, via Wandsworth Council.
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This Sunday in Tooting! Italian 🇮🇹 live music, pizza, and bottomless prosecco or Aperol Spritz at Made in Puglia in Broadway Market!
Enjoy the fantastic Azurro Band, all the way from Italy, with a pizza, a starter and bottomless refills!
Owners Alberto and Luca tell us, "we can't wait for our guests to experience an unforgettable Italian experience at our Tooting pizzeria! Come down and enjoy the fun!"
The event takes place at Made In Puglia in Broadway Market on Sunday 16th March. Tickets are £45 for one of the following times:
• 12pm-1:30pm
• 2pm-3:30pm
• 4pm to 5:30pm
To find out more and to book, visit the Made in Puglia website.
Iftar Deal at German Doner Kebab (GDK) Tooting – enjoy a Doner Rice Bowl or OG Kebab with a soft drink and 4 jam-filled doughnuts for just £9.99!
GDK serves gourmet kebabs using lean beef and chicken fillets, which are all imported directly from Germany to maintain quality and consistency. They only use fresh vegetables, sourced as locally as possible, that are delivered and prepared daily, along with their special "Doner Kebab" bread. All food is halal, and vegetarian options are available. Full menu via germandonerkebab.com/menu
Offer valid 4pm-1am Sunday to Wednesday, and 4pm-2am Thursday to Saturday during Ramadan. Ts and Cs apply. Offer valid on eat-in and takeaway only at German Doner Kebab, 225 Upper Tooting Road, London SW17 7TG.
And check out their £17.99 Meal For Two and their Feed The Fam deals too!
Tooting Library has a brilliant display of books to mark International Women’s Day, for all ages, and available all year round! Visit the library at 75 Mitcham Road or see their website to find out more.
The Fishponds history boards were unveiled on Saturday at Fishponds Fields in Tooting!
The boards, unveiled by Mayor of Wandsworth, Councillor Sana Jafri, recount the story of the fields, past, present and future. They're there for the whole community to view every day, 9am-4pm, at Fishponds Fields, located on Hebdon Road, SW17 7NW – just turn off Upper Tooting Road and walk straight down Hebdon Road for 5 minutes.
Fishponds Fields have events and activities every week throughout the year – visit https://www.enableleisure.co.uk/fishponds for more info.
One of the world's most advanced laser hair removal technologies is now available at Jacksons For Hair in Balham – and to celebrate, they're offering up to 70% OFF their various laser treatments until 31st March! They also offer a FREE consultation & patch test.
Simply head to their Treatwell page to see their full list of treatments & to book!
Jacksons launched their new laser service a few weeks ago, and it is proving incredibly popular, with 5 Star reviews on Treatwell!
Jacksons' owner, Karwan tells us more:
"We're proud to be one of the first salons in Balham to use the brand new Soprano Titanium Laser Hair Removal technology.
“If you're one of the many millions of people who suffer from unwanted hair and want a long-lasting solution, we can offer you a safe, effective, painless and permanent way to remove it through this state-of-the-art laser. With faster than ever treatment times, you can now treat half of your body during your lunch hour at our salon!
"Soprano Titanium combines cutting-edge medical laser technology with the comfort and convenience of a trip to the spa - it has been described as one of the most comfortable laser hair removal options available. If you’ve had laser hair removal elsewhere and thought it was too uncomfortable, come and experience the difference!"
The laser hair removal treatment is available at the Jacksons branch at 91 Balham High Road.
Jacksons is open 7 days a week (Mon-Fri, 9am-8pm; Sat, 8.30am-7pm; Sun, 10am-5pm).
To see the full range of services Jacksons offers and to book, visit their Treatwell page.
Looking for a new local dentist? Located on Balham High Road, Ten Dental + Facial offer general, family, cosmetic & implant dentistry. They're open late evenings and are welcoming new patients of all ages to the clinic!
Ten Dental co-founder, Nik Sisodia tells us more:
"Our clinic is made up of highly regarded dentists, implantologists, periodontists, hygienists, endodontists and orthodontists, all of whom are extremely skilled and experienced in their respective fields.
“Our friendly team ensures that each visit is calm, relaxing and comfortable and that every stage of treatment (before, during & after) is clearly explained, with full client involvement.
“And if you're a nervous patient or have a dental phobia, we'll make sure that you're completely at ease and allocate plenty of time to making you comfortable in our practice."
To find out more about the range of treatments available and to book an appointment, WhatsApp 07907 366 397, call 020 8675 1798, email hello@tendental.com or pop in and see them at 156 Balham High Road.
You can also visit their website at tendental.com
The local community is invited to nominate people, events and buildings across the borough (including Tooting) that have historic significance so they can be commemorated with a Wandsworth Green Plaque.
This year, to mark Wandsworth’s tenure as the Mayor’s London Borough of Culture, 12 new Green Plaques, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, will be installed.
The Wandsworth Green Plaque scheme is designed to honour famous people or places in the borough that are not covered by the English Heritage Blue Plaque Scheme.
Anyone in the borough can nominate using the online form, and applications are particularly encouraged for commemorative plaques which highlight stories that have been historically overlooked, including the histories of LGBTQ, Black, Asian, female and working-class people and communities.
The person or place nominated must relate strongly to the borough of Wandsworth, they must have had a positive influence on the life of the borough, and there must be somewhere visible to the public where the plaque can be fixed.
For more information and to nominate, visit the Wandsworth Council website.
A Living Wall has been planted in Tooting Bec as part of the Greening Up Tooting project!
Greening Up Tooting has been a year-long project, in collaboration with Share, Living Communities CIC and Taking Care of Fitness, with funding from Hubbub.
The project has worked side by side with the horticultural students of Share to learn and grow plants that will thrive in an urban environment.
Scotscape Urban Greening also came on board to assist with the Living Wall, advising on best practice and supplying materials at a discounted price.
Gemma Lloyd of Living Communities tells us, "We have battled an alleyway that wasn't loved, continually clearing dumped rubbish, dealing with leaky pipes, and weeding again and again until we were ready to start planting.
"Pockets to house the plants were attached and an irrigation system fitted. We began to plant with the incredible students from Share alongside the guidance of their tutors, often working in the rain and cold.
"We have now completed the wall and invite everyone to come and enjoy it as well as to help us look after it. We are all so proud that we will be increasing biodiversity and improving air quality.
"If we can do it, anyone can – urban areas can and should live side by side with nature!
"Our heartfelt thanks to all the incredible students that attend Share Community, their immense tutors, the many volunteers, Angus from Scotscape, Tooting Newsie, all the businesses in the courtyard that have offered us so much equipment and support, Wimbledon Foundation for donating some of the plants, and of course to Hubbub for believing in us and for the funding to make it happen – plus Eden Communities for all the love supporting and encouraging us to keep pushing.
"We've started, we've done it.. now you can too!"
You can find the Living Wall down the alley next to Goku Cycles on Balham High Road, a few doors down from Tooting Bec tube.
We're sad to report that Ernest is to permanently close Maat African Art in Tooting Market, after twelve years of trading. However, he's still open for trading over the next few days or so, and you can also find his extensive array of art, sculpture and more on his website.
Police were contacted following a collision involving a car and a pedestrian on Welham Road, Tooting at around 18:30hrs on Saturday, 8 March.
The pedestrian, a man in his eighties, was taken to hospital with injuries to his ankle.
The vehicle did not stop at the scene.
Enquiries remain ongoing and the driver of the car has not been located yet.
Anyone with information is asked to call 101 or ‘X’ @MetCC and quote CAD2394/9March.
You can also provide information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Tooting’s St George's Hospital has installed an amnesty bin for weapons, which has already led to the surrender of 87 dangerous items including machetes, zombie knives, and knuckledusters. This initiative comes as the hospital reveals knife-related admissions have almost doubled, with over 500 people treated for injuries from knives and sharp objects last year compared to 2022.
The project, a partnership between St George's, Wandsworth Council, and Wandsworth Community Safety Partnership, aims to tackle knife crime by providing a secure place to anonymously dispose of weapons. One patient who recently received treatment at St George's after being stabbed with a 15-inch "Rambo" knife, shared his harrowing experience while he struggled with internal bleeding from a kidney injury:
“I didn’t even know I’d been stabbed at first. I felt a sharp pain, then it was hard to breathe and I could feel a wetness – that’s when I looked down and saw the knife sticking out of me. I was losing blood and was trying to get away from there – people were standing around filming on their phones.
“Coming into hospital is a blur, I don’t really remember it. I had an operation that saved my life, but it’s not just the wounds that need to heal – I’m still trying to process what happened and deal with the trauma.”
Anyone carrying a knife is urged to dispose of it, after wrapping it in several layers of cardboard or paper and securing it with sticky tape to cover the blade.
While it is an offence to carry a knife in a public place, it is considered reasonable to carry it directly to a knife bin if it is wrapped in this way.
The Metropolitan Police urge anyone who is worried about their safety or the safety of others to contact the police on 101 or call 999 in an emergency. If you feel unable to talk to the police, you could contact the Crimestoppers charity anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visiting Fearless, which enables young people to pass on information about crime 100% anonymously.
Full info via St George's, Epsom and St Helier Hospitals Group.
VOLUNTEERING OPPORTUNITY: Join Little Village HQ's incredible team of volunteers, sharing kindness and dignity with families who desperately deserve it. Volunteering with Little Village is a hands-on way to make a positive difference.
It’s only a 2-hour commitment twice a month and you can bring your babe-in-arms! Their roles (no experience needed: just a kind heart!) include:
• Baby Bank Helper (on-site): Greeting families, understanding their needs and supporting them to select their items. Have a basic knowledge of local community activity
• Pick & Pack (on-site): Sorting and checking donations, packing for referrals we’ve received, meeting and greeting donors
They especially need volunteer help in their Tooting and Brent (Wembley) hubs at the moment. See Little Village to learn more.
Roohin Lounge is open at 29 London Road (where the Gorringe Park pub was previously located), serving Indian food, beer, wine, cocktails, mocktails and more.
Vegetarian options available and all food is halal. Currently open Thursday to Sunday 12pm-12am, with their Grand Opening next Friday 14th March. Then open Monday to Thursday 4pm-11pm, and Friday to Sunday 12pm-12am. More info at @roohintooting (Instagram).
Congratulations and good luck to Vishnu, Minaj, Sunny, Sneh and the team!
Taabiir has opened at 159 Mitcham Road, serving Pakistani food, desserts, drinks and more!
Open Monday to Sunday 12pm-11pm during Ramadan, 10am-11pm thereafter, for eat-in and takeaway (also available on Just Eats and Uber Eats, with Deliveroo to come). All food is halal, vegetarian options available. Strictly no alcohol.
More info via @taabiir_restaurant (Instagram).
Congratulations and good luck to the team!
Fem's Shawarma House has opened at 982 Garratt Lane (near the junction with Tooting High Street), serving chicken shawarma, shish and halloumi wraps, burgers and veggie burgers, hotdogs, chips, and more!
All food is halal, and vegetarian options are available. Open 11am-7pm Monday to Thursday, 11am to midnight Friday to Saturday.
Congratulations and good luck to Fem!
Harvey's Breakfast Club launches their first pop-up at Tooting Works on Sunday 23rd March, 10am-1pm!
With a mission to bring the community together over creative takes on breakfast favourites, Harvey’s Breakfast Club debut menu features a Korean-inspired Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bagel, a Mexican-inspired Chorizo Breakfast Burrito, and a Vietnamese Iced Coffee Flavoured Bun!
Founder, Alex, who grew up in America with Vietnamese immigrant parents, tells us, “I’ve always felt caught between cultures—never fully American, never fully Vietnamese. But over time, I realized how fortunate I was to live between these two cultures. I hope to create dishes that not only represent my experience of blending Vietnamese and Western culture, but also reflect the broader diverse melting pot that is London. Ultimately, I want to bring the community together and expose people to the richness of the cultures that make this city so special.”
More info and booking via Harvey's Breakfast Club and you can RSVP to their launch event here.
Congratulations and good luck, Alex!
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