IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Elmfield Road, LONDON, N2 8EB

Modern flats built on the site of the Alder Secondary School. The school was closed in 1978. One last remnant of the school remains - the pale blue gatepost in the wall on the left of the picture. History of the Alder School at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ%27s_College%2C_East_Finchley .

Local papershop and mini market. The sign maker seems to have decided that if Newsagent is one word then Long Lane must be too! Corner of Elmfield Road.

Aftermath of a burst water main in Long Lane, East Finchley. A hole has been punched through the tarmac and the hard core underneath has been thrown at the parked cars. Three Valleys staff are about to begin work to restore water to the local houses.

View of the Grange Estate & Central Avenue from 12, Vane House looking toward King Street, Elmfield Road & Red Lion Hill junction. Blocks Elmfield House (left) and Garden House (right) can be seen, as well as The Red Lion pub which is sitting just behind, and to the right of, Garden House. Built circa 1907, this Edwardian building was situated on the site of an Inn which dated back to 1714, originally called The Rabbit; it was renamed The Red Lion circa 1789. Unfortunately this pub no longer stands. Also visible in the middle of the photo, peeking out of the shrubbery and sitting on the opposite side of the road to The Red Lion, is the old caretaker's house which was originally part of the former Alder School, a Secondary school which sat behind the row of houses going up Elmfield Road. This was demolished in 1979 when the school was merged with Christ's College Finchley (my alma mater) when it went Comprehensive in 1978. Also demolished at the same time was Elim Church; this was situated out of view behind Elmfield House in King Street. Both sites are now occupied by new housing which was built in 1979-1981.

On the site of a badly thought out car park that nobody used, construction of these new houses on Long Lane has continued throughout the snowy weather.

This footpath is an extension of The Walks and used to pass between the Alder School and the Elim Church on King Street, both now replaced by housing. At the end of the path is Elmfield Road by the junction with Red Lion Hill. The large flowering tree on the right is a member of the Catalpa family, probably an Indian Bean (Catalpa bignonioides).

New affordable rent housing nearing completion on Long Lane. A mini-digger removes some spoil from the building site. All six houses are now present and the wooden underframes have now been covered by brick facing. See Image for the situation in January 2010.

This housing development was built on the site of the Alder Secondary School. I'm standing roughly in one corner of the playground. The group of houses in the centre of the photo occupy the area where the front of the school itself was. The school building extended back to roughly where the nearest block of houses starts. The houses on the left of the photo are on Long Lane.

Well, not quite! - The newsagent down the road opens an hour earlier, but this shop is open until around midnight. The night man stands in the doorway of Long Lane Supermarket watching Turkish television while awaiting customers. The shop stocks a wide range of vegetables, foodstuffs and drink for nightowls.