:00:00. > :00:22.team event. Now, time for the news where you are.
:00:23. > :00:26.News. There are fears that Scotland Yard
:00:27. > :00:31.is struggling to cope with a huge increase in child abuse allegations
:00:32. > :00:34.right across London. According to a report published today, the number
:00:35. > :00:39.of alleged child rapes has increased by more than half over the past six
:00:40. > :00:43.years. The London Assembly claims the Metropolitan Police's sex crime
:00:44. > :00:51.squad is under`resourced, putting a serious strain on the unit.
:00:52. > :00:56.It's one of the most difficult and stressful areas of investigation.
:00:57. > :01:01.But police have a statutory duty to protect children from abuse.
:01:02. > :01:06.Today, London's police and crime committee published a report.
:01:07. > :01:12.Showing a dramatic rise in the number of allegations, bringing new
:01:13. > :01:16.pressure that the Met is struggling to meet. Since 2008, there's been
:01:17. > :01:21.more than a 50% increase in alleged child rapes.
:01:22. > :01:25.Over the same six year period, the number of sexual assaults against
:01:26. > :01:31.children has risen by 68%. The report suggests this is because
:01:32. > :01:34.of high`profile cases like Jimmy Savile and Rolf Harris and more
:01:35. > :01:37.confidence in the Met to properly investigate.
:01:38. > :01:42.The Met are just about coping at the moment, but it only takes one case,
:01:43. > :01:46.such as a Baby P to make everything un`Real. It's really important that
:01:47. > :01:52.the Met properly resource child safety in London. Police numbers
:01:53. > :02:00.have gone up to almost a thousand officers, 22% more than five years
:02:01. > :02:04.ago. Some 50 posts were unfilled last September. There are many
:02:05. > :02:09.positive comments here about how the Met deals with child protection, but
:02:10. > :02:16.this report is a warning shot not to repeat the mistakes of the past.
:02:17. > :02:19.The case of Baby P in Haringey in 2007 highlighted failures around not
:02:20. > :02:23.having enough staff and lack of supervision.
:02:24. > :02:30.High van can say rates and poor sharing of information between the
:02:31. > :02:34.police and other agencies `` high vacancy rates. This report says
:02:35. > :02:38.there is no room for complacency. The Metropolitan Police considers
:02:39. > :02:40.the protection of your young and vulnerable people within our
:02:41. > :02:43.community very important. We welcome the report because it focuses on a
:02:44. > :02:47.chaining landscape in child abuse investigation. The Met claims
:02:48. > :02:51.charges and convictions have increased. The police and comiem
:02:52. > :02:58.committee says it will review Scotland Yard's progress later in
:02:59. > :03:03.the year. A man hole cover has exploded in a road in North West
:03:04. > :03:07.London this afternoon. It happened at St John's Wood. No`one was
:03:08. > :03:10.injured and the cause isn't known but there's been a steep rise in the
:03:11. > :03:15.number of pavement explosions over the past year.
:03:16. > :03:20.Gatwick Airport has unveiled a series of new schemes worth over
:03:21. > :03:24.?250 million to the local area. It's in response to issues raised during
:03:25. > :03:29.a public consultation on a possible second runway at the airport.
:03:30. > :03:32.Gatwick has pledged local jobs, house infrastructure and increased
:03:33. > :03:35.support for residents and businesses, if they get the
:03:36. > :03:39.go`ahead. Campaigners say it's still not enough.
:03:40. > :03:43.This week, we have been looking at radical ways to help solve London's
:03:44. > :03:48.housing crisis. Today, in the last of our series of Home Truths, we
:03:49. > :03:53.asked if elderly people should be encouraged to downside to free up
:03:54. > :03:58.larger properties for families. Lord Richard Best thinks so. He's the
:03:59. > :04:01.chairman of a company which builds homes, including retirement flats
:04:02. > :04:06.and he thinks new accommodation specifically for older Londoners
:04:07. > :04:12.could make a real difference. If we can find the ideal flat for
:04:13. > :04:17.people who're in their late 50s, 60s, early 70s and get people to
:04:18. > :04:21.leave their nice three`bedroomed suburban house and move to their
:04:22. > :04:28.flat, we solve all kinds of problems. We free up lost family
:04:29. > :04:32.housing and they aren't family flats on the fifth floor, you know, they
:04:33. > :04:36.are houses with gardens, and we look after ourselves when we are older
:04:37. > :04:41.because sooner or later, the three, four bedroomed fally houses are too
:04:42. > :04:46.much for us. It's not specialist retirement for
:04:47. > :04:49.old people kind of housing, it's ordinary housing in communities,
:04:50. > :04:56.everybody else is living all around you, you're part of everything. It's
:04:57. > :05:02.the modern flat that City people, Londoners know how to deal with and
:05:03. > :05:05.will enjoy in older age. One bedroom, one bathroom and one
:05:06. > :05:12.sitting room. It's ideal for one. We have lovely views outside. The
:05:13. > :05:19.garden and the pub. It's us that I think is the target,
:05:20. > :05:25.getting people to, while they are still fully have their wits about
:05:26. > :05:31.them, to move. 2% of people over pension age have two empty spare
:05:32. > :05:34.rooms moved every year and downsized, that would produce an
:05:35. > :05:44.enormous number of people on the move. What have you got in yours...
:05:45. > :05:49.This can be a whole new life for people, the social life that twos
:05:50. > :05:52.with being further into the centre in apartments with facilities all
:05:53. > :05:56.around, not far from where you were before `` goes with being further
:05:57. > :06:04.into the centre. It's no bigger than what I had
:06:05. > :06:09.before. It can be vibrant and new, you can walk to things. It's a
:06:10. > :06:15.trade`in, but it can be a trade`up. We have been getting comments on the
:06:16. > :06:23.subject of housing this week. Join in the conversation and you can
:06:24. > :06:26.also e`mail us. Tomorrow at 6.30, there'll be a special programme
:06:27. > :06:32.looking at housing with a panel of experts.
:06:33. > :06:35.Tonight, a new home has opened for the Black Cultural Archives which
:06:36. > :06:41.started life as a small book shop in the 80s. A ?7 million redevelopment
:06:42. > :06:43.is dedicated to collect, preserving and celebrating the histories of
:06:44. > :06:55.black people this Britain. From his original home in a small
:06:56. > :06:58.book shop in the 1980, the Black Cultural Archives has a permanent
:06:59. > :07:02.space in the heart of Brixton. The ?7 million redevelopment of a
:07:03. > :07:06.national heritage site is dedicated to collecting, preserving and
:07:07. > :07:11.celebrating the histories of people of Africa and Caribbean descent in
:07:12. > :07:18.Britain. For so many reasons, this work is important. I think when you
:07:19. > :07:23.talk about the history of people of African descent, there are tensions
:07:24. > :07:34.and we kind of are carrying a lot here. So here is an opportunity for
:07:35. > :07:43.us to have some key conversations. There was privilege access to view
:07:44. > :07:48.the centre. It's so important for people to feel like they belong to a
:07:49. > :07:51.part of history that has been erased from the history books. To have a
:07:52. > :07:55.focus like this is tremendous. Especially for children as they grow
:07:56. > :07:59.up understanding that they are part of something right. It's a
:08:00. > :08:04.magnificent day for Britain and black Britain in fact that we have a
:08:05. > :08:08.place that can celebrate our contribution to this culture, that
:08:09. > :08:13.the pioneer generation can walk in here with their grandchildren and
:08:14. > :08:18.say, look, look what we are sharing, this is a magnificent day for all of
:08:19. > :08:21.us. From an African`born Roman ever
:08:22. > :08:25.report through to the Windrush, it's hoped the archives will serve as a
:08:26. > :08:30.beacon for all who're interested in the contributions made by the black
:08:31. > :08:36.community in Britain. That is it from me Forton ITV now
:08:37. > :08:41.the weather forecast. Another hot day for us today. Indeed and still
:08:42. > :08:46.more to come. If that is not your thing, I have some good news. A
:08:47. > :08:48.change is on the way. Tonight it will be another close one,
:08:49. > :08:54.particularly in the towns and cities. Low cloud filtering into the
:08:55. > :08:58.north. You will see there it's a wee bit cooler. I don't think the cloud
:08:59. > :09:02.will stick around too long during the morning. Things are moving
:09:03. > :09:07.along. The breeze has been the saving grace over the past few days.
:09:08. > :09:12.Come the afternoon, there is a chance that we could see some
:09:13. > :09:18.thunder storms brewing as the temperatures push on towards 27, 278
:09:19. > :09:24.`` 27 or 28 degrees. Saturday will be warm and we bring the fronts
:09:25. > :09:26.around the north. The isobars get down into the north so something of
:09:27. > :09:50.a change there. is getting too much for many people.
:09:51. > :09:57.By Sunday, the temp will be cooler than today. Tonight, another warm
:09:58. > :09:58.and comfortable night for