:00:00. > :00:07.Inspectors find serious failings by Tower Hamlets Children's Services
:00:08. > :00:25.There is evidence senior members were not going to committee members,
:00:26. > :00:29.reports were lost and data was not protected. That needs to be
:00:30. > :00:31.tightened up, so we can ensure our young people are protected.
:00:32. > :00:33.The council accepts that more needs to be done.
:00:34. > :00:35.Also tonight: Will it ever get built?
:00:36. > :00:38.Now the Garden Bridge Trust hits back after a damning report said
:00:39. > :00:42.Never too late to take up running - we meet 81-year-old Eleanor who's
:00:43. > :00:50.the oldest female runner taking part in this year's Marathon.
:00:51. > :00:52.Plus we're with the Harlem Globetrotters as they
:00:53. > :01:03.limber up to entertain the crowds at Wembley.
:01:04. > :01:10.Welcome to BBC London News with me, Riz Lateef.
:01:11. > :01:12."Widespread and serious failures throughout children's services"
:01:13. > :01:16.and "insufficient scrutiny at all levels".
:01:17. > :01:19.Just some of the failings found by Ofsted inspectors in Tower Hamlets -
:01:20. > :01:23.who've rated children's services there as inadequate.
:01:24. > :01:25.Officers and councillors say they were unaware that
:01:26. > :01:28.children were being left in harmful situations.
:01:29. > :01:31.The council says it accepts the criticisms and will make it
:01:32. > :01:32.an absolute priority to improve things.
:01:33. > :01:41.Here's our Education Reporter, Marc Ashdown.
:01:42. > :01:48.Tower Hamlets looks after 333 vulnerable children, but are they
:01:49. > :01:53.keeping them safe? Ofsted says too many children you are being left in
:01:54. > :01:57.situations of potential or actual harm. Inspectors found widespread
:01:58. > :02:02.and serious failure is to write children's services. There was
:02:03. > :02:04.insufficient scrutiny at all levels. Offices and politicians across the
:02:05. > :02:09.council didn't all about the extent of failure is. New manages and
:02:10. > :02:13.covered a deeply worrying picture, yet there was still insufficient
:02:14. > :02:20.rigour in challenging weak management. Ofsted is said children
:02:21. > :02:25.living with abuse wait too long for help. And there was a failure to
:02:26. > :02:30.work out weather children had been left abandoned. The last inspection
:02:31. > :02:36.was in 2012. Children's services were said to be found to be good
:02:37. > :02:42.with some outstanding features. Since then, there has been a
:02:43. > :02:47.significant decline. 22 children were taken into care in January.
:02:48. > :02:50.Only ten were planned. Three very young children had to spend the
:02:51. > :02:55.night in a police station as there was nowhere to go. I blame the
:02:56. > :02:58.previous administration, but the current administration has not
:02:59. > :03:03.tightened up what they inherited. Is evidence senior members were not
:03:04. > :03:07.going to committee meetings, evidence of reports being lost, Nate
:03:08. > :03:13.-- data not being provided, that needs to be tightened up so we can
:03:14. > :03:16.ensure our young people are safe and protected. I deal with a lot of
:03:17. > :03:26.vulnerable women facing domestic violence. I raised this eight months
:03:27. > :03:32.ago. It is significant that the lead member, the chief executive, did not
:03:33. > :03:39.know about this. What were they doing? They say cleaning up the mess
:03:40. > :03:45.left by the previous administration. She maintains the current mere
:03:46. > :03:51.inherited a flagship service. You have been in there for two years. It
:03:52. > :03:54.takes time to turn organisations around. Looking at the
:03:55. > :03:58.recommendations, if I had known then what I know now, we would have
:03:59. > :04:05.knuckled down faster. We are making progress. The headline is this is an
:04:06. > :04:09.improving service. But it clearly criticises the way we have been
:04:10. > :04:13.doing some of our practice. And we will learn from that. More than 3000
:04:14. > :04:21.children in this borough require some form of help from the local
:04:22. > :04:23.authority. Ofsted has made a raft of improvements to ensure vulnerable
:04:24. > :04:27.people are failed no more. Brought to the screen
:04:28. > :04:40.with money from the EU - we look at the future
:04:41. > :04:42.of the capital's film industry The Chairman of the Garden
:04:43. > :04:46.Bridge Trust has defended the project across the Thames -
:04:47. > :04:49.after a review suggested Labour MP, Dame Margaret Hodge who
:04:50. > :04:58.examined the plans for the bridge - said it would be better to cancel it
:04:59. > :05:02.now, than risk costing the public But the Trust's chairman,
:05:03. > :05:05.Lord Davies, said her report was "full of errors" -
:05:06. > :05:08.and the extra money could Here's our political
:05:09. > :05:18.correspondent Karl Mercer. We have seen the videos, we have had
:05:19. > :05:25.the pitch. We've also had plenty of rows. Last week, Margaret Hodge
:05:26. > :05:28.published a scathing report on the project. The response from the
:05:29. > :05:32.Garden Bridge Trust today was equally scathing. Seems no common
:05:33. > :05:37.they don't buy what Margaret Hodge has been saying. Don't put another
:05:38. > :05:44.penny of taxpayer money into this project. I know money has been lost,
:05:45. > :05:49.but I would cut my losses now. We have been working on this for three
:05:50. > :05:54.years. We have planning consent from two borrowers. We have agreements in
:05:55. > :05:58.place. We have raised almost ?70 million of private sector funding.
:05:59. > :06:03.We are basically ready to go. I am extremely sceptical looking at a
:06:04. > :06:14.record of their ability to raise the money. We have lost two major
:06:15. > :06:17.donors. The gap has grown because the cost have excavated --
:06:18. > :06:21.escalated. We need certainty on this project. You need a climate of
:06:22. > :06:25.certainty, a level playing field to get momentum back and we can go out
:06:26. > :06:30.to potential funders. We are confident we can do it. If the
:06:31. > :06:36.Garden Bridge Trust can come up with the money, then build it. But don't
:06:37. > :06:41.risk any more taxpayer money. We have spent three and a half years
:06:42. > :06:45.doing it, we have spent huge amount of money to get a point where we are
:06:46. > :06:49.ready to start construction. We are committed to this. We have a Board
:06:50. > :06:55.of Trustees with enormous experience in fundraising, willing to do this.
:06:56. > :06:59.The future of the project will be decided by the London Mayor. I'm
:07:00. > :07:04.told there was a meeting next week between the Garden Bridge Trust and
:07:05. > :07:09.mere officials, where the trust will try to persuade them they have a new
:07:10. > :07:15.business plan. We are told the final decision will not come for a couple
:07:16. > :07:22.of weeks. Without his support, the Garden Bridge will be dead.
:07:23. > :07:24.It was a brutal murder more than thirty years ago that's
:07:25. > :07:28.An elderly widow was found dead in her flat in Southwark in 1985 -
:07:29. > :07:32.a broken beer bottle one of the only clues left at the scene.
:07:33. > :07:34.Now police are offering a ?20,000 reward to help catch
:07:35. > :07:45.Sonja Jessup has been speaking to her son.
:07:46. > :07:54.There is a photograph of my mother with her brother. This is how he
:07:55. > :08:00.would like to remember his mother, Clara Kirton. A frail 86-year-old
:08:01. > :08:06.grandmother was the victim of a violent attack in her own home. It
:08:07. > :08:11.was like walking into hell. Seeing your mother like that. I just
:08:12. > :08:16.remember screaming. There is never a day goes past now where I don't
:08:17. > :08:26.remember what I saw. Police hunt has been launched for the killer of an
:08:27. > :08:32.elderly woman in her own homes... The case then and now has baffled
:08:33. > :08:38.detectives. It is thought this was a burglary which went horribly wrong.
:08:39. > :08:47.Trawlers were thrown open. Her purse was stolen. Police believe she may
:08:48. > :08:51.have known her killer, who panicked and then attacked her. Police
:08:52. > :08:57.appeals at the time focused on a broken beer bottle and a bloody
:08:58. > :09:03.trail of footprints left on the scene. Detectives today have no new
:09:04. > :09:08.evidence. They're offering a ?20,000 reward for any information. We have
:09:09. > :09:12.looked at forensic opportunities. We have some unidentified fingerprints.
:09:13. > :09:22.If anyone wants to put somebody forward, we could easily eliminate
:09:23. > :09:28.them or not from our enquiry. Brian Kirton says the death of his mother
:09:29. > :09:33.has devastated his family. But he says he has not given up hope. I
:09:34. > :09:39.know somebody out there knows something. I would love to see
:09:40. > :09:47.justice for my mother. She went through two world wars. To end up
:09:48. > :09:53.like that, that is when I stopped believing.
:09:54. > :09:56.And a reminder of that Crimestoppers number again if you have any
:09:57. > :10:16.The EU's spent more than 50 million euros over the last three years
:10:17. > :10:18.on cultural projects, not least on the capital's
:10:19. > :10:21.But London's access to money from the Creative Europe Fund
:10:22. > :10:25.And there are warnings of the harm that will do,
:10:26. > :10:28.As our Political Editor Tim Donovan reports.
:10:29. > :10:32.A Booker prize-winning novel mode turned into a film,
:10:33. > :10:35.made by a company which has received about ?170,000 from
:10:36. > :10:38.Money that boss says is vital for development, finding ideas,
:10:39. > :10:40.seeing if they will work, help in the early stages.
:10:41. > :10:43.It gave some space and time and an extra energy,
:10:44. > :10:50.I think it would have happened anyway, but it certainly
:10:51. > :11:04.made it a lot easier, having this EU grant.
:11:05. > :11:07.The Creative Europer fund has nearly 1.5 billion euros to distribute
:11:08. > :11:08.across the continent between 2014 and 2020.
:11:09. > :11:12.So far, over the last three years, 56 million euros has gone to the UK,
:11:13. > :11:16.Most public help for films comes in the form of tax breaks.
:11:17. > :11:19.Exclude that and this money has accounted for about 9% of public
:11:20. > :11:23.London is the creative industries, and to have that European funding
:11:24. > :11:25.directly going into that art, and it's not subsidy,
:11:26. > :11:27.it's not good money going after bad, it's absolutely central
:11:28. > :11:31.And for the success of this great capital city.
:11:32. > :11:37.But others are welcoming the Brexit separation,
:11:38. > :11:40.deploring a subsidy culture which they say tends to help
:11:41. > :11:46.It can't be the purpose of any grant or subsidy body to be funding either
:11:47. > :11:51.multimillionaires who could actually fund themselves on their gold cards,
:11:52. > :12:00.The media class in the UK is treating Brexit and the loss
:12:01. > :12:03.of EU funding or the potential loss of EU funding as if there's been
:12:04. > :12:14.In fact, in the short-term, there has been one
:12:15. > :12:19.As a direct consequence of Brexit, I moved my next film
:12:20. > :12:28.It is an under $1 million budget, Brexit meant the currency
:12:29. > :12:30.went down about 11%, so we're getting a lot
:12:31. > :12:35.The government says it has invested more than ?400 million
:12:36. > :12:47.But once it's no longer paying into the EU, will there be more
:12:48. > :13:16.To mark two decades since her death, a new memorial garden has opened
:13:17. > :13:19.at the former home of Diana, Princess of Wales -
:13:20. > :13:22.Called the White Garden, it's filled with flowers that
:13:23. > :13:24.are inspired by memories of Diana's life, style and image.
:13:25. > :13:27.Formerly the Sunken Garden, it can be viewed from a public
:13:28. > :13:35.walkway and will be at its best until September.
:13:36. > :13:39.A spectacular sight on the Thames - as the Tall Ships
:13:40. > :13:48.The Harlem globetrotter is turned 90 this year. Tonight, they bring their
:13:49. > :13:55.entertaining skills to London. Let's look ahead to an Easter
:13:56. > :14:08.weekend of sport. Yes, a huge weekend
:14:09. > :14:10.in the Premier League. Tottenham play Bournemouth
:14:11. > :14:12.at lunch-time on Saturday hoping to close the gap on leaders Chelsea
:14:13. > :14:15.- who visit Manchester United And Spurs and Chelsea feature
:14:16. > :14:18.in today's PFA footballer 4 of the 6 players hail
:14:19. > :14:22.from London clubs. Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante
:14:23. > :14:24.is the favourite to win. His team-mate Eden Hazard
:14:25. > :14:26.is on the list as are Arsenal's Alexis Sanchez
:14:27. > :14:28.and Tottenham striker Harry Kane whose manager is delighted
:14:29. > :14:31.to have him back to full fitness. He is fit again and
:14:32. > :14:33.available to play. He is very fresh in his
:14:34. > :14:42.body and his mind. And he is very hungry
:14:43. > :14:56.to score again. Middlesex won't back plans
:14:57. > :14:58.for cricket's new Twenty 20 tournament unless they receive
:14:59. > :15:00.greater assurances from the ECB. They start their County Championship
:15:01. > :15:02.title defence away The ECB wants to launch a Twenty 20
:15:03. > :15:08.competition in three years' time which will involve
:15:09. > :15:09.eight city-based teams. Middlesex say they fear the counties
:15:10. > :15:11.could be downgraded. In Formula One, McLaren look set
:15:12. > :15:14.to bring Jenson Button out of retirement to replace
:15:15. > :15:16.Fernando Alonso for next The Woking-based team will almost
:15:17. > :15:19.certainly turn to 2009 World Champion Button after Alonso
:15:20. > :15:21.announced he will miss the race to take part
:15:22. > :15:33.in the Indianapolis 500. Now, if you are one of the thousands
:15:34. > :15:36.of people preparing to run in the London marathon a week
:15:37. > :15:39.on Sunday, and you are starting to wonder if you'll manage it,
:15:40. > :15:42.how about this for inspiration? At 81, Eleanor Draper will be
:15:43. > :15:44.the oldest woman running. And her slightly younger husband
:15:45. > :15:47.Dennis will be with her too. Emma Jones went to meet them
:15:48. > :15:53.at their home in Welwyn Garden City. This is 1992 and we were
:15:54. > :15:56.Andy Pandy Loopy Lou. They have each already
:15:57. > :16:02.run over 200 marathons. So Eleanor and her husband Dennis
:16:03. > :16:05.have plenty of fond memories. My comment to Dennis
:16:06. > :16:11.was when he started running, was you will never get me running
:16:12. > :16:15.around the street. was you will never get me running
:16:16. > :16:18.around the streets. They only took up marathon
:16:19. > :16:31.running in their 50s. Something to keep them fit
:16:32. > :16:34.they could enjoy as a couple. 80-year-old Dennis has
:16:35. > :16:46.had a hip operation, But there seems to be
:16:47. > :16:53.no stopping them. So when will Eleanor
:16:54. > :16:55.hang up her trainers? Until that time tells me,
:16:56. > :16:59.then I will just keep going. Dennis says his knees might mean
:17:00. > :17:05.this is his last London Marathon, but don't be surprised if we see him
:17:06. > :17:33.and 82-year-old Eleanor Good luck to them. What an amazing
:17:34. > :17:44.couple. And of course to everybody else. Thank you.
:17:45. > :17:47.It's not often the Thames is packed with this many sailing ships.
:17:48. > :17:49.But this weekend, some of Europe's most spectacular vessels will gather
:17:50. > :17:52.in Greenwich for the 2017 Tall Ships Festival.
:17:53. > :17:55.The event is back in London, where three years ago it attracted more
:17:56. > :17:58.Our Reporter Nesta McGregor is on Woolwich Pier.
:17:59. > :18:06.If you are fanatical about all things nautical, this is the hottest
:18:07. > :18:10.ticket in town. Over the next three days, 40 ships will gather across
:18:11. > :18:14.the Thames. Half will be based Europe will appear, the others will
:18:15. > :18:19.be just down the river by Greenwich Pier. They will stay here before
:18:20. > :18:25.setting off to places like Portugal, Boston, Bermuda and some going as
:18:26. > :18:29.far as Canada as part of the Tall Ships Festival 2017. All day, people
:18:30. > :18:33.have been coming from all over the world and London to see these ships.
:18:34. > :18:39.We have spoken to some local residents who will be working on
:18:40. > :18:45.these ships. 16-18 years old. Some were shocked there was no Wi-Fi
:18:46. > :18:52.on-board. They will travel to Portugal on a two week trip. It will
:18:53. > :19:00.be very interesting. People have been admiring these magnificent
:19:01. > :19:05.vessels. We are very involved with nature. Nature is a very good
:19:06. > :19:12.teacher to make people as humble as they should be. It is about sailing,
:19:13. > :19:16.adventure, teamwork, learning about yourself and there is always
:19:17. > :19:22.something special about Tall Ships. Captain Jack Sparrow, that type of
:19:23. > :19:27.thing. The love of the sea. We are an island nation. I was born in
:19:28. > :19:34.London and yet I didn't really know much about the history of the River
:19:35. > :19:39.Thames. And the ships. I think it is fantastic. Great opportunity,
:19:40. > :19:43.especially for children. Now, the ship I am standing on his some
:19:44. > :19:49.maritime history. This is an exact replica of the first-ever ship to
:19:50. > :19:57.successfully sail across the world. It is from Spain. A chance for some
:19:58. > :20:03.great photographs. And also have a history lesson. I have picked up an
:20:04. > :20:14.interesting fact for a pub quiz. Why are pirates cold pirates? Because
:20:15. > :20:29.they are. I think I should walk the plank.
:20:30. > :20:31.They effortlessly combine sport with showmanship...
:20:32. > :20:33.As anyone who's watched them will tell you.
:20:34. > :20:35.But the heritage of the Harlem Globetrotters dates back
:20:36. > :20:38.to the 1920s when their basketball playing was less about entertainment
:20:39. > :20:42.Now in their 90th year - a world tour has brought them
:20:43. > :20:53.I will not state the obvious... This is a problem. When you interview
:20:54. > :20:59.someone who plays basketball. I tried to get some new high-heeled
:21:00. > :21:09.shoes. It wasn't going to make a difference. I am six tell me about
:21:10. > :21:13.the heritage of this great team. We have been around for 91 years. We
:21:14. > :21:22.have been entertaining fans around the world since then. Comedy and
:21:23. > :21:34.ambassador Balkan vine. 90 years. Still going strong? Going strong. We
:21:35. > :21:40.bring smiles around the world. The Easter holidays are here for some
:21:41. > :21:47.children. A bank holiday in England. Perfect time to practice some
:21:48. > :21:55.basketball skills? Can you teach me something? I will teach you the five
:21:56. > :22:02.basic steps of becoming a member of the Harlem Globetrotters. Pass the
:22:03. > :22:14.microphone so I can teach you. I will give it to the crew.
:22:15. > :22:27.It needs to be off the knees like this. Are you ready? That is a good
:22:28. > :22:49.start. Around the waist. Under the legs. Are you ready? I got you! He
:22:50. > :22:59.is the slam dunk of the team. Listen, I need to get you to show me
:23:00. > :23:04.some skills. These are not everyday basketball skills. You guys have
:23:05. > :23:20.some moves! There is some things you won't see at a regular basketball
:23:21. > :23:33.game. Like this. I love this! I love this. OK, boys. Not easy. I think
:23:34. > :23:40.the only thing for it is to score another basket. Do it, man. Come
:23:41. > :23:49.year he goes. 90 years old, this team. Still as fresh as ever. They
:23:50. > :23:56.will be entertaining in Wembley this evening. Backs EU.
:23:57. > :24:10.That I believe is called a slam dunk. Weren't they tall?
:24:11. > :24:14.The weather is looking a bit mix for the weekend. Variable amounts of
:24:15. > :24:21.sunshine. This was how things look today. Some blue sky for Kingston
:24:22. > :24:27.upon Thames. Some cumulus cloud. We can see that on the satellite image.
:24:28. > :24:32.Some late sunshine still holding on out there. It is feeling fresher
:24:33. > :24:36.than it did to start off the week. As we move through the remainder of
:24:37. > :24:45.this evening and overnight, fairly cloudy skies. It will not be as
:24:46. > :24:48.chilly as it has been of late. The morning of Good Friday, we are
:24:49. > :24:58.likely to see some sunshine. Heading through the day, the cloud will
:24:59. > :25:03.build up and increase. Many of us staying dry. Temperatures up to
:25:04. > :25:07.around 16 degrees. Not a bad day at all. We are moving through the rest
:25:08. > :25:18.of Good Friday evening and into Saturday. Rain pushes its way south.
:25:19. > :25:26.Saturday is looking like not a bad day. Some sunshine around. Patchy
:25:27. > :25:34.cloud here and there. Temperature wise, by the time we get a Saturday
:25:35. > :25:41.afternoon, about 12-14 . Heading through to Easter Sunday, looking
:25:42. > :25:44.predominantly dry. Quite cloudy. Temperatures, 14 degrees, should
:25:45. > :25:54.stay dry. Rain moving in from the North. Over the next few days,
:25:55. > :25:55.plenty of dry weather, a bit of sunshine around. Watch out for some
:25:56. > :26:11.spots of light rain. The Syrian President,
:26:12. > :26:15.Bashar Al-Assad, says claims his army was behind
:26:16. > :26:18.a chemical attack is "a hundred Theresa May said the evidence
:26:19. > :26:21.against his regime was clear. Children from "ordinary working
:26:22. > :26:24.families" are to be prioritised at new grammar schools in England
:26:25. > :26:26.according to the Critics say there's no evidence
:26:27. > :26:38.grammars benefit students. That is all from his. Plenty more on
:26:39. > :27:07.our website Facebook. Have a lovely Easter bank weekend. Goodbye.
:27:08. > :27:14.the most that have ever voted for anything in this country,