05/07/2017 London News

More now on the government's decision to send in independent

experts to help run parts of Kensington and Chelsea council.

The Mayor of London says it's the bare minimum but some

on the ground are more positive, saying it should help the council

Our political editor Tim Donovan is at Kensington

So Tim what details do we have so far?

Very few but the housing minister is going to stand up and House of

Commons shortly and flesh this out. What we know, the new leader here

had asked quite pointedly when she was selected earlier this week, for

help from the government and help is now forthcoming. It is help in the

medium-term, help with housing and regeneration in particular, the kind

of people that will come in, local government specialists, they will

not be dealing with other services like schools and adult care, where

the authority here feels it is doing a good job, but this is not good

enough as far as the Mayor of London and others are concerned. He would

like to see a set of commissioners coming in and with a political nose

to it as well he wants that to happen until the local elections

next April. The chief executive of Southwark Council has been one of

the key players in the Grenfell response and she says it is a good

idea. We can't exist in an emergency

situation for a long time. If Kensington and Chelsea need

assistance in respect of being able to run business as usual and dealing

with this disaster, that has landed slap bang

in the heart of their community in North Kensington,

then that is absolutely the right thing to do

and they will need that support. So not a hit squad, but the council

here welcome it because it gives them a chance to restore a

relationship with that community but as well, they have to continue to

provide the normal services to all their other residents. Indeed. Many

thanks. Nearly 40 police station front

counters could close to the public by the end of October,

according to plans being Conservatives on the London Assembly

have accused Sadiq Khan of not being transparent about the plans,

but he says Government We're having to look into closing

down police stations, we're having to look into reducing

the number of front counters. We're even having to look

into cutting the number My priority is keeping London safe,

and trying to keep the number of front line officers,

but I'm afraid it's a consequence of government cuts,

there's no alternative. Almost 100 firefighters spent

the night tackling a major fire It broke out just before midnight

and the fire brigade says part of the ground floor of the building

in Stamford Hill has The cause of the blaze

is being investigated. It was an issue which defined

the 1980s and early 90s - the AIDs pandemic brought with it

fear and stigma. Now a vast collection

of video testimonies about that time is being added

to the London Metropolitan Archives. Sarah Harris has been to meet

some of those involved. Imagine getting into your 40s

and building your career and your circle of friends that

you have dinner parties And then in the space of three

years, 40 of them are just wiped off The experience of one Londoner,

having being diagnosed Danny was another who added his

voice to this unique archive. He was one of the first

in the capital to be "I would advise you to put

your affairs in order, you only have a year to 18

months to live". Which was probably the biggest

bombshell I've ever VOICEOVER: It is a deadly disease

and there is no known cure. It was a time when no one knew

what would happen next. For the producers who gathered these

interviews, the question What we've discovered is just how

much of a struggle life is, long-term medication,

chronic illness, the declining Diagnosed HIV-positive then, here

they are with no job, no pension, they might have been in social

housing, living in isolation, they have lost their lovers,

they have lost their friends, A pretty sorry situation

for these people. NEWS VOICEOVER: The visit

was designed to allay Princess Diana was one of the first

public figures to support HIV charities and to see what so many

in the gay community I made lots of friends in those days

and then saw them die. And die very painful

and traumatic deaths. I think I became overloaded

with grief, if you like. Danny's testimony is part

of the largest collection of video interviews ever compiled

about the HIV pandemic. And will be kept for future

generations in the London An award-winning creative arts

company which works with people with learning disabilities

is celebrating its 30th The charity Heart n Soul helps

people discover their talents and develop skills across the arts

as Alice Bhandhukravi reports. This is the sound of the fish

police, Dean on vocals is autistic and let the rest of the band through

Heart n Soul, the organisation which helps people with learning

difficulties express themselves through the arts. They have given me

so many things. Because I've been talking about a lot of things, like

music and sometimes I talk about movies and video games. Everyone

likes the things I talk about and they are very into it like they want

to be involved. And involvement is what Heart n Soul has been doing now

for 30 years, giving people with learning difficulties are platform

to get into the arts. Therapy it is not. People who are seeing the world

from a slightly different perspective I think are doing some

of the most interesting and ground-breaking work at the moment.

It is all about elevating and raising that talent and getting it

seen in as many different places by as many people as possible. Through

Heart n Soul, Tilly who has Asperger's joined a band and is now

a singer-songwriter and comedian. I was scared to start, but being in

that band in environment and being supported by people, who have been

doing this for years, it made all the difference. People of all

abilities are invited to get involved, whether it's music,

photography or any other creative art.

Now the weather with Kate Kinsella who's at Wimbledon.

What a glorious afternoon for tennis. It certainly is. Very very

warm, we have been playing spot the cloud because there aren't many of

those. It is relentless. It will not change, it will stay very warm and

sunny, temperatures reaching around 29 Celsius later today. At centre

court it was 35 Celsius on the thermometer, and at the moment

outside it is 26, 27, and we are expecting it to be higher by the end

of the afternoon. It will not get much cooler in the evening and

overnight ever read hot and sticky night, quite uncomfortable for

sleeping, minimum temperature 17 or 18, quite on present. Tomorrow there

will be a bit of a breakdown. -- quite on present. There is a meta-

weather morning -- Wetherall warning from the Met and you might get some

of these showers, but hopefully they will clear by the time play starts

at Wimbledon. It is a dry afternoon, lots of sunshine, and tomorrow

potentially 30 Celsius. Over the next couple of days, plenty of heat

but the bit of rain in the morning, the heavy showers, they will clear

out of the way. Still a risk in the afternoon. Friday, temperatures

against 30, maybe 31, warm and hot on Saturday, with sunshine, and then

turning fresh on Sunday. Thanks for joining us.

We will be here with our 630 evening programme.

But for now, from us all, a very good afternoon.