Summer 2004 Newsletter

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It was good to see more people than usual at this year's AGM. Our guest speakers were our Neighbourhood Specialist Officers from Surrey Police, Jane Eames (Ruxley) & James Green (West Ewell) who told us about their role in policing our two wards and gave us the opportunity to question them about the things that concern us, the residents. It was all very informative.

The meeting also saw the election of Steve Yates and Helen Worwood as Chairman and Vice Chairman of WERRA. Both are young, busy people but they are enthusiastic about our community and are committed in wanting the best for its residents through the Association.

As committee members we do need to know what is affecting your life within the Borough (and sometimes the good things!) We may not be able to always provide you with the answer you want to hear but we can listen and hopefully inform.

If you feel you have something to offer your community by being part of WERRA then please do contact our Chairman,

Item submitted by: Gill Smitheram, Secretary

Over the next few months many of our road stewards will be asking if you would like to pay your £1 per household annual WERRA membership fee for 2004.

So, what does your £1 pay for?

It provides for the monthly hire of a local venue so that resident's can lobby their committee and councillors in person. It pays for canvassing opinion about various issues that affect different groups. It pays for venues so that the specific topics that demand special attention can be discussed. It also gives you the right to speak at the AGM, be elected to the RA committee and even become an Independent Resident's Association Councillor!

Our four-monthly newsletter keeps you informed of what is happening locally and has done so for many years - not just when there's an election!

If your road steward does not collect your subscription then your Councillors and committee members will be pleased to take your cash and cheques and forward them to our Treasurer, Bill King, (a receipt is given).

Item submitted by: WERRA Committee

The majority of people who responded to my article in the last newsletter about dogs in King George V Recreation Ground, Poole Road (a small part of the Hogsmill Open Space) were in favour of maintaining the bylaw that bans dogs from the recreation ground. A request has been made to the Town Hall that the Park Rangers monitor the area with a view to identifying those in breach of the bylaw and taking any necessary action.

But we can all play our part. If you are aware that the bylaw is being broken then please note as much information as possible and then report it to the Contact Centre at the Town Hall, Tel. 01372 732000.

Item submitted by: Gill Smitheram, Secretary WERRA

Since the last newsletter I have gained a lot of offers of help, and we have swapped a few road stewards around, some people have moved out of the area and others have moved in. Others are in the process of moving and may not be with us by the time the autumn Newsletter comes around. So if you feel you could help out by delivering in any of the roads listed below, please give me, Helen Worwood, a call on 0208394 1622 I am happy to discuss what is involved with any curious potential volunteer.

West Ewell

Gibraltar Crescent (92 Homes)
Lansdowne Road (61 Homes)

Ruxley

Larkspur Way Nos 9 - 93 and 70 - 160 (93 Homes)
Hartford Road (26 Homes)
Iris Road (35 Homes)
Kelvin Close (30 Homes)
Pemberley Chase (49 Homes)
Pemberley Close (20 Homes)
Pemberley House (12 Homes)
Amis Ave (104 Homes)
Bourne Way (16 Homes)
Chessington Rd Nos 374 - 476a (49 Homes)
Mole Court (29 Homes)
Carnforth Close (34 Homes)
Collier Close (78 Homes)
Longford Court (18 Homes)
Millais Way (16 Homes)
Ruxley Close (17 Homes)
Ruxley Court (12 Homes)
Ruxley Mews (16 Homes)

County News

Jan Mason. Surrey County Councillor (Epsom & Ewell, West Division)

Since the highway works to dual Chessington Road from Hook Road to Ruxley Lane started in February, I have regularly been in contact with Dominic Forbes, who is our Environmental Engineer overseeing these works. As a result, "keep clear" signs were put up at the junctions with Godwin Close, Carnforth Close and Nightingale Drive. I also requested the Police Casualty Reduction Officer to monitor the traffic avoiding the traffic lights by using Derek and Amis Avenues and Danetree and Heatherside Roads.

The entrance to Horton Country Park at Butchers Grove may be closed from time to time during May, June and July to enable work on the junction to be carried out safely. The alternative entrance is at the end of Collier Close. When the junction is complete a new entrance will be constructed and a general tidy-up of the area around the electricity substation will take place.

After much effort, I have been successful in getting the four new road name plates placed at the two entrances to this estate, plus litter bins have been placed by the bus shelters. I have also arranged on three occasions to get the numerous "For Sale" signs removed from the fence along Horton Lane. I think the estate agents might at last have got the message! I am still pursing the matter of lights unconnected by Seeboard but I have been told that workmen have recently been seen working on them, so I am hopeful this will soon be completed. I have raised the issue of motorbikes speeding up and down the Lane. Police are aware of the problem and will endeavour to do spot checks.

Work on the surgery has been progressing well and it was expected that at the beginning of June the clinic would be able to move temporarily into the new build part of the surgery to enable further work to be carried out in the older part. Unfortunately on Sunday 16th May vandals started a fire in the new building, causing some damage which will delay the progress. Thankfully it appears that there was not a great deal of damage done and the East Elmbridge and Mid Surrey NHS trust does not envisage that the timetable of works should be very much affected.

Resurfacing of this road is due to take place during the summer holidays, and should take one week. I am assured by our Highway Engineers that the "quiet surface" I have requested will be used. I know that this will benefit those of our residents who live by this busy route. In Chessington Close the gully has been cleared out and remedial works will shortly take place on the drain hole.

Court and Ruxley Wards have been designated a Self-Reliance Area - one of only five in Surrey! We are pleased to have had a good response to our advert for someone to fill the position of Community Co-ordinator, who will be responsible for preparing and managing an action plan to address factors identified in research carried out by Communities that Care. (Communities that Care is a social research organisation supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.) I am delighted that several residents from these areas have attended the training sessions being given. The Community Board, of which these residents will be members, will oversee the strategic direction and priorities of the programme.

Congratulations to the school on receiving a capital grant to develop a school travel plan. Tessa Zant (Surrey Safe Routes to School Officer) will be liaising with head teacher Elisabeth Butcher and other school representatives to discuss options to improve sustainable transport for the school.

A new night bus service from 25th June will run between 7.30pm and 2am on Friday and Saturday nights from Epsom town centre. The route will include Watersedge, with a flat fare of £1 each way, which local pubs, clubs and restaurants are sponsoring.

I am pleased to report that many of our roads are scheduled to have work carried out this year (April 04-05). Meadowview Road, Riverholme Drive and Cox Lane are due to have resurfacing work carried out at the end of June. Fulford Road, Derek Avenue, Amis Avenue and Larkspur Way are to be patched by cutting out, filling and rollering, which will be a good standard and last well. Chesterfield Road will have footway repairs.

News from your West Ewell Councillors

A petition has been organised by a resident of Meadow view Road in order to show SCC that although residents are pleased to be having the road resurfaced it would be beneficial to have new inset kerb stones put in place at the same time as this work is carried out. In the past unsatisfactory work has been carried out by SCC's contractors, in that kerbstones have just been patched up with mortar, and within a short space of time have been displaced again. The solution would be to inset new kerbstones which would not be dislodged; this would in turn make a wider road, easier for the emergency services to get through. It would also discourage people from parking on the kerbs and grass verges, as there would be enough room for parking.

The petition was handed in to Neil Kenyon-Smith, Senior Engineer responsible for major maintenance, but unfortunately have just received information from SCC that they are only able to carry out the resurfacing work at the present time as there is no more money available for kerbstones in this financial year. However, I am informed that the resurfacing will be of a high standard and the material used will reduce the noise traffic using the roads. ] have been informed that a bid has been put in for kerbing work to be carried out in the future and I will keep you posted.

A request has been placed with the Tree Officer to have some new trees planted along some of the verges, both where trees have been damaged in the past and not replaced or where verges would benefit from trees being planted to enhance the roads and also discourage parking on the grassed areas.

The new street lighting facing the parade of shops has not been completed as quickly as we would have liked. I have been assured that the light nearest Green Lanes will be checked out and also the one nearest Meadowview should be connected at the end of June - there have been cable order problems. I am still trying to encourage some shopkeepers to keep their frontages clean and tidy.

A number of volunteers helped with the cleanup of the river and surrounding area on 24th April, this time we concentrated on the Ruxley side of the river, the weather was kind to us and we collected a considerable amount of rubbish. If you are interested in a day of exercise in the fresh air please come along, it's a good workout! Contact Stewart Cocker, tel 01372 2473, Sarah Hallams or Annette Murray, Countryside & Community Development Managers, tel. 01372 741191.

The Hogsmill River forms the northern boundary of West Ewell and Ruxley Wards. It really is a lovely area to visit.

Friends of the Hogsmill was formed in March 2004 as a EEBC initiative to involve volunteers in working to preserve and protect the 2 1/2 mile corridor of the Hogsmill River that lies within the Borough. If you would like to know more then please contact Chris Dadson, on 8393 4706 or visit the excellent website at http://fothos.ukwildnews.co.uk

Submitted by: Councillor Carol Jay

Ruxley and Clarendon Park News from your Councillors

At long last the children's play area at Clarendon Park has been opened. Now that we are able to gain entry to the playground it is obvious that there are a number of shortcomings regarding the age range catered for and the amount of equipment supplied. I have visited the playground on a number of occasions and spoken with those using it, as well as letting my own "evaluation team" (aged 5 and 8) check out the equipment; so I've gained a good impression of what people think of the playground and what they would like in the future. A larger more varied facility catering for a wider age range would have been welcome. Through my membership of the leisure committee I have already asked for improvements to be made to this facility.

Whilst the Clarendon Park Playground caters for pre-school children, there are excellent playground facilities on the Manor estate and in the new Long Grove Park, for older children. Both of these are not too far away from Clarendon Park. The council is currently consulting on the future use of the Manor Playing Fields. Please let me know if you have any views on recreation issues.

I am Chairman of the Council's Telecommunications Mast Sub-Committee, which is a small group of Councillors who meet when a planning application is made for a mast on Council land. The sub-committee makes recommendations that have to abide by the planning laws that govern all planning applications. It is therefore pointless for us to refuse an application for a mast because of fears that they may cause health problems, because so far research has found no direct evidence for this. If such evidence comes to light in the future then it will no doubt be used in deciding applications for mast sites.

With current knowledge we can only make decisions on criteria such as visual detriment to the neighbourhood, and it was with this in mind that in March we agreed to a mast on the Horton Golf Club near the Club House. We took the view that there were so many streetlights in the vicinity that one more pole would not be obtrusive. However an earlier proposal to place a mast by Chessington Rd near Chesterfield Road was refused by planning officers for the opposite reason.

With each mast costing the phone operator many tens of thousands of pounds to erect I am convinced that they will only put up those that are absolutely necessary. The councils planning officers and councillors will look at each case and judge the merits of the location and design and decide if it is right for our borough. We cannot however say no to every mast, because the operators have statutory rights to provide mobile phone users a service and could well start telling us rather than asking us where these masts should be.

Regular readers of this magazine may remember that I have been trying to get the footbridge over the railway by Old Schools Lane/Station Avenue changed from steps to more user-friendly ramps for wheels chairs, buggies and cycles. This would encourage people to use this footpath more and avoid using the Chessington Road. Last year, after carrying out a survey of the use of this bridge, I presented a formal proposal though Surrey County Councillor Jan Mason and I am pleased that the potential for this scheme has been recognised by our Transportation Service and it has been listed as an "Intermediate Scheme". This means that it is too expensive to be met by local transportation funds and has to bid against other schemes in Surrey. Intermediate schemes are very much on the back burner waiting for funding, and this particular scheme is not even the first on the list, but it is a start and it is good to know that the work done by local mums who collected signatures and offered constructive comments has had a positive result. Thank you to those who were involved promoting this and you have my assurance that I will continue to keep this a live issue.

Submitted by: Councillor Derek Phillips.

Barriers are going up in Cox Lane to prevent motorbikes and scooters getting to the Hogsmill Open Space

Councillor Jan Mason

Life as a Councillor in Ruxley ward still revolves around the problems caused by the various road development schemes in the Ward. Whilst the work to the bridge in Ruxley Lane over the Hogsmill is now complete, the duelling of Chessington Road grinds on creating havoc to traffic at peak times. Complaints from residents rain in from all parts of the ward and much of my time is spent attempting to explain the situation. Various improvements are being made to roads and paving in the ward which, whilst it is very welcome and in some cases long overdue, is not helping matters. On a much more happy and successful note, I have been able to help various families with personal problems which have greatly enhanced their quality of life and it is this area that makes being a Councillor most satisfactory.

I am still deeply involved in environmental matters, which include the problems of trying to accommodate mobile phone masts, improvements to the Hogsmill open space and my work with the Epsom Common Association is most satisfying as the Common continues to improve its national standing. I have recently become a part of the Social Committee which is set to involve me in many other matters that greatly affect the lives of local residents. I would encourage anyone who sees something they feel is unsatisfactory to contact the EEBC Contact Centre or let one of the Ruxley Councillors know. As elected members of the Council we are here to serve you and to make your life more pleasant and we can only do that if we know of the things that are going wrong for you.

Last summer, following research amongst residents of the Borough, the Council agreed a new four-year set of spending priorities that included tackling anti-social behaviour, improving the environment, services for young people and affordable housing.

Inevitably if these services are to be given greater priority, resources have to be diverted from other services, and the Council decided that amongst other changes, the subsidies given to the Council's venues should be reduced. Plans for reducing the costs to the taxpayer of the Playhouse and the Ebbisham Centre were well in hand when proposals for Ewell Court House were announced.

The scheme, which would have seen the sale of the lease of the building and the building of a new community facility, library and clinic on site, were outlined in meetings within Ewell Court. However, those plans did not prove popular. Many people within Ewell Court, and beyond, believe that a different solution is possible, especially if the local community itself makes greater use of the facility.

Following these local meetings an alternative plan has been formulated and Officers of the Council have been asked to look at different options for Ewell Court House which:

Do not involve the sale of the lease
Retain, as a minimum, the ground floor for community use
Seek commercial lettings for other parts of the House
Seek greater community use of the facilities with particular emphasis on involving the local community, and with the aim of reducing the subsidy
Investigate the development of the residential properties to the rear
Establish cost of immediate repairs
Meet with the concerns of friends of Ewell Court House

In addition, the Officers and Councillors have met with representatives of the local community to discuss ideas and possible options and this process is ongoing with other meetings arranged.

The Council's strategy for its venues remain - to reduce the subsidy to the venues as a whole and to achieve value for money. However, the specific plan for Ewell Court House will be put to one side and the situation reviewed to see whether the Strategy can be achieved in a way that meets the ambitions of the local community.

Submitted by: Councillor Clive Smitheram

"Many people across England and Wales believe that anti-social behaviour is a problem where they live. One in five say there is a high level of disorder in their area. Vandalism, graffiti, dumped rubbish, fly tipping, abandoned cars, relentless noise and nuisance neighbours have a long lasting and corrosive effect on the quality of people's lives."

From "TOGETHER" published by the Home Office 2003.

The 1998 Crime and Disorder Act placed a duty on Local Authorities and Police Services, now extended to include the Primary Care Trust, Surrey Fire and Rescue Service - the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) to deliver Community Safety. Your council is involved in a number of initiatives to reduce anti-social behaviour:

Our Community Safety Officer, Sara Blake, and other council officers are actively involved in the Nuisance Prevention Group, an inter agency group that tackles the problems caused by known individuals. It is currently considering a number of possible anti-social behaviour orders (ASBO's) or other measures to deal with those who are causing problems for others. We will vigorously support ASBO's in our community.

Our Graffiti Squad in the Operational Services Division deals with reported incidents. We also have a partnership arrangement with NTL to enable 'our man on a bike', Gary Russell, to clean cable and junction boxes. This has resulted in a noticeable improvement in and around the Borough. Although repeat offending continues, it is known from national research that repeated removal is ultimately likely to be effective in discouraging the offenders.

In an innovative pilot for the whole of Surrey, our Street Care personnel have entered into a training programme leading to their accreditation as Police Community Support Officers.

A Joint Action Group has been formed, meeting monthly, to identify problem areas and concerns within the Borough so that the Council, Police and other agencies can direct resources to achieve an improvement.

We have formed a Youth Diversion Group to initiate projects to divert young people from getting into trouble and to build relationships between the Council, Police and particularly disaffected groups of young people. These include Army Away Days, Say No and phone (SNAP), Community Sports Leadership Awards, Starbucks Drop-In sessions and other activities.

We are working closely with Surrey Drug Action Team on all issues related to substance misuse in the Borough. The CDRP have recently employed a worker who is based at Alcohol and Drug Assist, a local voluntary organisation working in the substance misuse field. Problems associated to alcohol related disorder are addressed through the Epsom and Ewell Against Drugs Group, Pub Watch and the Town Centre Group, all of which are part of the CDRP and supported in particular by our own Community Safety Officer.

This is a very positive set of initiatives to which your council are committed. Tackling anti social behaviour is a high priority for us and by targeting our resources effectively and working in partnership with others we aim to make a real and positive difference to safety in our community. You have a part to play. In order to sustain the continuing impact on anti-social behaviour I ask that residents report ALL incidents of antisocial behaviour immediately to the Police and to the Council via the Contact Centre 01372 732000.

If you are concerned about reporting the incident then I would be happy to discuss it with you. Please ring me.

Submitted by: Councillor Clive Smitheram

Other Borough News

Congratulations to Cllr Clive Smitheram on being elected Chairman of the R.A. Group by his fellow RA councillors.

On 24th May Jan Mason was elected chairman of Surrey County Council Local Committee, a significant position for one of our councillors to hold.

May we remind our residents that the Local Committee meets regularly at various venues around the Borough. The meetings start at 7pm and the first half-hour is given over to written and verbal questions from the public. Contact Kirsty Light, Local Committee and Partnership Officer, on 020 8541 7062 for any further details.

A leaflet has been produced listing a wide range of sport and leisure activities taking place throughout the summer holidays. This leaflet is available from 21 June. It will be distributed around the Borough to libraries, the Ebbisham Centre and The Rainbow Centre. It will also be available on the Council's website. New to this year, the council have organised three courses/camps in martial arts, ball skills and athletics. Bookings will need to be made by completing the booking form in the leaflet. You can call the Council on 01372 73200 for information and request a leaflet to be sent or contact Cllr Jean Steer 020 8393 6851.

The skate park is now open at Long Grove Park, Long Grove Road. This new park has facilities for young children as well as the skate park and is laid out as a family park for everyone to enjoy. It is open until dusk.

Submitted by: Councillor Jean Steer