WOOD STREET VILLAGE ASSOCIATION
Monday 13th November
Via Zoom at 8.00PM
WSVA Meeting 13th November (via Zoom)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us05web.zoom.us/j/81449882525?pwd=TWidxEmIjwXVI3GnP2CjzffLC2LNeM.1
Meeting ID: 814 4988 2525
Passcode: 8NxHy1
Agenda
- Welcome
- Apologies for Absence
- Minutes and Matters Arising from 9th October Meeting
- Footpaths Work is due to begin on resurfacing the Broad Street to Fairlands footpath on 20thNovember
- The possibility of making a donation to Worplesdon Church’s fund to renew the toilet facilities was discussed in September. It is proposed that the Village Association make a donation of £250 towards this project
- Local Authority Reports
- Surrey County Council
- Guildford Borough Council
- Worplesdon Parish Council
- Any Other Business
Minutes of previous meeting:
WSVA MEETING
9th October 2023
Present: Janet Sutton, Belinda Baker, Helen Bell, Alex Waugh, Caroline Mankelow, Robert Grimmond, Ali Johnson, Bob McShee, Paul Cragg, Alex Russell, Louise McCann, Simon Firth, Terry Wright, Nonie Buchan, Chris Webb, Philip Brooker, Honor Brooker, Audrey Lugris, Keith Witham, Anne Brown, Kate Overy and David Glossop.
Apologies: Bilal Akhtar, Dave Grey, Nicky and Martin Parsons, Pam and David Hypher, Paul Scott.
MATTERS ARISING
Anne thanked the person who cut back the hedging on the pathway opposite the Church.
A thank you event was held at The Royal Oak last week for anyone who had helped in any way with village activities during the year. The attendance was lower than previous years, which was disappointing, but it is hoped to hold a similar event next year.
Alison has contacted the Surrey Countryside Team about the footpath between Broad Street and Fairlands and has been told it is on the list to be done this autumn/winter. However, she expressed concern about whether they understood which footpath she was referring to and Keith told her that SCC has a numbered list of footpaths which might help. She is also keen to know which access points to footpaths need improvement and has suggested people contact her if they have any concerns over particular access points. It would be helpful if they could be pinpointed on a map for clarity. SCC have produced LCWIPs- Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans. The council would welcome local residents to put forward their ideas for routes and other improvements, like junction design, that will help residents take a more active lifestyle. To make any comments, go to: surreylcwip.commonplace.is
Simon made the comment that Guildford Bike User Group (GBUG) explains the process of making walking and cycling improvements in Guildford even better if you go to g-bug-org
Janet was thanked for her great organisation of the MacMillan Coffee Morning on September 30th when nearly £500 was raised. Janet suggested that the weather helped and she commented on the fact that there was such a lot of goodwill: people helping, baking cakes etc.
The bar, treasure hunt and tombola made up the majority of the takings from the Summer Show. Expenditure was taken up with licenses, toilets, entertainment etc. The main disappointment was that a gazebo was taken on the Friday night when there was no security around.
EXPANSION OF FARNBOROUGH AIRPORT
Farnborough Airport is looking to expand to become a more commercial airport which it has the capacity to do. There is talk of the number of flights per year increasing from 50,000 to 70,000. It is thought that Wood Street could be seriously affected by this increase because we are under one of the flight paths. Pam Hypher is very concerned about this development and has written to local MP Angela Richardson and also talked to Gaynor about the application. The Parish Council is not objecting to the proposed expansion as it was felt ‘the economic benefits outweighed the negative perceptions regarding noise’.
At present, the airport is holding a pre-consultation before a planning application is submitted. Please send in any comments/objections before the closing date of 18th October:
https://farnboroughairport2040.com/share-your-views/
HESTER’S YARD PLANNING APPLICATION
The date for submitting comments on the planning application has now passed. Bilal has talked to the planning officer who has reported that there are still concerns over the proposal and the development needs to be reduced in size. There are no technical reasons that can be used to object to the plans. It is unclear when it will go before the planning committee at GBC. There was a fire at the yard last month but luckily the damage was limited.
SURREY COUNTY COUNCIL
Keith Witham drew attention to his latest email newsletter which went out on 1st October.
There was a discussion about the new Surrey Connect Bus Service. Surrey County Council has agreed to allocate nearly £2 million a year extra, from Council Tax, to pay for more and improved bus services, particularly in rural areas such as ours.
Keith reported that there had been an increase of 45% in the number of trips taken during September using the Connect bus compared to the old bus service ie 130 journeys a week compared to 90.
One resident told Janet that it had ‘transformed her life’.
There have been teething problems: Kate reported that there had been a mix-up at Guildford Station because of the number of bus stops there and that the postcodes for the bus stops are not always correct, including the one for the village green, and the bus drivers are not always familiar with the area.
Alison suggested the contact number for the service was not clear enough on the posters and offered to laminate the phone number and put on the posters at the bus stops around the village.
£5,000 grants are available from SCC to help community projects. Applications need to be made in the next couple of weeks.
A new community shop and cafe has opened in Normandy. This was partly funded with money from Your Fund Surrey which gives grants for one-off projects. The official opening will take place at 2pm on Saturday. The cafe is open 9am-3pm from Wednesday to Saturday.
Keith also mentioned the Active Travel Scheme in Burpham to encourage walking and cycling, the re-opened Onslow Park and Ride and that grants are available from SCC for diesel van owners using the A3 to help buy electric vehicles.
GUILDFORD BOROUGH COUNCIL
Honor gave the report from GBC.
An additional financial issue has been disclosed: the overspending of several million pounds from the Housing Revenue Account. Some staff have been suspended, fraud investigations are underway and the CEO has handed in his notice citing ill health.
The updated finance report has recommended that a S114 (S114 is effective bankruptcy) need not be issued this year as potential savings have been found. However, a further £15m needs to be found in the next two years. One of these savings is to withdraw the PC concurrent functions grant aid which means no new grants will be made this year, existing approved schemes will be honoured, parishes will have 2 years to complete any work already agreed and any unspent money will be returned. This will save £90,000 a year.
The new North Street planning application will be heard by the GBC planning committee on Wednesday.
All ward councillors have been invited to a tour of the Blackwell Farm site on 24th October.
WORPLESDON PARISH COUNCIL
The next formal Flood Forum Meeting will take place on Friday 17th November at the Parish Office. All are welcome to attend.
Flytipping at Pinks Hill has been reported to GBC and has since been cleared.
Requests to use Wood Street Village Green for a Carol Singing Event, the WSV Show 2024 and the Jazz Festival 2024 are all to be considered at the next Full Council meeting on 2.11.2023. Terry has requested that the dates for the Summer Show should be ring fenced by the PC for the next 5 years so no-one can book the Green on the 3rd Saturday of July and for a few days before the event.
AOB
The issue of advertising events was raised to enable more people to know about things that are happening in the village eg the development at Hester’s Yard and the proposed expansion at Farnborough Airport. It was suggested that we could have a banner printed that would advertise the WSVA meetings and that could also advertise any significant events happening. Alison will find out the costing. It was also suggested that a dot matrix sign could potentially be purchased and placed near the shop. It was agreed that clear, simple messages should be used on any banners/matrix sign.
Anne reported that a tree has come down along Piggy Path. Surrey Rights of Way Authority needs to be informed.
There will be a Parish Quiz held at Worplesdon Memorial Hall on Saturday, 28th October. Tickets are available from the Parish Office.
The Cricket Club is holding a quiz night with a fish and chip supper on Saturday 11th November in the cricket pavilion.
On Saturday, 9th December Wood Street School will be holding its Christmas Fair from 2pm-4pm. It was suggested that the church choir might like to sing in the school at the end of the fair.
On Saturday, 16th December there will be Carol Singing on the Green starting at 4pm. It is hoped that Mike will come to play the keyboard and members of the church choir have agreed to come. Funds raised will go towards The Children’s Society.
Audrey reported that the school is organising a working party to help tidy up the school grounds. She asked if we could put out an appeal for any materials that might be needed. The cost of making the improvements would be around £200. It was proposed that we pay the £200 from WSVA funds as we haven’t given any money to the school for a long while and the choir has performed at various village events over the past few years. Alison will liaise with Audrey about dates in the WSV year to ensure there are no clashes with the school.
The skip has gone from the SANG so now dog poo bags are being left on the ground. Caroline will print off the sign telling owners to take their dog poo home. Concerns were expressed once again about the safety of the site with cars being parked at the entrance to the SANG and not being able to use the car park which is still closed. It is unclear what part of the entrance actually constitutes the public highway and Keith suggested contacting SCC to find out: highways@surrey.cc
A question was raised about whether the PC had made a final decision regarding how to protect the village green from damage and whether the lay-by on the corner of Frog Grove Lane is finished. Bob will raise these issues at the next PC meeting.
The Church has launched a fund to raise money for improvements to St. Mary’s Church, creating two accessible toilets and an improved kitchenette area. The cost will be £120,000, some of which has already been raised. Keith suggested Alex apply to the funding opportunities offered by SCC. Bob proposed a donation be made from the WSVA funds as we supported the improvements to St. Alban’s toilets several years ago. This will be considered at the next WSVA meeting.
The meeting finished at 9.48pm.
The next meeting will be on Monday, 13th November 2023 and will be held using Zoom. A link will be sent out a couple of days before the meeting.
Report on Double Flush campaign – Bob McShee
I attended on Sunday, 8th of October, the Double Flush presentation at St Mary’s Church. Double Flush is about securing the future of St Mary’s by bringing the church up to modern day requirements. This will be achieved by providing an additional toilet, which will have disabled access and the floor to the kitchen will be raised to give level access from the church to the toilet for wheelchairs. The kitchen will become smaller due to the new toilet. Improvements will be made to the guttering above this single story building to prevent leaks occurring.
The estimated cost of the works will be £130,000 and it is anticipated that the works could take up to 3 months to complete. Funding of the project will be by legacies and grants, plus the church is seeking funding locally and is asking people to pledge their support by making donations.
A similar project was undertaking at St Alban’s church a few years ago, and the modifications there have proved to be very beneficial to the users of the church and hall.
