Archive for category: News

UPDATE FROM YOUR TANDRIDGE DISTRICT COUNCILLOR

Will there be change to the proposed Local Government Reorganisation? With the latest Government reshuffle, some of the politicians defining housing policy and devolution are no longer in role.

Angela Rayner, MP was the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Steve Reed, MP succeeded her on the 5th of September. MHCLG responsibilities are now being divided somewhat differently. Matthew Pennycook retains the role as Minister for Housing and Planning, and so there is no reason to contemplate, at this point, that housing and planning policy will in any way change. But Jim McMahon, MP was the minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution, whereas Alison McGovern, MP is now the Minister for Local Government and Homelessness, and at the time of writing this, we await news as to who will oversee Communities and critically to us, in the face of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), who will be the Minister for English Devolution.

Until roles and policy are clarified, it remains to be seen if the promised LGR and Devolution timelines will be adhered to. If they are, we expect a decision on the number of new Unitary Authorities in Surrey by late autumn, while a host of things happen behind the scenes preparing government and legislation for shadow Unitary Authority elections in May 2026, Go Live of April 2027 and Mayoral elections to a strategic authority over Surrey that holds new devolved powers in May 2027. Over the next days and weeks, we can expect the situation to be clarified.

Meanwhile, at the time of writing, the English Devolution bill, discussed in these pages in the previous magazine, was on its second reading.

Meanwhile, business as usual at Tandridge rolls on. While we have not had any unauthorised homes and caravans set up in Woldingham, there have been many of them around the District. Tandridge District Council has been taking planning enforcement and legal action against unauthorised sites to ensure planning regulations are upheld and the environment and the Green Belt protected. These are complex and often length processes. And as part of the new local plan, policies have already been approved and launched to provide appropriate sites for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation. These policies are support sites which meet the needs of these communities, while rejecting those that do not.

The Tandridge Business Awards ceremony takes place at the Lingfield Park Resort on the 15th of October at which the winners will be unveiled! We have a wide range of superb business and services across the District. You can see the finalists, spanning 10 categories, on the Tandridge website at Tandridge Business Awards 2025 – Finalists 2025.

Views are still being sought on the latest Caterham, Chaldon and Whyteleafe Neighbourhood Plan, which consultation is running until 11:59pm on Friday October 10th. The Community Governance Review consultation, considering whether Caterham on the Hill and Caterham Valley Parish Councils should merge to form one town Council is also a work in progress. The proposals to take the review forward go to the District Council Strategy and Resources Committee on the 25th of September so by the time you read this, it will be known and on the Tandridge District Council website as to whether the consultation will cease or will continue to the next phase of input. All neighbouring areas are welcome to comment on either consultation.

As a reminder, in addition to my duties as your District Councillor, I sit on the Tandridge District Council Planning Committee, and I am Chairman of the Strategy and Resources Committee and of the Investment Sub-Committee, and Chairman of the Community Governance Review panel overseeing the Caterham Hill and Caterham Valley Parish Councils Governance review. If you have questions or would like detail on any topic, please feel free to contact me at cllr.deborah.sherry@tandridge.gov.uk or 07779134797.

Deborah Sherry,
Tandridge District Councillor for Woldingham Ward

Local Government Reorganisation

I have shared a lot of detail in these pages on the impending local government reorganisation. If you would like an update or more detail, please reach out. The Districts and Boroughs (and Surrey County Council) are currently awaiting the outreach from the Government (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government) with their consultation, expected this summer. It will not be a full public consultation (as previously reported). MHCLG circulated a list to the County and the District and Borough Leaders of the proposed statutory and other important consultees. All town and parish councils were left off the list. Our District Council Leader, Cllr Catherine Sayer, picked this up immediately and added all parish councils in Tandridge to the list (as well as residents associations). The District and Borough Councils across the County will also run a consultation to incorporate feedback from the public. And once the consultation goes live on the website, we will communicate it. Although the public are not being expressly consulted, you can still add comments to the website. And all voices need to be heard.

As a reminder, in addition to my duties as your District Councillor, I sit on the Tandridge Planning Committee, the Strategy and Resources Committee and the Investment Sub-Committee, the latter two of which I am presently the Chairman.

If you have questions or would like detail on any topic, please feel free to contact me at cllr.deborah.sherry@tandridge.gov.uk or 07779134797.

Deborah Sherry, Tandridge District Councillor for Woldingham Ward

Letter from the Chairman

Dear Villagers
It was a great pleasure to see some 500 of you out and about at the Parish Council’s Summer Starts Here festival in June, run in conjunction with Woodlea School. I am always struck by the sheer volume of groups and volunteers that deliver a vast array of activities in the village. Your Parish Councillors worked hard on the event, and special thanks goes to Vice Chair Carole North as the grand organiser from the Parish Council.

Planning.

Planning commentary continues at the usual pace and we are chasing down a couple of enforcements as well, which is always challenging. We still await news from Surrey County Council later this summer regarding the proposed large development at the Chalkpit Quarry.

Speedwatch.

Speedwatch leader Jeremy Wormington reports: The Speedwatch team continued to monitor traffic during May and found that the trend of speeding traffic was still just below 10%, although vehicles exceeding 40mph rose significantly to be more than 50% of all offenders. We appreciate the support from many residents but we require more volunteers, so please support us.” If you think you might have some time to volunteer, please let our Clerk Karen Newman know at clerk@woldinghamparishcouncil.gov.uk.

Local Government Reorganisation.

The Government decision is expected in the autumn. We just await outreach from the District or others to contribute to any consultations. There is still no word on the expected white paper on communities (including parish councils).
New website and email addresses. Please remember our website address is now woldinghamparishcouncil.gov.uk (the old website will forward you). And our email addresses have also changed to .gov.uk addresses and our old emails are forwarding. All new addresses are on the website.

Woldingham Parish Assets.

We are making slow but steady progress towards acquiring the assets in Woldingham owned by Tandridge District Council (The Green, the land at The Crescent, Saxonwold and the ‘overflow’ car park). We have voted to acquire the lands if they can feasibly be transferred, and the car park is now under consideration.

Monthly Council meetings.

WPC meetings are at 730pm the last Wednesday of the month (except August and December), open to all and the agendas are published at least 5 days in advance (website and noticeboard). The public are welcome to speak at the start of the meeting. There are occasional ad hoc meetings, also published in advance. If you would like to speak on any topic, please advise our clerk Karen at clerk@woldinghamparishcouncil.gov.uk

Wishing you all the best,
Chairman Deborah Sherry

New Bunds on the Green

In March 2021, large concrete blocks were placed around the village Green to prevent unwanted incursions onto the land. While they weren’t very pretty or popular, they were a quick and effective solution to an immediate concern. The Parish Council has been working since then on ensuring we have a more aesthetic but equally effective alternative, and we are delighted that the new earth banks are finally complete. The banks are high enough to prevent vehicular access, and they have been covered with special Meadowmat turf, which is sown with a combination of annual and perennial wildflowers. The turf and flowers will take a little while to establish but, with regular watering (huge thanks to Green resident Adrian Sands for taking on this job) we should be treated to an annual display of native wildflowers.

Not only will this help boost biodiversity and support our pollinators, but it will also be good news for the local bat and bird populations – more flying insects means more food for them. The bare indents left by the concrete blocks have been filled and re-seeded (thanks again to Adrian), and the metal access gate will be painted a more discrete dark green in due course. We hope that these new meadowbanks, while serving a practical purpose, will help enhance the Green and serve as a colourful feature for years to come.

Councillor Cat Neave

Carbon Footprints

As the Parish Council begins reviewing what we can do to be more sustainable and environmentally friendly, and as we begin to ask local businesses the same, it would be wonderful if each individual reading this could get involved in making changes too.

A great place to start is by calculating your carbon footprint – a tangible way of working out your individual impact on our environment. There are many of these free calculators online (just Google “carbon calculator”), often offered as the first step of using a carbon offsetting programme, but you can still complete the form and get your results without giving your personal details or committing to anything. If you aren’t online, you could always ask a friend or relative to go through the questionnaire with you instead.

Once you know your approximate carbon footprint, i.e. how much CO2 you generate per year, usually expressed in tonnes (!), and which aspects of your lifestyle are most polluting, you could start thinking about what changes you’re prepared to make.

Unfortunately, this probably won’t be an especially comfortable process. We all generate a huge amount of carbon per year and reducing this requires a proactive approach. It won’t always be easy or convenient, and may involve sacrificing some creature comforts, buying different products, and changing how we think about the resources we consume. It would, of course, be much easier to avoid thinking about it altogether. But we all have a responsibility to care for this planet we share, and that involves facing our own undeniable roles in the climate crisis head on.

So why not get online, calculate your carbon footprint, and make changes you – and generations after you – can be proud of.

Councillor Cat Neave

Last month we commemorated the 80th anniversary of VE Day, marking the end of conflict in Europe in 1945 after six gruelling years. We remember how Winston Churchill told jubilant crowds that “VE Day marks what is not a victory of a party or of any class, but a victory of the great British nation as a whole”. A huge well done to all the volunteers who helped to organise the many fantastic events across East Surrey – from our parish councils to the Royal British Legion, to community groups and everyone in between.

Elsewhere, Marden Lodge School in Caterham unveiled a wonderful new library and sensory room. Creating a space where children can foster a love of reading has been a real passion project for the dedicated teachers. Over 1,000 books now line the shelves, from Harry Potter to The Very Hungry Caterpillar – all chosen by the pupils and generously donated by the Shanly Foundation and The Siobhan Dowd Trust. The Caterham, Oxted and Godstone Lions Club and Surrey County Council also funded the nature-themed decor. Alongside the library, the sensory room – nicknamed The Cosy Cave by the pupils and proposed by the school’s Special Educational Needs teachers – offers a calm, relaxing space for children who feel overstimulated during the school day. This was a huge project, so well done to all the staff at Marden Lodge for bringing their vision to life.

In support of East Surrey’s hardworking farmers, Alexia Lescure’s first farmers’ market was held in the glorious sunshine a few weeks ago to great acclaim. Local farmers will be selling cheese, flowers and crafts at Lingfield Primary School from 9am-1pm on Sunday, 8th June – so please pop by if you get the chance.

In December, Claire visited the Caterham Delivery Office after residents raised concerns about poor mail delivery, especially vital NHS letters. We returned last month and spoke with the Regional Operations Lead, who assured us that changes in management and a streamlined sorting process are improving delivery times. It is also positive that, following a public consultation, Ofcom – Royal Mail’s regulator – confirmed a new NHS-specific barcode will be introduced to help make sure NHS letters arrive on time. As this was a key concern raised by Caterham residents, so it is encouraging to see action being taken.

In Claire’s rail survey many residents called for the return of the direct Caterham to London Victoria service. This has been a key request in our discussions with Govia Thameslink Railway. A key factor is the planned onward transfer from GTR’s upgraded Great Northern fleet to Southern and Southeastern. Once additional carriages become available – expected from May 2026 – one option is to bring back direct peak time services between Caterham and Victoria. While GTR have highlighted other potential uses for the extra carriages, we have made it clear, thanks to feedback from the rail survey, that East Surrey residents see this service as a priority. GTR has agreed to include the rail survey findings in discussions with the Department for Transport. We will keep up the pressure to bring this important service back.

Finally, a huge well done to everyone involved in AFC Whyteleafe’s journey to Wembley. They put up a great fight, and though Whitstable Town edged a goal in extra time to win 2-1, it was an incredible achievement to make it all the way to the final.

 

As always, we are here to help while Claire is on maternity leave. If you are having trouble with anything and you could use our help, please don’t hesitate to get in touch on Claire.coutinho.mp@parliament.uk.

-Team Claire