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Meet your Independent Councillors 

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Your County and District 

Councillors HERE

Mole Valley Council at risk of going

bankrupt under the LibDems 

14th November 2024

​Two years ago LibDem election leaflets said they were soundly running Mole Valley Council. Now - as BBC News reports (see link below) as well as the link to the Council Officers report - an experienced, impartial senior Council Finance Officer has confirmed our worst fears. 

 

"They are not achieving the savings they need to make and LibDems must stop pouring officer time and residents money into their pet projects." Says Cllr Chris Hunt, Leader of Ashtead Independents.

 

This year they said they needed to make £1.2 million of savings to balance the budget but as the Head of Council Finance says In her report, they have only found about a third so far. 

 

Chris continues : "Shockingly the LibDems have failed to provide a single new Affordable Home this year, although demand has risen as confirmed by a Council officer at the Scrutiny Committee on 12th November.  But Council buildings in Central Dorking are still having huge sums of money spent on them, including one that's been effectively empty for years. "

 

Chris says "This report stating the Council is at risk of bankruptcy should be a wake up call for the LibDems. If they don't start to get a grip on the problem then residents in Ashtead and the whole of Mole Valley will suffer as services would have to be axed left, right and centre." 

Your can view the BBC report regarding Mole Valley's cash crisis here:- https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwy5nj5n927o

A pdf version of the report to Mole Valley district Council's Cabinet regarding the financial crisis can be found by clicking here

Ashtead Residents’ Association (ARA)
General Meeting

19.00 Thursday 14th November 2024, Ashtead Peace Memorial Hall

All Members of the Association are encouraged to attend the Autumn General Meeting of the Association.

The main business is to appoint Officers (4) and Committee Members (up to 12) who will serve at least until the Annual General Meeting next April so that we have a functional Residents’ Association once more.

Vacancies on the ARA Committee have arisen due to a series of resignations this year. The previous Committee had tried to allow members of national political parties to hold office in the Association - a break from the long-held policy of strict political independence - but the AGM held on 17 April did not approve this change.

This is an opportunity for you to help ensure that the ARA is as representative as possible of those who live here.

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Wheels of Surrey move slowly

 

3rd October 2024

 

On September 23rd 2024 Officers from SCC held a session with Councillors on the Mole Valley Local Cycling & Walking Infrastructue Plan  ( LCWIP).

 

Stage two of the process is now underway, this will involve developing feasibility designs and carrying out public consultation in the identified Phase 1 cycle corridors and walking corridors in the district.

 

The meeting was outlining the key stages in stage 2 of the process post publication and adoption over the coming months.

 

The Phase 1 cycle corridors are :

 

  • Leatherhead to Great Bookham/Effingham via Lower road

  • Leatherhead to Great Bookham/Effingham via Guidlford Rd

  • Leatherhead to Epsom( Northern Corridor)

  • Leatherhead to Kingston Boundary

 

Phase 1 walking corridors & zones are:

  • Dorking

  • Leatherhead

  • North Leatherhead

 

The scheme must adhere to new guidelines which require pedestrians to be separated from cycle users where feasible. Councillors questioned how feasible this could be considering the narrowness of sections of the current roads ( i.e. Barnett Wood Lane) , we were informed this would form part of the stage 2 process now underway. The scheme will have to operate to new guidelines devised by Active Travel England (ATE) formed in 2022 .

 

ATE Manage the national active travel budget, awarding funding for projects which meet the new national guidance

  • Inspect finished schemes and ask for funds to be returned for any which have not been completed as promised

  • Inspect and publish reports on Highway Authorities for their performance on active travel and identify particularly dangerous failings in their highways for cyclists and pedestrians  

  • A RAG( Red, Orange , Green) rating system will be used to evaluate scheme feasibility in the design process.

  • Mitigation measures will be considered. Schemes with critical issues are very unlikely to be approved by ATE and receive funding without reasonable and compelling justification.

  • Walking corridors appear to be focused on following current main road routes not anticipated to be prettier alternative routes.

 

 Here is the timetable .

 

Task1: Review of initial proposals - August 2024 Traffic surveys - November 2024

 

Task 2: Optioneering & initial design investigation - December 2024

 

Task 3: Design development - March 2025

  • Develop ‘feasibility plus’ designs for each corridor / CWZ

  •  Prepare draft sketches ▪ Supported by review of potential issues and mitigation measures related to (noted in annotations, technical notes):

  • Drainage

  • Structures

  • Geotechnical

  •  Lighting

  • Junction modelling

  • Environment (including ecology, heritage)

  • Further liaison with relevant stakeholders (e.g., ATE)

 

Task 4: Final feasibility design outputs - May 2025

  • Prepare final feasibility design drawings:

  •  Annotated general arrangement

  • Standard signage and road markings

  • Indicative location of primary traffic signals and lighting

  • Service location (utilities) based on C2 searches

  • Swept path analysis (if required)

  • Cycle swept path analysis (if required)

  • Drawings accompanied by reporting, including:

  • Design strategy technical note

  • Designer’s risk assessment

  • Compliance / non-compliance technical note

  • ATE Route Check assessments

  • High-level cost estimates

 

It appears that the main Public consultation timetable will occur in Spring 2025.

 

Your Ashtead Independent SCC Councillor Chris Townsend questioned the process with regard to the scheme delivery should sections of the route / communities not support the proposed changes necessary  in their area to deliver the route , the response received was we will have to wait and see how the design process evolves and this would form part of the consultation feedback – whether it could stop a scheme being delivered was unclear .

 

The link to the project :  https://www.molevalley.gov.uk/planning-building/the-local-cycling-and-walking-infrastructure-plan/

 

Ashtead Independents are committed to listening to local views and representing our area. 

 

We have already heard from a number of residents.  What do you think of these plans in principle?"

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MORE NEWS HERE.....

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Representing the two Ashtead Wards on Mole Valley District Council and Surrey County Council ... ... and with good reason!

Ashtead Independents

Ashtead Independents are registered with the Electoral Commission to enable them to be identified and use a logo. Our Constitution and Rules make clear each vote independently with no whip.

We, the majority of Ashtead residents and the Ashtead Residents’ Association, consider that National party politics has no place in local councils.  It creates unnecessary antagonisms and divisiveness, and tends to prevent a proportion of members of the Council from being able to exercise full influence on behalf of their constituents.

In this site we introduce ourselves and try to keep you up to date with current issues affecting Ashtead.  Please use it to contact us to ask questions, to ask for help, to offer assistance in our campaigns, or especially if you would like to join us!

FOLLOW US ON
@ashteadindependents 

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