WEST CLANDON PARISH COUNCIL

Chairman: Terence Patrick, Stoney Royd, Woodstock, West Clandon Surrey GU4 7UJ

Tel. 01483 222 534

Clerk: John Stone, Hunters End, Lime Grove, West Clandon, Surrey GU4 7UT

Tel: 01483 385187 : westclandon@talktalk.net

West Clandon Parish Council - Chairman's Report 2018 - 19

For yet another year, the Parish Council's principal focus has been on the forthcoming Guildford Local Plan and safety of motorists, pedestrians and residents on our Village Street - the A247. In consultation with Surrey Highways, we applied to have a second Vehicle Activation Sign (VAS) installed near the entrance to Clandon Park on the approach to the narrow section of road outside West Clandon Primary School and 'The Bulls Head'. A Police speed survey conducted shortly after the VAS's installation revealed that the average speeds through that narrow section of road had reduced from 39mph to 33mph.

At the northern end of the village, we applied for an extension of the 30 mph speed limit between Lime Grove and Green Lane. Whilst the Guildford Local Committee voted the necessary funds for the extension of the speed limit, Surrey Police turned our application down. Surrey Highways then suggested that the 'voted funds' could be used for other traffic calming measures on the A247. As a result, Surrey Highways have installed 'gateways' and new signage on the approach to the Church and at the entrance to Lime Grove at the northern end of the village. Additional directional signage has also been installed for northbound traffic approaching the A3 slip road at Burnt Common as part of the scheme.

The Parish Council has continued to actively monitor and review the Guildford Borough Council's Local Plan, which has developed over the past year with members of the Parish Council attending the Inspector's hearings when relevant. We have also been seriously concerned about the cumulative impact of the proposed housing developments at Gosden Hill, Wisley and Garlick's Arch and the serious increase in traffic levels that these developments will inevitably bring to the A247.

Representatives from the Parish Council met with Borough Councillors Paul Spooner and Matt Furniss to state our concerns about the potential impact of the Local Plan on West Clandon. As a result, the Local Plan now includes £1 million worth of mitigation measures - as yet undefined - for the A247. However, it is difficult to see how even £1 million will enable the road through our village to cope with the new expected volume of traffic.

West Clandon Parish Council - Chairman's Report - 2018 - 19 - Page 2

Apart from the large amount of housing, the Plan also includes an all-ways junction with the A3 at Burnt Common, which will radically alter the traffic flows around the North East side of Guildford. The expansion of Burnt Common as an industrial estate will inevitably increase lorry movements in the area.

Last month, the Parish Council had its application for West Clandon to be designated as a 'Neighbourhood Planning Area' accepted by the Guildford Borough Council and a new group comprising of Parish Councillors and local residents are currently busy working on the preparation of a draft Neighbourhood Plan for the village.

This Neighbourhood Plan should help West Clandon have a greater say over planning decisions on developments in the Parish and help us define the relationship we want between the village and likely developments at Gosden Hill, most of which will fall within the Parish of West Clandon. In addition, this should ensure that the Parish receives a greater proportion of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), which developers normally pay to fund local amenities.

Although the Parish Council has no control over specific planning applications in the village, we can comment on them in the same way as the public. We do raise concerns on applications brought to us by local residents and these are forwarded to the Borough Council, which is our local planning authority. During the year, we have put forward objections to applications for additional housing in the Parish, where we thought the sites were too cramped or would harm the openness of the Green Belt.

With grants from IGAS Energy and the Guildford Borough Council, we have been able to extend the Village Hall Car Park to allow vehicles sufficient space to manoeuvre when entering or leaving the car park, whilst ensuring that parked cars are not blocked-in by other car park users.

Last December, Guildford Borough Council approved the recommendations of a Community Governance Review, which permitted the number of members on West Clandon Parish Council to be increased from six to eight with effect from May 2019.

During the past 2 years, the Parish Council has actively supported the restoration of the Clandon Dragon - a chalk carving, which is sited on the embankment of the A246 and based on a local legend. The work was carried out by a group of local volunteers under the leadership of local cycling tour guide Dominic Crolla. The restored Chalk Dragon was 'unleashed' in snowy conditions by the Mayor of Guildford (Cllr.Mike Parsons) on Saturday, February 2nd. The Parish Council has supported this project throughout and has approved an annual budget for the maintenance of the chalk carving in the future.

West Clandon Parish Council - Chairman's Report - 2018 - 19 - Page 3

In September, we co-opted a new member to the Council - Paul Edwards - who now has responsibility for the network of village footpaths. Working with the Surrey County Council, he has conducted a comprehensive review of all our public footpaths, replacing 13 signposts on 9 of the rights of way in the Parish. We are hoping that more of these rights of way improvements will be carried out by the SCC in the new financial year if funding permits.

April 8th 2019 Terence Patrick

(Chairman)

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