Tag Archives: Surrey County Council

Reminder: Surrey ‘Be a Councillor’ event for Independents Saturday 16th January from 10am to 12pm

An event for anyone who is considering standing as an independent candidate in the local elections in May 2021, election agents or anyone who has expressed an interest in being a councillor.

This virtual event will provide current and prospective independent Surrey County Council (SCC), Surrey Borough and District candidates and election agents with:

  • Insights to develop your election plan
  • Information to develop themes and key messages for your manifesto
  • Guidance on how to use social media to engage the electorate
  • Provide insight and tips on running your campaign

Due to the sensitivity of the event, individuals will need to sign up and they can do so via the following link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/133243166899 The virtual conference details will be sent to signed up attendees closer to the date of the event.

We have an excellent group of speakers including:

  • SCC Independent Cllrs Nick Darby, Eber Kington, Nikki Barton and John Beckett
  • Cllr Julia German, Leader Cornwall County Council and Vice Chair of the LGAs Culture, Tourism & Sport Board
  • Cllr Neil Prior, Cabinet Member for Transformation at Pembrokeshire County Council and Deputy Chair on the LGA Improvement & Innovation Board 
  • Cllr Paul Woodhead, Cannock Chase District Council and Leader of Chase Community Independents Group
  • Cllr Jason Zadronzy, Leader of Ashfield District Council and Independent representative on the District Council Network (DCN)

Haslemere partnership wins national award for station redevelopment scheme

Press release

From the Community Rail Network | news@communityrail.co.uk

Haslemere partnership wins national award for station redevelopment scheme

A group of Haslemere community organisations and local authorities have won a coveted national ‘community rail’ award for their work transforming the town’s popular railway station and information hub.   

The Arts Society, Haslemere, Haslemere Museum, and Haslemere Town Council, supported by Surrey County Council, South Western Railway, and other regional partners, fought off strong competition to take home the Most Enhanced Station award, sponsored by Greater Anglia, at the 16th national Community Rail Awards, on 9 December.

They were recognised for the Haslemere Community Station project, which saw partners come together to develop the station as a gateway to the town and its surroundings, promote rail as sustainable and healthy travel, and boost the area’s social and economic vitality.

The scheme centred around a major revamp of the Haslemere Information Hub, which was transformed from a modest facility only open in the summer to a bigger community space, run by a team of 35 volunteers, now open year-round to make the station a focal point for visitors and the community.  

Project chair Nikki Barton thanked the “wonderful” team of volunteers and station staff at Haslemere for the “huge added value” they had brought to the project.

She said: “We are all totally delighted, it is an exceptional partnership that has come together here. The project started from a very small germ of an idea, but community rail has so much potential to deliver good and positive work, and recognition of that has drawn in partners who had never worked together before.

“For the first time, we got the Surrey Hills AONB, South Downs National Park, and the National Trust all sitting around the table with local community groups to look at how we could use sustainable rail travel to promote Haslemere as a gateway to this beautiful surrounding countryside. Also, the new Surrey Hills to South Downs Community Rail Partnership evolved from this project, which is really exciting.”

The Community Rail Awards, organised by Community Rail Network, recognise the important, often unsung, work by community rail partnerships, station friends, and other community rail groups across Britain. They shine a light on vital projects across this growing grassroots movement, highlighting community rail’s contribution to sustainable mobility, social inclusion, community development, and wellbeing.

The awards were delivered as an online gala evening for the first time with 550 guests, including community rail volunteers, officers, rail industry leaders and government representatives.

Jools Townsend, chief executive of Community Rail Network, said: “Our congratulations go to all involved in the Haslemere Community Station project, which has cemented the station’s place at the heart of the community, and made a major contribution to local sustainable development.  

“The Community Rail Awards recognise the achievements and passion of community rail volunteers, groups and partnerships across Britain. Their tireless efforts connect local people with their railways and stations, bring communities together, and enable more people to access sustainable travel. This contributes to greener, healthier, happier communities, and promotes wider access to opportunity. This couldn’t be more important right now.

“We will be holding up this brilliant example from Haslemere nationally, to inspire more communities to engage positively and draw on their railways and stations.”

Details of all 2020 award winners are on the Community Rail Network website here.

For information on the Haslemere Information Hub, go to www.haslemereinfohub.co.uk.

ENDS

Notes for editors

For more information, pictures, or further interview opportunities, please contact Nikki Barton at nikki.barton@surreycc.gov.uk.

Community Rail Network – Community rail is a unique and growing national movement comprising more than 70 community rail partnerships and 1,000 volunteer groups across Britain that help communities get the most from their railways. Community rail is about engaging local people at grassroots level to promote social inclusion, sustainable and healthy travel, wellbeing, economic development, and tourism. It involves working with train operators, local authorities, and other partners to bring improvements and help our railways and stations to serve local needs.

Established in 2000, Community Rail Network provides support and advice to the community rail movement. We share best practice and connect community rail partnerships and groups together, while working with government at different levels, the transport industry, and the voluntary sector to champion community rail and share its insights on sustainable transport development.

Community rail is evidenced to contribute high levels of social, environmental, and economic value to local areas. A 2019 study estimated volunteer activity alone was worth £33.2m every year.

See communityrail.org.uk, follow and tweet us at twitter.com/CommunityRail, find us on Facebook at facebook.com/CommunityRail/, or sign up to Community Rail News at www.communityrail.org.uk/news/community-rail-news-sign-up/.


Support available for Surrey families struggling this winter

Surrey County Council will ensure help is available for families struggling this winter, through the Government’s £170m COVID Winter Support Grant.

Surrey is set to receive just over £2m funding as part of the grant announced earlier in November.

It is designed to directly help families and individuals who have been hardest-hit by the pandemic, with the majority set aside to ensure children do not go hungry during the winter months.

The council will receive the first £1m of the funding in early December, with further allocations next year.

Surrey County Council will administer the funds, which must be spent by March 31 2021.

The council, through schools, will ensure support to all 17,000 children in the county eligible for Free School Meals. This will be done through food vouchers sent to the children’s families throughout the Christmas holidays.

There will also be a winter grant to care leavers, and direct support to families of younger children eligible for the pupil premium.

The remainder of the funding – around £200,000 from the first tranche of money – will be given to the Surrey Crisis Fund and made available to residents who are struggling through the winter.

This money will provide support towards food costs and utility bills, but also emergencies such as replacing broken white goods, to guide people away from long lasting debt.

Tim Oliver, Leader of Surrey County Council, said: “Throughout these difficult and uncertain times it has been our absolute priority to protect our most vulnerable residents.

“I’m delighted that funding from the Winter Support Grant will help us to continue to do that. It is vital that support and supplies are always available to those who need them most.

“The coming winter months will prove challenging for us all, but our message to those who are struggling is clear – we are here to help.”

The funding from the Winter Support Grant is only available for a limited time. More information can be accessed on the government website: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-winter-package-to-provide-further-support-for-children-and-families

For further information on the Surrey Crisis Fund, please visit: https://www.surreycc.gov.uk/people-and-community/surrey-crisis-fund

Longdene Road, Haslemere – Surface Dressing pre-patching (Road Closed)

Dear Cllr Barton

Please find attached the letter for the pre-patching work on Longdene Road, Haslemere. Letters have been delivered today.

Roadworks during the coronavirus restrictions

The government and Department for Transport have asked the Highway Sector Council to make every effort to deliver essential highways projects on all local authority highway networks, whilst abiding by the COVID-19 safe working practices. We are therefore carrying out these works in line with central government and COVID-19 safe working practises and in accordance with the CLC Site Operating Procedures, endorsed by Public Health England.

Our sub-contractor will have appropriate procedures in place to ensure their staff can comply with government advice. We would ask that you please respect these workers as they deliver these highways services.

We will continue to keep Surrey moving and all key routes will remain open and safe for key workers. For more information visit www.ourroads.today.

If anything changes with the details of these works, we will let you know. You can also find up to date details of the works on www.surreycc.gov.uk/roadworks. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us on works.communication@surreycc.gov.uk.

Kind regards

Works Communication Officer

Works Communication Team

Surrey Highways

Surrey County Council Leader & CEO Virtual Resident Roadshows – 1st and 17th Dec

Dear All,

This has been an exceptional year, and in many ways we have been closer and more present in different ways with many of the residents we serve, despite the challenges of getting out and about in our communities. As the year draws to a close, the Chief Executive and I will be running two virtual ‘roadshow’ sessions, inviting residents to submit questions in advance and take part a Q&A. I am grateful that Rob Moran has agreed to chair the panel.

I’m really looking forward to the opportunity to engage with our communities in this way, in what I’m sure will be a lively discussion. If there are any residents that you are in contact, I would be most grateful if you could pass on this link to them, to give them the opportunity to contribute to the session. We will be running two sessions, one at 1900 on 1st December and one at 1800 on 17th December.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

Kind regards, Tim Oliver
Leader of Surrey County Council

Locally Supported Contact Tracing Starts in Surrey

Press Release issued 26th November 2020

From today, Surrey County Council will be supporting the national Test and Trace programme by contacting people in the county who have tested positive for COVID-19, if the national programme has been unable to reach them.

Contact tracing is one of the most effective ways of slowing the spread of COVID-19. People who have tested positive are asked who they have been in close contact with while they’ve been infectious. Those close contacts are then alerted by the national Test and Trace programme and given the appropriate advice, so that they can self-isolate and avoid infecting those around them and in the wider community.

Surrey residents who test positive will be referred to the local contact tracing team if the national Test and Trace service is unable to contact them within 24 hours. Relevant data sharing agreements are in place between Public Health England and Surrey County Council to support the programme.  

The overall target set by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) is for 80% of positive cases to be reached by contact tracers. Surrey already has a strong contact tracing completion rate of around 80% through the national Test and Trace service. The local service will ensure that even more people who have tested positive for COVID-19 are successfully contacted.

The local contact tracing team are part of Surrey County Council’s customer services team, and the team have all completed the national Test and Trace training programme. The team will be calling from a local number 01483 404 939 and once they make contact, will complete a contact tracing questionnaire and offer any relevant welfare support or financial assistance advice for the resident’s period of self-isolation. 

For those who have been told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace and living on a low income, help is available from the government via the self-isolation payment scheme. Residents may be entitled to a payment of £500. The payment will be made by their local authority under the Test and Trace Support Payment scheme. More information on how to apply for the payment can be found on the Surrey County Council website.

Ruth Hutchinson, Surrey County Council’s Director of Public Health said,

“Contact tracing is a crucial part of our efforts to slow the spread of the virus. We’re fortunate that in Surrey the national Test and Trace service is already reaching around 80% of our residents who test positive. This is an opportunity for us to build on that national effort and use our local knowledge to reach even more people.”

“Our contact tracers have undergone the national Test and Trace training programme and are familiar with Surrey’s local areas and communities. Local contact tracing will ensure we reach as many residents as possible who have tested positive for COVID-19 – making sure they self-isolate and have the support, help and advice they need to keep themselves and everyone around them safe.”

Surrey County Council will be joining local authorities across the UK in local contact tracing, using knowledge of the county and localised data from Public Health Teams, and working in partnership with our district and borough councils to deliver the service.

ENDS

Road closure on Midhurst Road, Haslemere – Pre-patching for Surface Dressing

Please find attached the leaflet for the pre-patching works in preparation for surface dressing on Midhurst Road, Haslemere. The leaflets will be delivered to local residents and businesses tomorrow.


Road closure

30 November

9:30am – 3:30pm

For 3 days

Please see the attached leaflet for the extents of our work.

Roadworks during the coronavirus restrictions

The government and Department for Transport have asked the Highway Sector Council to make every effort to deliver essential highways projects on all local authority highway networks, whilst abiding by the COVID-19 safe working practices. We are therefore carrying out these works in line with central government and COVID-19 safe working practises and in accordance with the CLC Site Operating Procedures, endorsed by Public Health England.

Our sub-contractor will have appropriate procedures in place to ensure their staff can comply with government advice. We would ask that you please respect these workers as they deliver these highways services.

We will continue to keep Surrey moving and all key routes will remain open and safe for key workers. For more information visit www.ourroads.today.

Sometimes our plans have to change, often due to bad weather or problems on other works in the same programme which can have a knock on effect. If anything changes with the details of these works, we will let you know.

You and your residents can also find up to date details and receive updates of the works on https://one.network/

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us on 0300 200 1003 or email works.communication@surreycc.gov.uk.

Kind regards

Works Communication Officer

Works Communication Team

Surrey Highways

Email: hannah.hayes@surreycc.gov.uk

For more information about what we do, please visit our Surrey Highways website.

We always try to provide excellent customer service; please let us know how we are doing.

You can follow us on Twitter @HighwaysSurrey and Instagram @Surrey_Highways.

Response: 20’s Plenty for Surrey

Sharing a response regarding 20 is Plenty from SCC’s Cabinet Member for Transport to 20 is Plenty’s South East Region Coordinator.

From: Matthew Furniss, SCC Cabinet Member For Transport
Sent: 19 November 2020 11:50
To: All Councillors
Subject: 20’s Plenty for Surrey

Dear Councillor,

I believe the following enquiry has been circulated to a number of Members. Please see response below if you have received this enquiry through.

Many thanks for your email with information on the support for 20 mph speed limits. I am very much sympathetic to lower speeds in residential areas and busy shopping streets – lower speeds reduce the risk of collisions, can support more walking and cycling, and can make places more pleasant to live.

We need to ensure that any measures to encourage lower speeds are effective. National research has shown that simply reducing speed limits using signs alone will not be successful in reducing speeds towards 20 mph if the existing mean average speeds are closer to 30 mph. Therefore our policy requires that additional supporting measures will be required for a scheme to be successful if the existing speeds are above 24 mph. What type of measures and how extensive the measures will need to be will depend upon each individual stretch of road and how fast the existing mean average speeds are. For example, if the existing mean average speeds are closer to 30 mph then traffic calming (e.g. raised road tables) are likely to be required. However if the mean average speeds are just above 24 mph then the nature and extent of any supporting measures would not be as great. Therefore the process we use in Surrey follows best practice and ensures that we measure the existing speeds beforehand before deciding upon the viability of any new speed limit (including 20 mph), along with the type and extent of any supporting measures that may be required (if any). Our policy can be viewed via this link.

Within Surrey, decisions on speed limits are delegated to local committees of elected members within each District or Borough, along with a budget allocation for highway improvements. It is for local members to decide upon the priorities for highway improvements in their areas, and whether they would like to pursue 20 mph speed limit schemes as opposed to other highway improvements on the roads that they are responsible for.

Kind regards

Matt Furniss

Cabinet Member for Transport

BELOW IS THE E-MAIL SUBMITTED by 20 is Plenty’s South East Region Coordinator.

Dear County Councillor

  • 7 out of 10 people in the UK agree with 20mph in residential streets: UK Government National Travel Attitudes Study
  • Over 20 million people live in Local Authorities where 20mph is the norm for built up areas.
  • Speed limiting technology, standard on all new cars from 2022, will revolutionise speed limit compliance.
  • The UK government has signed the Stockholm Declaration recognising 20mph as the maximum speed limit where people and motor vehicles mix: http://www.20splenty.org/un_says_20splenty.

Yet, Surrey County Council’s speed limit policy assumes that 20mph is an exception and includes an 8-step process which makes it all but impossible for your local communities to achieve what they want.

If you want 20mph to become the norm on residential roads in the county, 20’s Plenty for Surrey would like to work with you to achieve it in a cost effective manner.

If you continue to endorse 30mph, we’d like to understand your reasons and to answer your questions. Our FAQs cover the 20 most common myths http://www.20splenty.org/20_questions_about_20_s_plenty.

20’s Plenty for Surrey looks forward to hearing from you.

Best Wishes

Adrian Berendt

South East Region Coordinator

Facebook  http://tinyurl.com/20splentyonfacebook

Campaigner Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/177304489851446/