We are delighted that WERS objections to this scheme on behalf of local residents has been completely vindicated with the Inspector’s decision to dismiss the appeal. The appeal decision can be found here.
A further application has now been received for a 9 unit scheme which now incorporates the adjacent builders yard. WERS will be responding to this shortly. You can submit comments/objections until Thursday 10 April 2025.
Please take a few minutes to have your say on how our local services like housing, education, roads, and social care will be run in the future, following the local government reorganisation.
The consultation is being run by the district and borough councils in Surrey and its open until 20 April 2025. This really matters so please take a couple of minutes to complete the questionnaire and give your opinion on the proposed future decision making structure.
“W(E)RS was represented at a meeting of the Epsom & Walton Downs Consultative Committee on 24 March. The purpose of the Committee is for the Conservators to hear from the different users of the Downs about any concerns they have and consult their representatives on its management. The responsibility of the Conservators is to preserve the Downs as far as possible in their natural state of beauty and they aim to balance the interests of all the difference users and resolve any conflicts.
We were updated on work to maintain the different gallops and manage the grassland management including plans to reintroduce grazing on Juniper Hill. We were re-assured that the artwork for all the information boards was to be printed and installed shortly after a long delay. There was an also update from the Epsom Downs Model Aircraft Club about their activities and events being planned.
W(E)RS raised safety concerns about the number of horses now coming up and down all three of the roads in Langley Vale during peak morning hours and asked that the agreed arrangements be confirmed and communicated to residents and riders. We also highlighted the impact of the number of horses and vehicles using the footpaths through Langley Vale Woods which had made them virtually unusable by pedestrians over the winter. The team was also asked to check all the footpaths were clear and any felled tree debris removed.”
The minutes of our AGM are available here.
You will find updates here on the local government reorganisation, local plan and other local matters raised at the meeting here as soon as they are available.
NOTICE OF THE MEETING
The Society’s AGM will be held on Tuesday 11 March 2025 at 7.30pm at the Epsom Sports Club, Woodcote Road, Epsom, Surrey KT18 7QN.
Before the formal business there will be a talk by Hannah Dalton, Epsom and Ewell Borough Council Leader, Chair of the Surrey Leaders Group and a Member of the Surrey Local Government Reform Steering Committee. She will be explaining the role the Epsom Residents Association Group is taking to negotiate the best outcome for residents from the proposed local government reforms across Surrey.
Agenda
New Committee Members We are looking for residents in the ward who are interested in joining our Committee. The effort involved is not huge but the benefit to yourself and to other residents can be. We are also looking for volunteers to help deliver our quarterly newsletters in your area. If you would like to find out more about how you can play a part please contact our Chair John Mumford via our e-mail address – info@woodcoteepsomresidentssociety.org
Being a Member of WERS means being part of a group with a shared sense of community which informs decision making based on local priorities and views.
Our annual membership is due on 1 January.
Joining us for the first time, or renewing your membership, will enable us to continue to work on your behalf to ensure that Woodcote and Langley Vale remain the places we all want to live, work and socialize in.
It is easy to pay and you can find out how here
You can find out more about what we do and why you should support us here
Our newsletter is delivered quarterly to 2,500 member households in Woodcote and Langley Vale. You can also advertise in our electronic email and on our website.
If you are interested -you can find details of how to book your space and the costs here or contact us on info@woodcoteepsomresidentssociety.org
Report of the meeting
The purpose of this meeting was to discuss progress in addressing residents safety concerns.
The presentation from the meeting is here
40 Residents were at the Langley Vale Hall for the update on progress with the arrangements for the 2025 Derby Festival. Epsom & Ewell Borough Councillors Steven McCormick and Bernice Froud led the meeting. We were also joined by Helen Maguire, our MP and Jim Allen, the new General Manager at Epsom Racecourse. The Borough Police Commander was unable to attend the meeting and had sent her apologies.
From January there will be monthly meetings leading up to Derby Week itself and Councillor McCormick is hopeful that the Borough Police Commander will attend all these meetings.
Most of the meeting was spent reporting progress on actions agreed in July.
Key points to note are:
Further actions agreed included:
It was recognized that if the Derby is considered a World Class Event it required World Class support and resourcing.
Under AOB residents were encouraged to take part in Christmas Jumper Day on 21 December which will see many of the racing community, riders and trainers, getting in the Christmas spirit and wearing Christmas Jumpers and festive decorations.
Councillor McCormick also updated on roadworks scheduled to Langley Vale Road and ongoing discussions with Falcon Buses about improving the frequency of the E5 bus (including introduction of a Sunday service). He also agreed to look into the possibility of a scheme similar to Digital Demand Responsive Transport (DDRT) which has been implemented elsewhere in Surrey.
The meeting was arranged and coordinated by the Woodcote Residents’ Society (WERS) with great support from Langley Vale Village Hall, Sean, Tom, and many others. Thank you.
Here are the agenda and presentations and notes and actions from the meeting held on 12 July 2024:
Langley Vale Village Hall was full on Friday evening for a meeting with Inspector Clifton-Sinclair Borough Police Commander and Tom Sammes, General Manager at Epsom Racecourse about the serious public order incidents which occurred ahead of the 2024 Debry Festival and the arrangements for the 2025 event.
The meeting had been convened by the Woodcote (Epsom) Residents Society and the three Woodcote and Langley Vale Ward Councillors who are also members of the Epsom & Walton Downs Conservators – Bernice Froud, Liz Frost and Steven McCormick. The 5 of them were joined on the panel at the meeting by Helen Maguire, our new MP and Shanice Gladman, Nonsuch RA Councillor who is also Chair of the Crime and Disorder Committee.
The Borough Police Commander and Mr Sammes spent an hour and a half answering questions about what the residents’ saw as the failings of the police response to the serious incidents that took place and the security arrangements more generally for the 2024 Derby. A question was also asked about what action the Conservators could take under the Act of Parliament to mitigate the risks to the local residents of the travellers encampment. A number of suggestions were made about how the security arrangements could be tightened up and extended and everyone agreed that communication with the village needed to improve.
The Police, the Racecourse and the Epsom & Downs Conservators all committed to take account in their review of the 2024 Festival of the very real concerns of residents had about their safety and their requests for changes to the arrangements for 2025.
It was agreed there would be a further meeting with residents before the end of the year to consult on the proposed plans for 2025 before the arrangements were finalised and again in March/April 2025 ahead of the festival.
Regulation 19 Public Consultation
Epsom & Ewell Borough Councils Proposed Submission Local Plan (Regulation 19) consultation is running until until Wednesday 5 February 2025 so there is still time for you to submit your comments here . The plan and all the comments received will be submitted to the government for examination in March 2025.
The Regulation 19 consultation is the final opportunity to tell Epsom & Ewell Borough Council, and a government appointed planning inspector, whether the plan is legally compliant and sound, based on criteria set out in the National Planning Policy Framework.
WERS has taken this opportunity to comment on the plan and highlight particular concerns that we feel have not been adequately addressed.
What has been the response to our representations submitted on the earlier Draft (Regulation 18) Local Plan?
Residential Amenity and Character Concerns.
WERS objected to the proposed Policy DM1 ‘Residential Standards’ on the basis that we were concerned over the decrease in the minimum requirements from the existing 70 sq m of private garden space for houses of 3 bedroom or 40 sq m for 2 bedroom dwellings for private garden space to 20 sq m regardless of size. With increased emphasis on homeworking and the probability of future Covid style epidemics there needs to be designed into new residential environments sufficient outdoor space to meet the needs of its occupiers. Gardens as small as 20 sq m are unlikely in many cases to be functional, especially for families with children, and to provide opportunities for bio-diversity, solar shading and so on.
Regulation 19 response
The Reg 19 Plan goes even further by not having any minimum external amenity space standards. This is justified in the consultation response document with the words ’Whilst the minimum private garden space figure has been removed, a new requirement for a separation distance of 20 metres have been included within Policy S12 ‘ Amenity Protection’. Where the market will allow, garden space can be higher. However, reducing garden space provides the flexibility to allow higher density.’ It should be noted that the reference to the 20m separation distance is not in the policy wording, only the explanatory text and only refers to an ‘expectation’ and that it only refers to situations where there are facing elevations rear to rear.
Built Environment and Design
WERS also expressed concern that the Reg 18 Draft Local Plan had inadequate policy guidance on what high quality design should comprise. Whilst more detailed design guidance can be provided in design briefs and design codes for particular redevelopment sites and areas we considered it important that there should be at the very least a height guidance policy within the Local Plan as this aspect of the development is often the most controversial and it would assist applicants to have as much certainty as possible about what is likely to be acceptable.
Regulation 19 Response
The Reg 19 Plan fails to make any significant changes to the design policy approach. The officer response in the consultation response document states; ‘the policy includes flexibility within it… provisions are made available to include design codes in the future.’ It should be noted that the Reg 19 Design Policy S11 is much more simplistic than the Reg 18 version with no design parameters at all.
Local Open Space
WERS considered it important that the Reg 18 Draft Local Plan should protect those green areas of particular importance to local communities and advocated the designation of Local Green Spaces as defined in the NPPF following local consultation being undertaken.
Regulation 19 Response
The Reg 19 Plan has identified some areas as Local Green Space but these are difficult to identify on the Proposals Map and have not been subject to any public consultation.
Our detailed response can be found here. You will see that we have limited our comments to four sections of the latest version of the plan all which we accept are legally compliant but not sound.
First, some welcome good news before Christmas.
Epsom & Ewell Borough Council at a meeting on 10 December approved the Proposed Submission Local Plan (2022-2040) which will be available for public consultation from 20 December 2024 to 5 February 2024.
It can be found here together with guidance on how to respond.
This is known as the Regulation 19 Consultation is the final opportunity for residents, visitors and local businesses to feedback on the plan and comment on whether it is legally compliant and sound in accordance with the National Planning Policy Framework.
Commenting after the meeting, Councillor Peter O’Donovan, Chair of the Licensing and Planning Policy, said “The Proposed Submission Local Plan provides a vision for our borough that strikes a balance between providing much needed homes including affordable housing, infrastructure, and support for local businesses whilst ensuring enhanced protection for biodiversity and our borough’s green spaces, and protecting the valuable local heritage and character of our borough’s towns and villages. It is challenging to find a path that meets the many different needs of all our communities, and not everyone may agree with every aspect of this plan. However, having listened to all the feedback, and examined the comprehensive evidence base, we feel strongly that this plan ensures that everyone in our borough, both now and in the future, is given the chance to thrive in Epsom & Ewell.”
Many of you will be aware of the campaign led by the Epsom Green Belt Group not to release any Green Belt land for housebuilding. Frankly this campaign group’s case was never tenable in the face of the new Government’s resolve to increase local house building targets and make these mandatory.
The Plan proposes 4,700 additional homes over the Local Plan period 2022-2040 including the strategic release of four green belt sites within the Horton area to provide 2,175 new homes. This should be compared to the Government’s target against which this will be judged of 10,242 dwellings over the same period. Recent experience from Elmbridge Borough Council demonstrates the risks of preparing a Local Plan being based on a brownfield only approach to housing delivery resulting in a significant shortfall of housing. The Elmbridge Plan was required to be withdrawn by the Government appointed Planning Inspector in order that a number of Green Belt sites could be incorporated to help address the shortfall.
The Residents Association-led Council has taken a sensible, pragmatic decision to designate some Green Belt sites in the Horton area of the Borough for residential development on the basis that this will reduce the risk of the Epsom and Ewell Local Plan being found unsound by the Government Inspector. It also reduces the need for even higher density and high-rise development in and around Epsom town centre and elsewhere to make up the housing numbers. Nobody wants this Borough to lose its market town character and end up looking like Sutton or Croydon.
An up-to-date Local Plan should help protect Epsom and Ewell Borough from ad hoc and inappropriate development and ensure responsibility for future planning decisions remains with the borough and its communities. It provides a framework for where in the borough new development should go and where should be protected. Importantly, it will also help to tackle the housing crisis and deliver more homes that are deemed ‘affordable’ for our children and grand-children.
Meanwhile one aspect of the plan that WERS would be grateful for local residents views on is whether there any local green spaces areas that you particularly cherish and would wish to see protected through ‘Local Green Space’ designation? These spaces need to be:
a) in reasonably close proximity to the community it serves;
b) demonstrably special to a local community and holds a particular local significance, for example because of its beauty, historic significance, recreational value (including as a playing field), tranquillity or richness of its wildlife;
c) local in character and is not an extensive tract of land.
WERS is keen to identify any more such areas in addition to the 2 already proposed for Woodcote & Langley Vale ward (Millennium Green, Woodcote Green Road and Abelea Green) in order that they also may be included in the Local Plan. Local Green Space is afforded the same protection as Green Belt and should thereby prevent unwelcome development.
The potentially bad news is that the Government has recently published a revised National Planning Policy Framework which increases this Borough’s housing target from 10,242 dwellings to 16,002 dwellings for the period 2022-2040. This increased level of housebuilding will be expected to be incorporated in a future Local Plan for the Borough. The consequences of this and other Government announcements on possible Local Government re-organisation will be the subject of future bulletins.
You may be aware that the Government is seeking to make far reaching changes to local government across England. If the changes go ahead Epsom & Ewell Borough Council is unlikely to exist by 2028 at the latest.
You can read more in the attached briefing note by Councillor Hannah Dalton, the Chair of the Residents’ Association Majority Group on what has happened so far and the next steps which will shape the future of local government in Surrey.
You can also find read here the attached statement from Surrey’s District and Borough Leaders on the delay to the local elections and plans for the local government reorganisation in Surrey and Surrey Council Council’s Your Question’s Answered Page
If you would like to know more please come along to our AGM when Hannah will be speaking and answering your questions.
