Record applications for Surrey secondary school places Surrey has offered five out of six applicants their first preference secondary school after demand for places reached a record high. Eighty-four per cent were given the school they put first on their list and 94 per cent were offered one of their top three preferred schools. The number applying for secondary school places this September rose by 206 to 11,338 – enough to fill almost seven extra classes.
Drop in fly-tipping saves Surrey taxpayers £125,000 in 10 months A drop of 1,100 tonnes in fly-tipped waste over the past 10 months has saved Surrey taxpayers £125,000. Figures from Surrey County Council show that 2,749 tonnes of fly-tipped rubbish were picked up by district and borough councils between April last year and January – a fall of 30 per cent on the previous 10-month period. It means a reduction of 1,153 tonnes in the amount of Read more…
Council begins review of special needs transport The county council has kicked off a series of engagement events with families of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and schools to discuss how to improve home-to-school and home-to-college transport. The council has a range of support in place to assist with SEND transport arrangements for around 3,000 children and young people, including a travel allowance to help parents with the cost of taking their Read more…
Proposal to transform transport in Camberley – public consultation Surrey County Council is running a campaign to encourage residents in the Camberley area to respond to proposals to potentially improve the A30, reducing traffic queues, maintaining bus reliability, and helping pedestrians and cyclists get into and around the town centre more easily by: Reducing congestion on the A30 and in the town centre. Making cycle routes safer and more continuous. Improving access for pedestrians. Making Read more…
Pavement Horizon covers the distance from Guildford to Portsmouth Enough footpaths have already been given the Pavement Horizon treatment to cover the distance from Guildford to Portsmouth by car. Laid end to end, all the work completed by the end of last month would stretch 43 miles. Cabinet Member for Highways John Furey launched the scheme last May at Brokes Crescent, Reigate, with the aim of improving access to schools, hospitals, doctors’ surgeries and town centres.
Cabinet has confirmed that Staines Fire Station will now remain open until the new fire station at Fordbridge is operational. However the consultation survey will remain open until Monday 20 February 2017 to continue to seek views on whether Fordbridge should operate without an on-call crew. Any responses received relating to the on-call proposal will be analysed as planned, however responses relating to whether or not Staines should stay open will be disregarded. Any resident who Read more…
The Government has launched a consultation on its plans for a new runway at Heathrow airport, including giving residents the chance to have their say in person. There will be two consultation events in Surrey – on Monday 20 February at The Hythe Centre in Staines-upon-Thames, and on Tuesday 28 February at Stanwell Moor Village Hall. Both events will be open between 11am and 8pm and staff from the Department for Transport will be on Read more…
Surrey County Council approved a 4.99% council tax increase for next year at Tuesday’s Full Council meeting after plans for a 15% rise that would trigger a referendum were dropped. Leader David Hodge said that he was “willing to take a risk” that ministers would find a solution to the adult social care funding issues facing councils after being reassured in talks that the Government “now clearly understands this crisis”. Following questions to the Prime Read more…
Residents’ Association County Councillor Hits Out at Surrey County Council Ban on Debate A Motion that would have seen Surrey County Councillors debate the importance and value of Parent Governors has been blocked under new standing orders introduced by the Conservatives at SCC. Residents’ Association County Councillor Eber Kington, who raised the issue at the request of parents and governors in his area after the Government had announced plans to remove the requirement for Read more…
Open Letter to David Hodge Following last week’s row over County Council’s budget, Residents’ Association and Independent County Councillors Eber Kington and Nikki Barton sent an open letter to David Hodge, demanding the details of his deal with the government. Please find their email below: Dear David We are emailing in regard to texts sent by you that have now come to light showing discussions you had with individual called Nick at the DCLG in Read more…