Newsletter, January 2003

This third annual newsletter provides an update of activities, projects and issues covered during the past year and includes a brief history of the area.

At our meetings, held every two months at Chilworth Church of England Infant School, we have been delighted to welcome members of the public and greatly appreciate their contribution during the adjournment for public discussion. Do please keep attending as this is an important way for us to hear your views on matters that concern the Parish. Regular visitors to our meetings include Borough Councillors for the Tillingbourne Ward, Keith Childs and Patricia Gumbrell, Surrey County Councillor David Davis, and Police Constable Mark Bridge, our Neighbourhood Specialist Officer. Mark brings us up-to-date at each meeting with what has been happening in the area and is there to listen to anything we might like to raise with him.

This year we welcomed Alan Slater onto the Council. Alan was a Parish Councillor for Shalford Parish Council for 10 years until he moved to St Martha Parish a few years ago. Councillor Helen McIntyre recently left after 4 years on the Council. She is missed in many ways, not least as the co-editor of this Newsletter. This therefore leaves a vacancy. Should you be interested in joining the Council and wish to find out more about this stimulating and rewarding way to help your local community, please contact the Chairman, Peter Burt.

Peter Burt and Joe Mapp planting the Golden Jubilee Oak Tree

The Queen's Golden Jubilee

To mark the Queen's Golden Jubilee, the Parish Council and the Governors of Chilworth School celebrated the occasion on 31st May by planting an English Oak tree on the School's sports field. As can be seen in the picture above, Peter Burt was ably assisted by one of the youngest members of the school. This rounded off a day of celebrations at the School when all the children came dressed as kings and queens. It is hoped that the oak tree will be a reminder for future generations of this special moment in history and also have the advantage of giving the children much needed shade if the sun ever shines again!

Our Hill to the North

Although our Parish is the smallest in Surrey, with just over 1,000 acres, it contains some really historic gems. These include the Gunpowder Estate and Chilworth Manor, but our history began around St Martha's Hill near our northern boundary. This Hill, part of the greensand ridge running parallel to the North Downs, rises to 573 feet above sea level and is higher than the chalk downs to the north of it.

St Martha-on-the-Hill

The Hill is always well worth visiting and can be approached on foot from all directions. The attractive Church stands on the summit and looks beautiful when floodlit over the Christmas period. Services are held regularly throughout the year.

The Field below St Martha's Church

A few years ago our Chairman, Peter Burt, bought a nine and a half acre field on the south side of St Martha's Hill. This private purchase, hurriedly completed in a few days, seized an opportunity which might otherwise have been lost. The field is a prominent part of the view and is itself an excellent viewpoint. It is also a valuable and rare area of natural grassland, free from insecticides and herbicides. Consequently, it has a wide variety of plants and insects that support the normal life and breeding of small animals and birds.

The Chairman and St Martha Parish Council aim to secure the ownership of the field for the benefit of present and future generations in our Parish, for access, walking, or just resting in a pleasant meadow. To preserve the nature and appearance of the field it needs proper management, with due regard to the surrounding areas. The Parish Council has consulted various national conservation bodies over a period of time and Surrey Wildlife Trust, after some encouraging site visits by their experts, has expressed an interest in managing the field. We look forward to securing this new amenity for the Parish.

Gunpowder Mills

On 7th November, the Gunpowder Mills seventh annual meeting was held at Chilworth Village Hall. The Mayor of Guildford, Councillor Tony Phillips, attended and the meeting attracted over a hundred members of the public. Two guest speakers gave presentations, Wayne Cocroft on the English Heritage Survey of the Gunpowder Mills, which is currently being carried out, and Dr Maurice Moss on Chilworth fungi. The Survey was not completed last winter, due to trees presenting problems obtaining site line readings, but it will be finished after a further six weeks work this winter. On completion, Guildford Borough Council can then determine what action needs to be taken to preserve the various structures and plan the future management of the site. Maurice Moss, a local microbiologist, gave a fascinating and most enjoyable talk on some of the fungi which can be seen at the Gunpowder Mills site. A request was made for volunteers to help with the restoration and maintenance of the site, all of which would be carried out under supervision. If anyone is interested in helping, please contact Andrew Norris on 01483 531 551.

Chilworth War Memorial

Following last year's successful appeal, further minor restoration work has been undertaken on the Memorial and Garden of Remembrance, continuing the enhancement of the monument and the surrounding area. On Remembrance Sunday over 50 people attended the village's annual service led by The Revd Chris Grundy.

Planning

The Parish Council continues to scrutinize all St Martha planning applications, making comments whenever it is considered necessary. We aim to conserve all that is best in the Parish and protect it from any development which may have a negative impact. Last year we considered 21 applications. We also ensured that notices of planning applications were delivered to neighbouring properties, in case occupants wished to make their own comments. The Parish Council is very conscious of the need to pass on to Guildford Borough Council the general planning concerns of the people in our Parish, and this is greatly helped by our Borough and County Councillors.

This year we have attended meetings, and made comments on the Guildford Borough Plan and the Draft Surrey Structure Plan. We are currently considering how the proposed housing allocations for Surrey, and in particular the Guildford area, will affect us. This has raised concerns about the preservation of the Green Belt as well as the need to provide 'affordable housing', particularly for local young people and 'key workers'.

We have participated in a series of planning training sessions arranged by Guildford Borough Council, attended meetings of the Community Forum for planning issues and commented on the Government's Green Paper on Planning and on Surrey's Countryside Review.

Highways and Rights of Way

The Parish Council considers matters relating to highways, rights of way and Safe Routes to Schools, and anything in need of attention is reported to Surrey County Council. Some Councillors recently held a site meeting in Halfpenny Lane with a member of Surrey County Council's Highways Department and a representative from the Surrey Hills Partnership to consider signage, passing places and road-side posts and how to make them more in keeping with rural lanes.

Surrey Hills Partnership is currently working on ways of influencing driver behaviour by promoting and reinforcing the rural character of lanes like Halfpenny Lane and Sample Oak Lane. In October, Councillors attended the Blackheath Village Society AGM where there was a Surrey Hills presentation and discussion on rural traffic management.

Policing

Help stop crime by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 - you may receive a reward. If you need to report a crime it is important that you contact the Crime Reporting Bureau directly on 01483 571 212, unless it is an emergency and then use 999. A Special Constable for the Rural Area, Owen Morgan, has recently been recruited and a Community Safety Warden will be in place in March. These will both assist PC Mark Bridge. Mark has worked hard since January 2002, when he became our local policeman, to build up strong relationships in the community, and with the help of many local residents has had success in reducing crime and prosecuting local known criminals. He can be contacted on 01483 653 096, or at bridge829@surrey.pnn.police.uk. To receive local news from the Police online - send a blank e-mail to tillingbournenews@yahoogroups.com.

Refuse and Recycling

Please help the Borough reduce waste. Guildford Borough Council Refuse Hotline: 01483 444 499. Recycling Enquiries and lids for Green Boxes: 01483 445 084. Slyfield Household Waste Site: 01483 532 187.

Feedback

If you would like to respond to any of the issues raised in this year's newsletter, please contact a member of the Parish Council. Your comments will be most welcome. Prior notice of meetings, which are held on Mondays and commence at 7.15pm, is put up in the bus shelters adjacent to Chilworth Station and opposite Lockner Farm, and on the Parish Council Notice Board by the entrance to Old Manor Lane.