To receive any announcements from the Leader.
Minutes:
The following are the latest service updates from various Council departments.
Applied Resilience, a public service mutual co-owned by Spelthorne and Runnymede Borough Councils, has been selected as a finalist in the Best Delivery Model category in the 2018 LGC Awards. The winners will be announced in a ceremony at London’s Grosvenor House on 21 March 2018.
The White House next to the Depot on the Kingston Road has been purchased by the Council with the intention of redeveloping the site for housing. The Council also recently bought Hanover House which sits on the River alongside Bridge Street car park in Staines and is considering redeveloping the plot and surrounding area once the current lease expires.
An Ashford resident has been forced to take down a building he built without planning permission. The resident was originally issued with an enforcement notice in 2007 after he constructed a building without prior permission. Despite a series of unsuccessful appeals spanning many years, Guildford County Court upheld an injunction granted to the Council in October 2015 and ordered him to demolish the outbuilding within four months or risk imprisonment. As the resident failed to comply with the Court’s instruction within the stated time, Spelthorne applied to the County Court for a committal hearing and gained permission from the Planning Committee to demolish the building. The building was finally taken down by the owner on 7 November.
Following the closure of its full meal service earlier this year, Staines Community Centre cafe has started offering hot snacks such as soup and jacket potatoes, which has been well received by customers.
The Independent Living team is starting to see an increase in the number of clients being referred to them by GPs for help with things such as applying for benefits and tackling loneliness.
The winter edition of the Bulletin is being delivered to residents from 4-8 December and features information about Christmas events, the Council’s recent property purchases and the Rent Assure Scheme for landlords. A new delivery method using Royal Mail is being tested.
The Communications team has upgraded the software used for social media. The new package will allow more posts to be scheduled in advance and give improved readership statistics.
Planning is reviewing the accommodation needs of gypsies and travellers. This will help the Council make decisions around the potential allocation of land and form part of the new Local Plan.
The award for ‘most courteous town’ was awarded to Shepperton on 21 October by officials from the National Campaign for Courtesy.
Neighbourhood Services has donated £800 from the money raised by the textiles collection service to the Manna Food Bank in Staines-upon-Thames.
The sporting success of local players, coaches and volunteers was celebrated at the annual Spelthorne Sports Awards at Shepperton Studios on Tuesday 10 October. The guest speaker for the evening was Parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt CBE.
Year 5 students at Town Farm primary school have taken part in a paper lantern workshop led by artist Becci Kenning in preparation for a festive parade being held at 5.30pm in Stanwell on 2 December.
The next free Xplorer orienteering event for families is taking place from 10.30am on 17 December in Sunbury Park.