The following Council press release will be of interest to those who have been following the years long development of the Local Plan for Spelthorne:

An independent inspector has now been appointed to examine the Spelthorne Local Plan, following submission to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on 25 November 2022. The Plan will guide future development in the Borough over the next 15 years.

This is another positive step forward to progress the Local Plan through to adoption. It has taken over six years to reach this stage and having an out-of-date Local Plan and without a five-year supply of housing has counted against Spelthorne at appeal on developments the Council has refused. There are also other significant benefits the Local Plan will deliver, including family homes with gardens, affordable housing, local infrastructure, sports and recreation enhancements, a new sixth form college and greater protection for our urban open spaces.

The appointed inspector, Jameson Bridgwater DipTP MRTPI, will now contact Spelthorne through the Programme Officer to make arrangements for the examination. The Programme Officer provides the channel of communication between the inspector, the Council and those involved in the examination as the inspector can’t be spoken to directly in order to maintain impartiality.

It was announced recently by the Secretary of State, Michael Gove MP, that changes to national planning policy and guidance are expected to be announced before Christmas for consultation. The changes could have implications for Spelthorne’s Local Plan in terms of the number of homes that should be planned for and where development takes place, such as through releasing Green Belt and intensifying use of urban sites. Once the detail has been considered, there will be a Local Plan Task Group meeting followed by an Extraordinary Environment and Sustainability Committee meeting on 31 January 2023 to review the changes and what they mean for the Local Plan, plus options for how the Council can choose to proceed with the examination and respond to any updated Government policies.

However, just last Thursday the Housing Minister allowed a development of 970 houses on Green Belt in York. This scheme represents more than all the proposed Green Belt development for Spelthorne in its Submission Version of the Local Plan.

Cllr Ian Beardsmore, Chair of the Environment and Sustainability Committee, said: “We are pleased to have been appointed our inspector and can progress the Local Plan through to examination but the very mixed messages about changes to the planning system are seemingly contradictory. We are waiting for the detail before making any decisions and will be looking at all the options available to us. We know that our residents want a Local Plan adopted without further delay. However, if there are updates to policy that do offer us opportunities to make positive changes to our Plan, we still have that option.”

For Sunbury Cricket Club's  last Music Night of 2022 on Friday 9th December, the Club returns to its traditional tried and tested party formula as it welcomes THE LIVERPOOL ECHOES. They are a new name to the Club, but they are led by Yanni Tsamplakos, who is a great supporter of the Club's Music Nights and has appeared at many Christmas party shows with his band The Mersey Legends; and we are delighted to have him back with his new line-up.

As always, they will give us a rip-roaring evening, performing a non-stop selection of wall-to-wall beat era classics, with Yanni on guitar and vocals, Billy Allan on guitar, John Joce on bass and Rick Daniow on drums. We can guarantee that it will be a great party night to kick off the festive season in style, so get a gang of friends together and come along for a proper rave-up.

There’s more info at www.liverpoolechoes.co.uk.

It's £10.00 on the door payable by cash or cards. Hot food will be available as usual from about 7pm.

At long last, after what has been many testing months for its officers, the Council makes the following announcement:

 "On Friday 25 November, Spelthorne Council submitted its draft Local Plan to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Homes and Communities for independent inspection. The Plan will guide future development in the Borough over the next 15 years, including affordable homes for residents, local infrastructure, a new sixth form college and offer greater protection for our urban open spaces. The Plan positively tackles the impact of climate change in our borough and ensures important biodiversity is protected.

"It has taken more than five years to reach this key milestone. During that time, three public consultations totalling 32 weeks were undertaken on the Local Plan, together with further public consultations on the Staines Development Framework.

"Submitting the Plan for examination is a crucial step forward and an independent planning inspector will now be appointed by the Planning Inspectorate to consider whether it is ‘sound’ and can be adopted. This means the strategy and policies will be scrutinised in detail to make sure they are justified and effective and comply with statutory requirements. The land allocated as development sites will also be considered by the inspector.

"There will be a series of public hearings held in 2023 where the inspector will listen to all the arguments for and against various aspects of the Plan. The inspector will then advise Spelthorne if the Plan is sound, likely with some changes that will require further public consultation, before the Plan is brought back for a decision by councillors on whether the Council should adopt it. If so, the Local Plan can then be used when deciding planning applications.

"There is a new website dedicated to the examination process where residents can view the Local Plan and the supporting evidence and documents required for submission https://spelthornelocalplan.info . It will be updated in due course to contain further documents needed to stay informed, including officer responses to representations made during consultation, any letters received from the planning inspector, information about what stage is reached and the dates and documents for each hearing session, including links to the Planning Inspectorate videos explaining the examination process.

"The hearings will be open to the public and live-streamed online. The inspector will be appointed within the next three weeks and the Council will then provide further details on the hearings, which are likely to take place in spring 2023. The inspector will be notified of those who requested to appear at the hearings when representations were made during the consultation process."

Thanks to the Lower Sunbury Business Community, residents will be celebrating Christmas with a special event from 5pm - 8pm on The Avenue Parade.

Come along with the family and enjoy the festive lights, gift stalls, rides, Santa's grotto, and carol singing with the Salvation Army from 6.30pm.

The road will be closed to traffic during the event. The money raised will be used for the Sunbury community.

As in previous years, LOSRA will have a stall at the market so do feel free to pay us a visit!

For more details email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 07979 808991

There have been a number of incidents of dead swans and the Council is working with the relevant authorities to ensure these are humanely removed from the area.

As a precaution it is recommended that people keep dogs on leads on the river towpaths and stay on the paths. People should also not touch or try to rescue sick birds.

For further information please click here

Trumpeter Stuart Henderson and saxophonist Vasilis Xenopoulos team up with the Terence Collie Trio at the Riverside Arts Centre on 18th December at 8pm.

For further details, click here