Dominic de Lord of Crick Heitman Chartered Accountants, a LOSRA sponsor and our honorary auditor, is offering to provide free and independent advice to any Lower Sunbury Resident who is considering starting up a business; and to make introductions to existing local businesses.

If you are interested, please give Dominic a call on 01784 243054.

Residents may already be aware of the SCC online petition to lodge objections to the Surrey-wide proposal to introduce on-street parking charges . following information is being circulated to everyone in Surrey in an effort to achieve the 20,000 signatures needed to force a formal debate.

To object to Surrey County Council’s proposals to introduce on-street parking charges throughout the county please sign this online petition. It only takes a couple of minutes and you could help retain the vitality of our Surrey towns and save hundreds of local shops and businesses who are already struggling to survive in this fragile economic climate.

If 20,000 signatures are collected before 23rd March, SCC will have to take the escalating protests seriously because they will then be compelled to hold a formal debate. Don't delay; this petition merely demands a formal debate, a democratic right to which we should feel entitled with or without a petition!

http://petitions.surreycc.gov.uk/ParkingCharges/

PASS THIS ON TO AS MANY OF YOUR CONTACTS AS POSSIBLE AND SAVE THE VITALITY OF OUR SURREY TOWNS.

LOSRA has been notified that the Planning and Regulatory Committee of Surrey County Council which was due to sit today at 3pm (see article of 3rd March) has been cancelled. We had to recognise our limitations when up against a big corporation and the vested interests of Surrey County Council; and, despite the cost, we had no choice but to seek the opinion of a most respected QC and a specialist in planning law.

Our Solicitor, having taken the QC's advice, has written to the Head of Legal Services at Surrey County Council and argued on very powerful grounds for refusing the application. It is a great relief to hear that the Planning Committee has now been cancelled, if only for the time being. It can only be hoped that this misconceived application will itself ultimately put into the recycling bin .

To see the Solicitor's letter click here (Adobe Acrobat PDF document, 4.5MB)

Moira Buffini has written a deliciously black satirical comedy on that ever-recurring theme, the dinner party from hell. At Buffini’s dinner party caustic comments fly like poisonous darts across the dinner table, penetrating false personas and leaving a trail of emotional carnage.

The Manor Players will perform 'Dinner' at the Riverside Arts Centre, Thames Street from Thursday, 10th March until Saturday 12th March. Performances start at 8pm and tickets cost £10. Box Office: 07771 458696.

'Thames 21' a Registered Charity is appealing for volunteers to help in a clean-up operation at Sunbury Lock Island. This location is a charming part of the Lower Sunbury riverscape and we are being asked to join a team to give it a spring clean on Saturday 12th March.

Volunteers are asked to report to the footbridge ahead of the lock at 10.45am. Old clothes recommended but all necessary equipment will be provided. For more details, go to http://thames21utp.tumblr.com/

Read what our local Neighbourhood Safety Team have being doing for us in Lower Sunbury. It's interesting to note that when responding to complaints of speed in two of our main thoroughfares, most offenders turn out to be local residents. Read more

The Planning and Regulatory Committee of Surrey County Council is due to consider the application to instal the highly controversial 'Eco Park' on 8th March, 3pm at County Hall, Kingston. Readers will be aware that this Association, together with Charlton Village Residents' Association (CVRA) and Shepperton Against The Eco Park (SATEP), has expressed serious reservations as to the suitability of the site at Charlton Lane. In particular two of our Committee members have consistently raised the subject of public safety, questioning how this is to be achieved by the co-location of the Community Recycling Centre and the proposed incinerator.

These concerns seem to have fallen on deaf ears during the consultation/liaison process and were therefore raised with the Health and Safety Executive direct. As a consequence The HSE has now issued a memorandum which, we must assume, will be taken into account at the hearing of the application. The following paragraph is of particular significance:

"Relevant guidance for the safe design and operation of such plant has been produced by the European Commission, with input from the HSE. Particular recommendations in this Guidance that do not appear to be achieved by the proposals include the effective separation of people from the fire, explosion and toxic hazards arising in the gasification plant. The risks to people are compounded by integrating the education and visitors centre within the gasification building and providing public viewing windows into the process areas. Further risks may arise to the large numbers of general public who are coming on site to unload their waste. The waste is being fed into the gasification unit but good design practice recommends that the storage and reception area for waste be separated from the gasification unit by distance or high performance fire curtain."

We have however learned from bitter experience that we can take nothing for granted. We have instructed Peter Village QC, the Lead Counsel for Capel Parish Council who succeeded in overturning an earlier planning approval by SCC under the Surrey Waste Plan; and his opinion will be delivered in good time for the hearing.

More Funding Required!

Members of the three combined groups (LOSRA, CVRA & SATEP) have devoted many hundreds of hours of their free time to fighting this application. An appeal by our SCC District Councillor, and local ward member, Caroline Nichols to use her neighbourhood grants to fund the legal aid on behalf of residents has been declined, as has LOSRA's request for funding from Spelthorne Borough Council. What this means is that residents are on their own. Whilst our coffers will go some way to meeting the legal costs, it is imperative that we raise more. Existing members renewing their memberships and new members enrolling via the PayPal facility above would greatly assist. If, additionally, you are able to spare even just a few extra pounds, please go to http://satep.moonfruit.com/ to make a donation.

Figures published by the Office of National Statistics last week show that there are 73,239 people registered to vote in Spelthorne. Although this is a large proportion of residents, this still leaves many who could miss out on their chance to vote.

Roberto Tambini, Chief Executive of Spelthorne Borough Council, said: "Residents need to act now if they are to vote at the Spelthorne Council Elections and UK Referendum on the voting system to the UK Parliament taking place on Thursday, 5th May. If they are not registered to vote, they will not have the opportunity to have their say".

Phillippa Saray from the Electoral Commission, the independent elections watchdog, adds: "Residents may also be planning to be away on 5th May, given the extra Bank Holiday for the Royal Wedding, so it's worth applying now to vote by post or proxy if that will suit your plans. You can print off the forms from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk. It takes just a few minutes and then you are all set for 5th May."

Anyone who has moved house in the past few months needs to register their new address. Residents can request a registration form by calling Electoral Services on 01784 446238 / 01784 446232 or by printing off a registration form from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk