Effingham Eye: Developers Want More Houses in School Development

Published on: 8 Sep, 2019
Updated on: 10 Sep, 2019

Chris Dick gives his personal monthly round-up of some recent and up and coming local events. These include: a BBC interview about Barnes Wallis, more on Heritage Day, even more houses for Effingham, an all-weather pitch opens and steam passes through Effingham…

Sir Barnes Wallis’s daughter to talk on BBC Radio Surrey

Barnes Wallis’s daughter Elisabeth Gaunt (right) and local historian Vivien White, pictured here discussing the Heritage Day Exhibition marking 40 years since Barnes Wallis’s death

On Thursday September 12, 7.50am Elisabeth Gaunt, daughter of Sir Barnes Wallis, will be interviewed on BBC Radio Surrey. Elisabeth will talk about her father and an exhibition about him taking place this Saturday September 14.

Barnes Wallis was best known as the inventor of the Bouncing Bomb famously used by the Dambusters in 1943 during the Second World War to destroy the Möhne dam in Germany’s Ruhr valley. The exhibition, part of the Heritage Day event, will be in the Tithe Barn, Manor House Lane, Little Bookham.

This exhibition is worth visiting as many items on display have been provided by Brooklands Museum, Weybridge. See leaflet below for details:

Leaflet advertising Heritage Day Barnes Wallis Exhibition in the Tithe Barn, Manor House Lane, Little Bookham

As reported in the August edition of the Effingham Eye, this year’s Heritage Day will see nine local properties opening their doors to the public as well as the exhibition on Sir Barnes Wallis.

The exhibition has been put together by historian Vivien White, who is also chairman of Effingham Residents Association and Bryan Sherwood. Vivien said: “I have also finished a commemorative booklet full of photos, many from the family and not seen by the public before, which is currently being printed and will be available exclusively on the day.”

Harvest Festival Community Event

Harvest Festival Events

Once again this popular community event will take place on Saturday September 28, 6.30pm to 9pm. It is a chance for the community to come together for food, music, dancing and a good catch up in the Tithe Barn, Manor House Farm, of Manor House Lane, Little Bookham.

Organised by Revd Mandy MacVean and her team, it is a free, non-religious event. But those who wish to can join Mandy the following morning at 10am for a service at St Lawrence Church.

If you are attending the supper don’t forget to bring a plate of finger food and some drink to share.

Hope to see you there.

Berkeley Homes Update

In a development that might not surprise those following local planning news and following last month’s article in the Effingham Eye questioning whether the 295 homes and new Howard of Effingham school project would actually go ahead, The Guildford Dragon has learnt that the chairman of Berkeley Homes Plc, Tony Pidgley CBE, has had a meeting with representatives of Effingham Parish Council and Effingham Residents Association.

Effingham Lodge Farm off Lower Road, Effingham pictured here before the glasshouses were cleared away and trees were removed

Mr Pidgley met councillors and residents in the Parish Room on Friday August 16. The purpose of the meeting was apparently to discuss an estimated £8 million shortfall in the overall project said to be due to uncertainties in the housing market and the rising cost of the new school’s construction.

Councillors were informed that Berkeley Homes would need to build around 55 additional new homes to cover the shortfall. This would bring the total number of new homes to 350 but observers are asking will the number of houses stop there? One possibility said to have been muted by Mr Pidgley was that Berkeley Homes could decide to mothball the project and wait for property prices to rise again sometime in the future.

It seems that this proposed additional housing increase, apart from a possible uplift in the Section 106 contribution that might go towards the village hall rebuild, did not impress those present. One person present at the meeting later commented: “We never wanted this project in the first place, so why would we now want more houses?”

More about Berkeley Homes – parking in Lower Road, Effingham

Residents warned of £100 parking fines at new Berkeley Homes estate in Fleet, Hampshire

Following the fatal road traffic collision, in Lower Road, Effingham in January 2019, concerns over continued roadside parking are unlikely to diminish should Berkeley Homes ever complete its project to build 350 new homes and an enlarged Howard of Effingham secondary school.

Councillors and planners too often turn a blind eye to the reality of new developments, such as that proposed for Effingham Lodge Farm opposite the current Howard of Effingham school.

The possible outcome is that the new estate will have the same privately enforced parking restrictions such as those being imposed in a Berkeley Homes housing estate in Fleet, Hampshire where residents or visitors can be fined £100 for parking in the wrong place.

Residents moving onto these attractive, predominantly cul-de-sac, style estates are initially informed where they can park.

But two years after the new residents moved in a rash of signs appeared on lamp posts reminding visitors and residents alike that parking outside the designated/ allocated parking places would result in a £100 fine.

Visitors have been directed to remote parking spaces up to a quarter of a mile away. These spaces are few in number, widely distributed and often already taken. So, of course, many have now resorted to parking on the arterial roads within the estate.

If this practice is repeated in Effingham, visitors will park where they can and that may mean parking on Lower Road. We could be back to square one, but instead of just sixth form students parking along Lower Road, it may be residents and visitors.

If this happens rush hour traffic will have to endure delays made worse by over 2,000 student movements – an increase of 525 – and hundreds of staff movements and deliveries. Let’s hope there are no more vehicle collisions as a consequence.

King George V new floodlit 3G pitch completed

The new 3G all-weather pitch at King George V playing fields in Effingham is ready for use and, with minimal publicity, the official opening will take place on Saturday September 14.

Having followed this project from the start, albeit as an outsider, its completion is a tribute to Bookham Colts, the King George V manager and trustees, and all those involved in fundraising. The pitch looks amazing. It has a natural green appearance which blends in with its surrounding woods and playing fields.

Directly behind the pitch, but unknown to most, is a spectacular wooded area of springtime bluebells which will be enhanced by the new elegant fencing and sporting facility.

Court bookings can be made via the manager on 01372 451925 or email: managerkgv@evrt.org.uk.

Most accidents happen in the home

Long story short, let’s all take note that ladders can become slippery when wet. As a consequence of assisting in an outdoor repair, I slipped off the lowest couple of rungs and fell backwards into a planter. It broke my fall [stout planter, Ed] and snapped off one of the branches. Unfortunately, the exposed stub impacted with my lower spine and dented my ego.

[So you had one job… You were asked to stand still on the bottom of the ladder, using your considerable stature as a human sandbag, while the person at the top took all the risk. But you decided to steal the show by taking a dive. How is the other person on the ladder? They must have ruptured something laughing at your antics. Ed.]

Osteopath Brent Snell has a clinic at the top end of East Horsley

Three weeks later I visited Brent Snell the East Horsley Osteopath. I hadn’t been to an osteopath for decades and was pleased to find Brent was everything I like about that profession…. walk in crippled, walk out fixed. Best fifty pounds I’ve spent in a long time. My thanks to Brent Snell. See details above, if the need arises.

And finally…

The Mayflower pictured here as it went through Clandon at full steam on Thursday August 15 at 9.19am.

Did anyone manage to catch a glimpse of the magnificent Mayflower steam train as it shot through Effingham on its way to Weymouth via Guildford? Better still were you a passenger and what was it like?

Residents may have seen in Roundabout Effingham‘s second issue that Steam Dreams Rail Company are advertising a trip from Effingham to Bath on November 29. Tempting.