Committees this month
The Development Control Committee of RBK meets at the Guildhall on Tuesday 22nd January at 7.30 p.m. The Filter Beds application will dominate proceedings.
Surbiton Neighbourhood Committee meets at Dysart School, Ewell Road on Wednesday 23rd January at 7.30 p.m.
Newent House to close?
I can’t do better than share with you the words of a local resident who has written to me and to Nick Kilby:-
Have you heard that after everything that the Libs said about the Conservatives wanting to close Newent House they are doing just that in April.
This will mean local people will have to travel, possibly to New Malden, for care,visiting and other services. We need a day care centre at least in the locality and a bath service which was available at Newent House. My brother in law who is house bound and unable to get into a bath was a user of the bath service. Once a week he gets a bath which we all take for granted as a basic human right.
The site at Newent House was one place the then Conservative councillors for Surbiton Hill wanted investigated as a location for the school now being built on the hospital site on the other side of Ewell Road. We would still like to know whether the new Health Centre on the same site will provide the facilities now to be withdrawn at Newent House.
A Lib Dem supporter from Berrylands wrote to this site suggesting closure and sale of both the Newent House site and the hospital site in December 2006.
Kingston & Surbiton fire stations safe, despite Lib Dems
Conservative London Assembly member Tony Arbour has dismissed attempts by Liberal Democrats to question the future of the fire stations in Kingston and Surbiton.
Mr. Arbour is in a good position to know the truth, as he is also Kingston’s representative on the London Fire And Emergency Planning Authority. He says he does not expect there to be any reduction in fire cover for the Royal Borough.
“I have been concerned by the scaremongering statements which Liberal Democrats are circulating suggesting that one or other of our firestations in Surbiton or Kingston may have to close.
I have been a member of LFEPA for many years and I know that logistically, for fire safety, these stations have to remain open. Accordingly I have pressed James Cleverley, Chairman of the Authority, to confirm that there is no threat to them.
I am satisfied that what has been said to the contrary is a baseless rumour and the Borough will continue to receive a first class service from the Brigade.”
Honoured!
Congratulations to Surbiton resident and former Labour Councillor and Mayor of Kingston, Douglas Reynolds, on his MBE in the New Year Honours List. He is seen above joining in our protest at post office closures between Helen Whately and Nick Kilby.
Questions unanswered
Some questions have been aired more than once lately in the letters column of the ‘Surrey Comet’ which deserve an answer, which has not yet been forthcoming.
Most prominent of these has been the enquiry, made again today by Daniel Goodger, as to why RBK’s Lib Dem administration made a payment of £128,000 to its Director of Children’s Services just ahead of the publication of a damning Ofsted report which compared the running of the service to Hackney of Baby P fame. As far as we are aware, the Lead Member responsible for the service is still in post and drawing the enhanced Councillor’s Allowance attached to it.
Another question, this time from ‘The Voice’, which excites our attention and research is just how justified is the claim by our Ed Davey to have ‘saved’ Sunshine Ward at Kingston Hospital. Our research suggests that this claim is possibly as much Moonshine as Sunshine, like the famous one about A&E and Maternity. More on this anon, no doubt.
Latest from the cornerHOUSE
| AUDITIONS for the oneACTS 2013 |
| Tuesday, February 5 at 7.30pm and Sunday, February 10 at 2pm – please be on time |
| Fancy acting in a short play? Then the cornerHOUSE oneACTS 2013 could be just the thing for you. Kingston’s most respected platform for original playwriting is looking for actors of all ages to perform in this showcase of local writing talent. Whether you are an experienced actor or a complete novice, there could be a place for you in one of the oneACTS which will be performed at the cornerHOUSE in Douglas Road, Surbiton, from Monday, April 29 to Saturday, May 4 2013. This will be the ninth year the arts centre has run the festival, which has become a well established and highly respected event in the local arts scene. The annual festival of one act plays features short pieces by talented local writers – some serious, some funny, some both. The plays are only 15 to 30 minutes long, which means that it’s a great opportunity to be involved in a show without a heavy time commitment, but you will still be able to enjoy the buzz of being part of a large, dynamic team of playwrights, directors, actors and crew, all working towards providing a week-long feast of original, quality-driven entertainment. You can find out more about the festival and how you can be part of it by reading oneACTS 2013 – guidance which is on our website www.thecornerhouse.org or by emailing oneacts2013@thecornerhouse.org So why not come to our open auditions at the cornerHOUSE on Tuesday, February 5 at 7.30pm or Sunday, February 10 at 2pm to see what it is all about? You only need to attend one of these auditions. All you need to bring with you is enthusiasm and a willingness to have a go. We are looking forward to meeting you. (Please turn up on time for the audition as you will need to register your details). |
| Child actors: There are no parts in this year’s oneACTS for child actors ie anyone who is of compulsory school age (16 and under up to and including Year 11). If you are in the sixth form or have left school then you are eligible to audition. |
Surbiton Forum 