School Streets Consultation Launches

Consultation on Popular School Streets Schemes Begin Today

Councillors Jake, Jill and Chris are very pleased to see that Lib Dem-run Sutton Council is consulting on reintroducing the popular School Streets programmes at All Saints and St Mary’s-St Philomena’ Schools, with an upgraded enforcement system.

Consultation for the schemes on Rotherfield Road and Shorts Road/Alma Road respectively has been running from the 15th March to the 4th April 2021, asking residents for their views on reintroducing the two schemes that had proven popular when they were run as trials last year. These trials had to be withdrawn due to faulty guidance from the Labour Mayor of London and Conservative Central Government.

Map of the proposed All Saints Carshalton School Street on Rotherfield Road

Both these School Streets schemes have been largely successful, in reducing traffic and parking problems for residents arising from parental travel to school. Jake, Jill and Chris are pleased to report that feedback during the trial was positive and we are particularly grateful for the support shown by residents and parents for the schemes. We were particularly pleased to see volunteers help with the All Saints scheme be as successful as it was.

Map of the proposed St Philomena’s School Street on Shorts Road and Alma Road

We are also very pleased to see that Council officers have listened to resident feedback and included all of Shorts Road and Alma Road in the proposed school street there.

Your Lib Dem council is committed to implementing these schemes where they have been shown to be popular.

The consultation proposals this time around propose replacing these ‘manual’ schemes (which had required volunteers to operate) with automated camera schemes. This will eliminate the need for volunteers to step up to make these schemes successful. More information around implementation dates and consultation feedback will be available in due course.

You can respond to the individual consultations on the St Philomena’s Scheme or the All Saints Scheme here. You can also see the other School Street consultations here.

Low Traffic Update

As your Lib Dem Councillors we are committed to listening to you, and being your voice on Sutton Council.

Following a High Court judgement in a case brought against the Labour Mayor of London – which questioned the guidance London Borough Councils received from the Mayor and the Conservative Government – Sutton Council has paused discussion about expanding the Kings Lane Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) scheme, and potential changes to other LTNs and School Streets.

Prior to that judgment being reached, we had been engaging widely with you around a set of proposals put forward by officers. We were intending to provide feedback from residents directly to officers as a result of the survey we had put out. This coming Thursday, Sutton Council will be recommending that all the LTN and School Street schemes will be removed. This is to ensure any well-running schemes cannot be threatened by the ruling against the advice of the Conservative Government and Labour mayor.

Some schemes, such as the 13 School Street Schemes (including two in Carshalton Central) and the Butter Hill and Worcester Park LTNs will subsequently be brought back, under a new improved process. This process, free from the constraints imposed by the Labour Mayor and Conservative Government on the previous LTN programme will enable full, open consultation right from the start.

We value your feedback, and have asked officers to not include the Kings Lane LTN in these new sets of proposals. 

It was clear from the feedback we recently received from residents that there was little support for the proposed strategies for managing the increased traffic in particular roads – notably Harrow Road. As these schemes did not have sufficient support from local residents and because we were not sure they would improve the situation, we could not agree with the Kings Lane LTN continuing.

We are absolutely committed to reducing traffic and pollution on our residential roads and are continuing to push for 20mph zones in the area, and are fully committed to improving the Shorts Road School Street with an expanded area; better enforcement and better hours of operation. We are also incredibly pleased with the success of the All Saints Carshalton School Street, and so are very much looking forward to this scheme continuing in the future pending consultation.

-Councillors Jake Short, Jill Whitehead and Chris Williams

Christmas/New Year Update

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris hope that you have had a restful and enjoyable Christmas. As we begin to approach the New Year, they want to update residents on their work over the past few months, looking ahead to 2021. You can find information on a variety of local issues that the three councillors have been working on, raised by residents.

Covid 19 update

Sutton is now in Tier 4 which means households cannot mix indoors, and that non- essential shops, cafes and pubs (indoor services),  hairdressers, libraries, gyms, and indoor leisure services are now closed.

Please keep a look out for any neighbours who may be elderly, infirm or disabled, or who may have other issues related to Covid 19. Help can be provided, if needed – please contact the council at www.sutton.gov.uk. There is a dedicated page on the Council website that you can view here.

Vaccinations: Vaccinations have started for the over 80’s at the local centre which is Nonsuch Mansion House in Cheam. Those eligible will receive a direct invitation from their local doctor’s surgery to attend the vaccination centre at Nonsuch. Please note that parking is at the Cheam Rd end, and patients are expected to reach the mansion on foot from the car park. You should advise your doctor if you need help to get to Nonsuch or to reach the Mansion from the car park. If you have a specialist buggy you normally use for pavement travel, you may find this helpful for travelling from the Cheam Rd car park to Nonsuch Mansion House.  

The Council is in discussions with the local doctors group to try and set up more local vaccination centres in other parts of the borough, which are easier to get to for most residents

Parking Strategy Consultation

The third and final consultation as part of the Parking Strategy has been live for several weeks now. It is seeking comments on three proposed Parking Permit Areas in Carshalton Central- CA1, covering Wallace Crescent, Wilmot Road and the northern end of Carshalton park Road; CA2 covering Talbot Road, The Square, Brookside, Carshalton Place, Cator Road and Seymour Road; and CB, covering the southern end of Carshalton Park Road and Gordon Road in the neighbouring Carshalton South & Clockhouse Ward.

Residents living in the proposed zones have received a letter from the Council, and one from the three Lib Dem councillors directly advertising the consultation dates. This consultation will run until 4th January. Please see the dedicated post on this website for more detailed information.

Kings Lane Low Traffic Neighbourhood

Jake, Jill and Chris have been receiving, and feeding back, comments and suggestions from residents regarding the experimental Low Traffic Neighbourhood in the Kings Lane area. Strong feedback from residents in the Harrow Road area around increased congestion and motor traffic, confirmed by data, have been taken on board by officers. Council officers have been working on specific remedies to try to combat these issues. If you live in the area, you will have received a letter from the three councillors asking for your views on a set of potential options. Feedback from those letters will really help the three Lib Dem councillors, and provide additional information that they can feed back to officers to improve the scheme.

Council wins full funding to rejuvenate Sutton Town Centre

Jake, Jill and Chris are extremely pleased to see that Sutton Council’s bid to the Future High Streets Fund has not only been accepted, but has received the full £11.3 million in funding that the Council requested. This programme of works is a Council initiative focusing on rejuvenating the Town Centre in Sutton. Thanks to the extremely hard work of Council officers, and the Lib Dem administration, we have received the funding to proceed with this game-changing project. You can find out more about these exciting developments here.

Road Marking Improvements


The council will shortly be repainting the faded double yellow lines and white road signage at the junctions of Florian Avenue and Orchard Way with Erskine Road.  

Erskine Road is due to be resurfaced in 2021/22, including the roundabout at the Florian Avenue junction.  Part of Florian Avenue, close to the junction and by the shops, will also be resurfaced next year. This work will be welcome to stop the anti- social parking on this dangerous junction, and improve sight lines.

New Friends of Warren Park group

A local resident in Kings Lane is setting up a new Friends of Warren Park Group to take advantage of the increased use of parks during Covid 19. Two priorities are to improve the children’s play area and to revitalise the important nature reserve at the back of the park, which has become degraded recently due to vandalism, littering and dogs not being kept on leads.  The nature reserve used to be fenced off, and we will need to look at ways it can be protected, as it is a vital grasslands habitat with rare butterflies.  The new Friends of Warren Park have applied to become community representatives on Carshalton and Clockhouse Local Cttee. If you are interested in joining the Friends please let Jake, Jill and Chris know, and they will pass your name onto the Chair of the group.

Tree pruning survey and replacing dead trees

In November the Council undertook its four yearly survey of trees in Carshalton Central Ward, looking at those which need pruning, or other required works such as root work or crown lifting, and removing diseased or dying  trees.

Of 568 trees examined, 42 trees were found to be diseased or dying (that is 7%), and these are currently being removed. We hope to replace some of these trees through funding from Carshalton and Clockhouse Local Cttee in 2021/22, subject to budget being available. They will be replaced by climate resistant and easy to maintain species which take into consideration the changes in our weather and climate.   Residents can help by sponsoring a new tree in their road, and help to maintain it by regular watering. Details are on the Council’s website www.sutton.gov.uk.

The pruning survey and work, which was originally due to take place in 2020, but which has been delayed due to Covid 19, will now take place in 2021.  

Carshalton Buildings Update

The Lodge: Work on The Lodge is almost complete, and we look forward to Ecolocal opening up part of the ground floor for community use. The building is now looking much improved with attention paid to period detail for this important 19th century heritage building in Carshalton.

The Grove: Plans for conversion of the building by Sutton Living are well advanced now. We understand the scheme will be for ten two or three bed maisonettes which will be let at market rent. Parking will be in the council car park adjacent. We are waiting for an imminent planning application, and attention is once again being paid to the important period detail in this 1840’s vintage  building.

Stonecourt: Discussions are taking place with a developer for the sensitive conversion of this building into apartments.

The Old Rectory:  The property has been checked for condition and some repairs have been carried out and it continues to be inspected regularly to ensure there is no further deterioration.  Further decisions will be taken around the future of the building, following its recent Grade 2 * listing.

There will be further more detailed information available over the next few months.

Parking Strategy Update

The final, legally-required consultation on a formal Traffic Management Order for new parking permit areas has now gone live.

Jake, Jill and Chris have been working hard with residents, businesses and council officers to try to find a solution to long-held problems around parking in Carshalton. This final consultation is the culmination of that work and they are extremely grateful for the input from residents and businesses throughout the process. The Lib Dem-run Council takes consultation extremely seriously, so has run a very long and detailed process with residents to make sure final proposals at this stage reflect their wishes while balancing the needs of local businesses. Below you can find out about specific permit areas being proposed in this consultation. Please note that this consultation will be running until 4th January 2021.
Three new permit areas are being proposed:

CA1- Covering Wallace Crescent, Wilmot Road and the northern part of Carshalton Park Road

This proposed zone would operate Monday-Friday, 8am-6:30pm. The council have made this decision to split the previously proposed large Talbot Road area zone into two separate permit areas, with varying times. Jake, Jill and Chris believe that this would be a preferred option rather than the previous larger zone, as it takes on board very strong resident feedback in the Wallace Crescent area. Responses and informal feedback in that area strongly preferred a larger window of operation for a permit area, while other roads within the previous proposal were much more mixed. They also believe that this will solve longstanding resident complaints about lack of parking capacity in the area, freeing up space for local residents.

Please note that residents of Rayner Close, while not formally in the zone- as the road in a Private Road- will be eligible for permits.

CA2- Covering Talbot Road, The Square, Carshalton Place, Brookside, Cator Road, and Seymour Road.

This proposed zone would operate Monday-Friday, 9am-11am and 4-6pm only. Following on from the previous decision to split the Talbot Road zone, this part of the previous zone has been proposed to have much narrower hours of operation. This was done due to the complex nature of parking issues in this area and in recognition of the needs of businesses on Carshalton High Street. As such, this proposal is a compromise based on feedback from residents and businesses. Jake, Jill and Chris are committed to helping our High Street and the traders on it and this proposal would allow them greater flexibility while still delivering on our commitment to residents to implement their feedback which requested a permit zone in this area.

CB- Covering the southern part of Carshalton Park Road

This proposed zone would operate Monday-Friday, 8:30am-6:00pm. This zone is focused on eliminating commuter parking around Carshalton Beeches station. This is consistent with the approach taken around other rail stations in the borough.

Jake, Jill and Chris are keen to hear your views. You can respond to the consultation and see more information here. The consultation will run until 4th January 2021.

Tough Action on Fly-Tipping

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris are fully supporting the new S.C.R.A.P campaign by Sutton Council. This new, high impact campaign is aimed at tackling fly-tipping in the borough.

Just recently, the Council has shown the tough action it can take against fly-tipping in Carshalton:

Recent Council action has led to steep fines being issued in Carshalton

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris are pleased to support this campaign that is already leading to direct results here in Carshalton.

You can find out more, and take action against fly-tipping here.

New Improvements for Carshalton Station!

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris are pleased to announce that Carshalton Station will be receiving some significant improvements, as part of Govia Thameslink Railway’s (GTR) #ImprovingYourStations campaign.

The improvements will include enhanced cycle parking, landscaping, improved seating and signage. It will also include repainting the waiting rooms and improvements to in-station toilet floors. They will be installed over the next few months.

The changes, lobbied for by Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris on behalf of local residents for quite some time have come about as a result of GTR’s Passenger Benefit Fund which looked for improvements to local stations from the general public and local councillors.

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris are thrilled to see GTR investing in our local station, following on from a major project to make the station step-free by installing lifts last year.

Lib Dem Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris visiting Carshalton station with former MP Tom Brake to see the then recently installed lifts

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris are determined to continue lobbying for improvements to local transport. Even as our train stations receive a much needed refresh, they are concerned by the Conservative Government continuing to put party politics ahead of delivering services via Transport for London in our area.

Green Flag for Grove Park!

Cllrs Jake, Jill and Chris supporting our local green spaces alongside former MP Tom Brake

Jake, Jill and Chris are proud to announce that the Grove Park has recently won Green Flag status. Green Flag status is awarded to parks to recognise excellent maintenance, cleanliness and community use, and is a sign of national and international excellence.

The Grove joins several other Sutton parks in receiving this prestigious status, underlining Lib Dem-run Sutton Council’s strong record of strong maintenance of our green spaces. It also highlights a key pledge that Jake, Jill and Chris have made to protect and enhance our green spaces.

Now that the Grove has this world-leading status, the Council and it’s contractors will be working hard to ensure that the park maintains it going forward.

TfL Bus Changes in Carshalton

Transport for London (TFL), is carrying out a consultation on proposed changes to some of Sutton’s bus services. TFL are inviting residents to make comments at www.consultations.tfl.gov.uk up to Sunday 20th December.  Please note that the consultation deadline has been extended to the end of December.

In our area there are proposed changes to the S3 and 407 bus routes.  The changes to the S3 route are significant, so you are urged to respond to the consultation if this affects you.

 And do let Jake, Jill and Chris know your views too.

TFL propose to shorten the S3 route between Sutton Town Centre and Malden Manor in future. The former Carshalton branch of the S3 route along Westmead Rd, Colston Avenue, West Street, Pound Street, Cambridge Rd., Banstead Rd., and Downs Rd., to the Royal Marsden Hospital, will be taken over by the 413 bus. In the opposite direction, the 413 will run through Sutton Town Centre to Morden station via Gander Green Lane. The hail and ride sections on the old S3 Carshalton parts of the route will be maintained.   The service will improve from every 20 minutes on the old S3 to every 15 minutes on the new 413, with services earlier and later in the day. The part of the retained northwards S3 route from Sutton Town Centre, will also have a route change via Sutton Town Centre and Sutton Common Station, along part of the 470 route.  It will no longer be possible to travel from Carshalton to Cheam Park Farm Tesco’s or St Anthony’s Hospital via the S3 without changing in Sutton Town Centre.

The 407 which follows the A232 will no longer continue onto Caterham and in future will terminate and turn round in Central Croydon, which will improve its reliability.   It will continue to operate at the same frequency.

Jake, Jill, Chris and the wider Sutton Lib Dem team are committed to fighting for better transport for Sutton.

Charles Cryer reopens!

Councillors Jake, Jill and Chris were very pleased to attend a gala at the Charles Cryer Centre on Friday evening, signifying the formal reopening of the theatre in the heart of Carshalton.

The event featured many local artists including young musicians from Sutton Music Service, Kazoom, The Brook Choir and Wayne Woodward. It was an incredible evening showcasing local talent, in the borough’s newly opened cultural hub.

The Lib Dem Councillors for Carshalton Central are extremely proud that Carshalton is now the focalpoint for culture and the arts in Sutton borough.

They were delighted to see the theatre was full throughout the evening, with Councillors and other individuals from across the borough coming together to support the newly reopened theatre.

Now that the Cryer is official back up and running, it is incumbent on us all to support the new theatre by going to events and shows there!

Jake, Jill and Chris would like to extend their thanks to CryerArts for running such a marvellous evening. CryerArts have their full support and wish them the best of luck with the venture in the coming weeks, months and years.

Cllrs Jake Short, Jill Whitehead and Chris Williams outside the Cryer for the opening gala on Friday evening

Holocaust Memorial Day 2020

All three of us were humbled to attend the Holocaust Memorial Day event this morning at Sutton Grammar School. At the event, we heard from Mrs Eve Gill, a survivor of the Holocaust who told us her story from living in Vienna up to the present day with details of her traumatic experience in Nazi-occupied Austria.

We also saw performances from local school children expressing their interpretation of this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day theme ‘Stand Together’.

This event is run every year through the Sutton and District United Synagogue, and Sutton Grammar School, involving schools from across the borough. Through this yearly commemoration, we show that we cannot allow the evils of the past to become our present or future.

-Cllrs Jake Short, Jill Whitehead and Chris Williams