Cllr. Hamish Pollock who was born in south Sutton but had four Scottish-born great-grandparents and four English-born ones says…

Both sides in the Scottish referendum debate are making their final pitch today to voters on the last day of campaigning. It comes as the latest polls suggested the result remained too close to call, with a slender lead for a “No” vote. With undecided voters excluded, they all suggested a lead for “No” of 52% to 48%. The result should be known by the early hours of Friday morning, 19th September.

Sutton’s Local Business Rate Relief Scheme – Open Now – Up to 50% business rate discount available with eligibility criteria

Apply now to save 50% on your first year of trading in Sutton.  Opportunity Sutton aims to assist new business start ups and existing businesses to grow by offering them the opportunity to receive business rate discounts. Rate relief will be offered to new businesses locating within the defined Sutton Town Centre Business Improvement District area and also to expanding SMEs looking to relocate within the same area.The Local Business Rate Relief Scheme will be offered to all eligible businesses for a maximum of 12 months for applications received between 1 April 2014 and 31 March 2015 at a maximum amount of 50% of net liability.

Find out more through our Local Business Rate Relief Fact Sheet
Local business rate relief scheme Fact Sheet

Got a question? Read our FAQs
Local Business rate relief scheme FAQs

Unsure of the process? View our application process chart
Local Business Rate Relief – Application process for businesses

Are you moving within the designated Sutton High Street Business Improvement District area?
Sutton BID map

Apply now
Local Business Rate Relief Application Form

A magnificent tree in Ashcombe Court grounds, The Park, Carshalton in the Carshalton Park Conservation Area

Trees in Conservation Areas

It is offence to carry out the following works:

• Cut down
• Uproot
• Top
• Lop
• Wilfully damage or
• Wilfully destroy

to any tree located within a conservation area that measures more than 75 millimetres in diameter when measured 1.5 metres above the ground.

Anyone wishing to carry out works to.such a tree in a Conservation Area must give notice to the Council in writing at least 6 weeks before they wish to carry out the work:

It is an offence to carry out the works unless you have given notice in writing to the Council, and you have either:

1. Received a decision; or
2. 6 weeks have expired since you served a valid notice on the Council and you have not received a decision.

Anyone found guilty of this offence is liable, if convicted in a Magistrate’s Court, to a fine up to £20,000.

If the Council does not determine the application within the 6 weeks referred to above the works may automatically proceed providing the works are carried out within 2 years of the notice.

Alan, Jill and Hamish as the local councillors received a letter a few days ago from the headteacher of Carshalton High School for Girls which we have been allowed today (12th September) to publish:-

Dear Councillor

I am writing in response to the article relating to the proposed sports hall at Carshalton High School for Girls outlined in a recent edition of Focus.

Context

The school has been bidding for funding to improve and upgrade the facilities at the school for many years. In comparison to all other secondary schools in the local area, the accommodation at Carshalton High School for Girls is inadequate with students not having equality of access to specialist facilities as their peers do in other schools. In April this year we heard that a bid we had submitted to the Education Funding Agency on the grounds of condition had been successful and we were granted £2.9million to replace our life-expired mobiles in a new building; which includes new dining facilities, replacing the 1940’s horsa – hut at the edge of the site adjoining houses in Colston Avenue and West Street.

At the same time, for the past 18 months, we have been working with the Education Department of the London Borough of Sutton, along with all other secondary schools in the borough, to discuss expansion of secondary schools to address the extremely serious pupil place planning issues that the borough faces. It was agreed by councillors that Carshalton High School for Girls should expand by one form of entry from September 2015. However, along with the other schools expanding, and the vast majority will be expanded by 2018, even with the investment from the EFA, we have a shortage of space to provide a full curriculum for our students, and one area in particular sports and changing facilities, is particularly poor; we currently are unable to provide a full PE curriculum.

The London Borough of Sutton has therefore agreed to fund a further £2.7million to the school, to enlarge the original footprint of the new building to replace the mobile accommodation, to re-model two current buildings that stand next to each other to provide more classroom space and to build a sports hall with changing rooms.

The Sports Hall

Originally to try to attract funding for the sports hall, the school had been looking to secure grants from sporting organisations including Sport England. In order to do so the plans drawn up needed to be in accordance with the Sport England ‘Aspire’ programme and therefore of a size and standard that would meet the necessary criteria including extensive community use for evenings, weekends and during school holidays.

With the local authority agreement to fund the sports hall the need to satisfy the criteria above is no longer a requirement. The size of the sports hall itself has therefore been reduced to a standard 4 court building with changing rooms. The facilities will be primarily for school use and whilst some lettings may take place it will be in line with the type of letting programme the school has undertaken for many years, which has benefited the local community without causing the type of concerns that the newsletter article outlines.

Specific Concerns Raised

Extra Usage: As outlined above the sports hall will be primarily for school use. The facilities included will limit how it can be used. It is not of the size and scope highlighted in the original plans. The school currently has lettings for sporting activities such as badminton, cheerleading and Zumba. It is envisaged that such activities will continue in the vein of the current provision.

Parking: All members of the community who use the facilities will be required to park in the school car park. Some parking spaces are being created close to the new building but will be accessed from the school site and simply replace others that are being lost elsewhere as the site is re-configured. For example, there are a number of spaces around the current dining room which will be lost when the area at the back of the site is turned back to grass.

Increased Congestion: As there will be limited use of the facilities it is not envisaged that this will create significant extra congestion. Cars will enter and exit the school through the gates on West Street as they currently do and will be parked in the main school car park at the front of the building. There will not be access from Colston Avenue.

Noise: On the previous plans there was significant configured outdoor space to accommodate community use. The new plans do not have such facilities. The new plans simply replace what currently exists in a like-for-like scenario e.g. two netball courts, long-jump pit and grassed area for pitches and athletics. These facilities will be sited on the areas released by the demolition of vacated buildings.

Lettings: In line with all other schools in the area, we seek to ensure that the school is a hub of the community, enabling local residents to access specialised facilities when the school is not used by students. However, the school has total control over the lettings and has for many years taken into account the balance of opening its doors to the community, being able to generate some additional income to plough back into the upkeep of the buildings and ensuring a very positive relationship is developed and maintained with the residents who live locally. The addition of the proposed new facilities will not change that policy or ethos.

Travel Plan:The school has had a travel plan in place for several years and we were delighted this year to receive the Silver Award. There is a commitment to encourage students to walk or cycle to school and we actively discourage parents from parking in such a way that causes issues for the local residents.

In conclusion, we hope this allays any fears that local residents may have and gives an accurate picture of the proposed plans. As a school we aim to do the very best for our students. We feel that the girls have been disadvantaged for many years in terms of accommodation in comparison to their counterparts in other schools, although this has not prevented the school from securing enormous improvements in recent years. We now have the opportunity to re-dress that balance and ensure our students are learning in an environment conducive to the 21st Century. The Focus newsletter sums this up so well with the heading ‘Stronger Economy Fairer Society’; we obviously have a shared vision for young people in this area.

We pride ourselves on having been a part of the local community for years and establishing and maintaining a very positive relationship with local residents. Our recent Golden Anniversary celebrations brought many members of the community through the gates and we want to ensure that positivity is maintained and have taken this into account when formatting the plans for the new building and the sports hall.

The Chair of Governors, the Architect team and I would all be very happy to meet with you to discuss these issues further. Please do not hesitate to contact the school to speak to me or e-mail me on vjones@suttonmail.org.

Yours sincerely

Vivien Jones

Headteacher

A letter has been issued to local residents in respect of the PROPOSED BUILDING DEVELOPMENTS FOR THE EXPANSION OF ST. MARY’S CATHOLIC JUNIOR SCHOOL, SHORTS ROAD, CARSHALTON, SM5 2PB. the contents of the letter are summarised below.

St. Mary’s Catholic Junior School will be holding a pre-planning consultation drop in session on Wednesday 17th September from 3.45pm through to 6.30pm.  The Architectural Consultants; Re-Format, will be arranging an exhibition at the School to share with you the proposed building development and the associated infrastructure, which will enable the expansion of the School.  Representatives from the School, the Council and the Consultant Architects will be available to discuss the proposals.  There will be the opportunity for you to record any comments or observations you may have, which we hope will inform the further development of the design for the project. We are also involving staff and pupils in looking at what is being proposed and allowing them the opportunity to comment as well.

Please note that the school entrance is off Shorts Road and is shared with St. Philomena’s School.  Please follow the direction signs from this point.

The school look forward to meeting you on 17th September to share our proposals and to hear your views.

One or more of your three local councillors may be in attendance for part of the time subject to our other commitments that afternoon/evening.

Cllr. Hamish Pollock reports: “I have recently asked the council to clear the weeds at the mini-roundabout at the junction of Woodstock Road and Ashcombe Road and also alongside the high walls in Shorts Road.”

Jill, Alan and Hamish have received reports that there are today 11th September five caravans encamped in the car park off the High Street, Carshalton.

When this sort of thing has happened in the past in various parts of the borough (and it has to be said in other neighbouring boroughs such as Croydon) the Council’s officers have to carry out the legally-required visits and to provide reports to various departments and authorities which of course takes time to process. 

Officers use standard legal procedures to move the travellers on as soon as possible.

More in a future posting!

Sutton Council has published a new map to encourage us all to get out and discover the wildlife on our doorstep.

The Sutton Nature Explorer Map provides handy information on selected wildlife sites in the Borough. So if you want to know which sites have Autumn interest, where education activities are held, how best to travel or even where you will be able to make an active difference by volunteering, then this map is for you. For those with a keen interest, this A5 fold-out leaflet draws attention to key species found in the Borough and explains how the landscape is managed to support them. Even if you’re not a nature buff, you’ll be able to identify some lovely spots where you can simply relax and enjoy being outdoors.

Funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Sutton Nature Explorer Map is free and available to pick up from the reception of the Council offices at Denmark Road or at Biodiversity Team events.

The Sutton Nature Map

Cllr. Jill Whitehead

Cllr Jill Whitehead, Chair of Sutton Council’s Environment and Neighbourhoods Committee, said:

“This new map identifies the borough’s green and wild land and will help add recognition to the importance of our wild land resources. I hope that residents will pick up this information and get real enjoyment out of it, exploring new places and seeing beautiful sites in their very own borough.” 

You can also download a copy from the Sutton Nature website at www.suttonnature.wordpress.com

Carshalton Central residents particularly those with Sutton SM1 postcodes sometimes use the very busy Sutton Train Station for work, leisure or pleasure…  the side entrance to the south is being completed and will be opened soon. Improvements Works at the front of Sutton Station will commence this September, and be completed by next March 2015, but we understand that there will be no work over the Christmas period to avoid any inconvenience to shoppers. Some of the work will involve traffic diversions.

The project’s proposals to further develop the area around Sutton station include:

• a new “countdown” crossing in Brighton Road
• the opening of the side entrance to Sutton station
• new “legible London” signs
• a re-arrangement of the bus stops
• it is not proposed to move the taxi rank, except that after 6.30pm some taxis will be able to park immediately opposite the station, with the bus stop opposite the station moved further down Brighton Road and with some buses stopping in Mulgrave Road
• there will be “live” bus information in Sutton station, subject to further research by Network Rail
• the timing of the pedestrian crossing at the High Street / Grove Road / Sutton Court Road junction will be amended to give more time to cross
• the number of parking spaces in the station area will be increased
• general improvements in design and to the “public realm” around the station, with more flowers, more colour and better signage.

While the side entrance to the station will open next month most of the changes, such as the changes to the bus stops, will be early in 2015.Work on the main changes will commence in September and finish by March 2015 but there will be no work over the Christmas period to avoid inconveniencing Christmas shoppers. These changes are largely funded by grants that Sutton Council has obtained, not local Council tax payers.