Epsom & Ewell Borough Council has invited some 90 local organisations to consultation sessions on the current DPD Consultation which runs until 7th September. Sessions are available every Monday and Wednesday between 9am and 5pm until 7th September.
A meeting designed to launch a Friends of Epsom group has been an unqualified success.
Surrey residents are invited to a series of open engagement events with Deputy Chief Constable Craig Denholm to discuss the financial challenges facing Surrey Police and the options for future policing.
Surrey County Council is keen to accept bids for Youth Small Grants. Funding is available for small, voluntary organisations to enable direct work with young people.
A questionnaire relating to readership and content of the borough council's magazine "Insight" is still available to complete until 13th August. Respondents can be anonymous if desired.
A public meeting to discuss plans to merge Epsom Hospital with Ashford & St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will take place on Wednesday 12th September at 7.30pm at Epsom Town Hall.
A petition of over 2,000 signatures was today presented to a meeting of Surrey County Council's Cabinet, calling for Surrey's Performing Arts Library to be saved. The petition, which was launched by Liberal Democrat county councillors in September, was handed in by Ges Ray, Vice-Chair of the Leith Hill Music Festival. Recommendations as to the future of the service will be proposed by the Communities Select Committee at their meeting in February 2018, with a final decision taken by the Council's Cabinet in March.
Liberal Democrat county councillors have expressed their concern after it was revealed that Surrey County Council's spending on consultants has more than doubled from the previous year. Following an information request to the County Council by Cllr Hazel Watson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats, it was revealed that spending on consultants rose from £305,000 in 2015/16 to £663,420 in 2016/17 - a staggering rise of 118%. The maximum day rate paid was a shocking £1800 per day - meaning that at least one consultant working for the Tory administration was earning the equivalent of £468,000 a year. Cllr Hazel Watson said today: "At a time when the County Council is under extreme financial pressure and cutting vital services, spending on consultants should not be going up and certainly not by 118%. The Conservative administration cannot on the one hand say they have been forced to cut services because there is a lack of funding and at the same time double spending in areas such as this. "This use of consultants need
Liberal Democrat county councillors today welcomed the decision by Conservative-run Surrey County Council to amend its unpopular street lighting policy. The policy, which was introduced in 2016 and early 2017, saw thousands of street lights turned off across the county without any consultation with the residents affected. The change of policy means that lights will stay on until 1am rather than midnight from Thursday 23rd November 2017.
Liberal Democrat county councillors have handed in a petition with over 2,000 signatures calling for Surrey's Performing Arts Library to be retained. It follows a consultation held by Surrey County Council which outlined 3 options for the Library - closure, fragmentation of the service across other libraries or the service by being provided by another organisation. The Library, which is currently based near Dorking at Denbies Wine Estate, houses a unique collection of music, theatre, orchestral and dance materials available for public loan. Cllr David Goodwin, Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Communities, said today:
