EARLY SUCCESS FOR CAMPAIGN TO BRING TRAMS TO SUTTON

tram

Sutton Council’s campaign to bring trams to the Borough is celebrating an early success. 

Plans to extend the existing Tramlink network to Sutton have been included in the Mayor’s new vision for London document, “2020 Vision – The Greatest City on Earth”, published last week.  It outlines some of the challenges facing the capital, including housing, employment and transport.

Sutton Council, business and residents support the tram extension, which will improve transport links in and out of, and across, Sutton. The project will also create and sustain new jobs, drive economic growth, ease traffic congestion and reduce CO2 emissions.

 We understand the original draft of the Mayor’s vision document made no mention of bringing the tram to Sutton, but our Tramlink campaign, still in its infancy, has already yielded a result. The Mayor of London is asking us to demonstrate how this investment will be justified by the improvements it can bring in terms of jobs, growth, and housing.

Sutton is already one step ahead.  We have commissioned research which demonstrates that extending Tramlink to Sutton will create 10,000 jobs, bring forward sites for residential development, and support and boost the economy. 

We know that extending Tramlink will ensure Sutton continues to prosper into the future. The Borough of Sutton has had an ambition to bring Tramlink to Sutton since 2003 when it was included in the Unitary Development Plan. The Borough has successfully worked with Transport for London to examine the feasibility of bringing trams to central Sutton, connecting it to St Helier Hospital, Morden Tube Station and Wimbledon. At some point a spur through our Ward, Sutton South, would connect to the Marsden hospital. This feasibility work is ongoing, and Sutton’s Tramlink campaign seeks to ensure the Mayor will continue to fund this work in Transport for London’s future budgets.

CANNABIS, DOGS, SPEEDING, DRINKING, ATTEMPTED BURGLARIES – BUT SUTTON SOUTH REMAINS A LOW CRIME AREA

police station

Heather and Richard attended the Sutton South Ward police panel on 12 June. There was discussion of current crime trends, including recent burglaries and attempted burglaries in Mayfield Road.

While the police were unable to give a reason for these incidents they commented that sometimes there is a “clustering” of crime in an area for a short period for no obvious reason, but it would be unusual for it to persist as a problem. They have moved quickly to re-assure residents and have knocked on doors in Mayfield Road, and left a feedback form where there was no-one in. If you have any observations you want to make to the local police you can contact them on ztsnt-suttonsouth@met.police.uk

Also, nine local residents attended their recent street briefing.

While no-one can ever be complacent and we must all maintain our vigilance, it remains the case that this Ward is a low crime area, indeed one of the safest areas in south London. Burglary, along with theft from motor vehicles, remains a police priority for the area, but the most common form of burglary in our area is theft from garages, and residential (house) burglaries are mercifully rare.

The meeting also discussed future action on speeding, a dog seizure in Cumnor Road, a cannabis factory in Westmoreland Drive and the success of the extension of the “No Drinking Zone” to our Ward.

We also discussed the introduction of the “London Policing Model” on 24 June. While the implications are not all positive, these changes are not going to damage the excellent service we generally get from our local police.

 Next street briefing: 12 July outside Lavender Court in Cavendish Road.

SUBSTANTIAL PRICE INCENTIVES PROPOSED TO HELP PEOPLE MOVE TO GIBSON ROAD CAR PARK IF BRIGHTON ROAD CAR PARK CLOSES

 

subsea reduced

Speaking at the Environment and Neighbourhoods Committee on 13 June Richard welcomed progress on agreeing a structure of incentives to persuade Brighton Road car park users to move to Gibson Road if the car park closes. Currently, Subsea7 are applying for planning permission to build a new international headquarters (see above) on the site.

Richard pointed out that this development will safeguard several hundred jobs currently in Sutton that were likely to move elsewhere, and bring a further three to four hundred jobs into Sutton South Ward. These new jobs are good news for Sutton.

This development will create jobs, not just for engineers but a range of less skilled jobs (clerks, receptionists, cleaners, messengers, drivers etc.). This site is surrounded by areas of social housing where we meet, in our casework, people who are out of work and whose lives would be transformed by finding work. Every day we open the newspaper and see news of more redundancies nationwide – but Richard and Heather can speak of securing an extra 300 plus jobs in our Ward. The development will also give an uplift to the area, the Gateway to Sutton from the south, with office workers and the company’s clients spending money in local shops, restaurants and hotels, creating further jobs.

But the second message is that to deal with local concerns about parking in local streets if the car park closes, we need to persuade the users of the Brighton Road car park to use the town centre car parks, which have the capacity. The average weekday demand at peak occupancy of the car park is about 380 vehicles and 320 have season tickets. So the season ticket holders are key.   

The first and most important element in the strategy is a financial discount to persuade people to move. The discount proposed by the Committee, as a recommendation to the Strategy and Resources Committee, says to the season ticket holders “move to Gibson Road and you will pay, for the first year, what you paid last year less 10% – unless, you already have a discount, in which case it continues. This is to compensate you for the inconvenience of moving and to provide an incentive to move to Gibson Road”.

We hope this will persuade people to move, to a car park which is no more than seven minutes walk away.

The further element of the strategy is improvements in respect of signage to the car parks (including electronic signs indicating what number spaces are available) and improvements in access, in particular enabling those leaving Gibson Road to avoid the town centre one way system.

We hope this proposed substantial discount will achieve the right result, so that we will be able to secure the major advantage of the new jobs while coping with the reduction in parking space. The structure of discounts will, however, be further considered by the Strategy and Resources Committee.

SUTTON PARENTS URGED TO GET THEIR CHILDREN VACCINATED

Sutton parents need to ensure their children are immunised, as for many childhood immunisation programmes the figures for Sutton and Merton are the lowest in the country.

At the Sutton Health and Wellbeing Board meeting on June 10 a report was received on the Public Health Outcome Framework. This Framework includes the national statistics for immunisation and shows that the official statistics for Sutton and Merton for a large number of childhood immunisations are the lowest in the country.
 
Dr Ellis Friedman, the recently appointed Director of Public Health commented: “The recorded childhood immunisation rates locally appear to pose a significant risk to the health of the population. However the number of cases of infection amongst residents has been relatively low in the past few years.
 
“This could reflect luck or that some immunised children are not officially recorded therefore leading to an overestimate of the risk to the health of the population. I have as a matter of urgency, reviewed the accuracy of the immunisation records in Sutton. It is clear that the information systems are poor with many immunisations known to GPs not being on the central record.
 
“It therefore seems certain that the Sutton population has more protection against childhood infections than would be deduced from the low recorded immunisation rates.
 
“Nonetheless the current situation is unacceptable. NHS England who became the responsible body in April need to improve the quality of the information service as a matter of urgency.”
 
Dr Friedman continued: “The poor quality of the information is not the only problem with the immunisation service. There are many children who are not vaccinated. The most vulnerable group is 10-16 year olds who have not had a MMR immunisation. They will receive an invitation to be immunised at their GP surgery.
 
“I have spoken to primary and secondary school heads and written to every school about the importance of the MMR initiative. They have all pledged their support. They also recognise the importance of the parents of all children who have missed immunisations arranging for their child to be immunised. This can be done by contacting your GP.”
 
In the past three months there has been only one case of measles in Sutton.
 
The call for more vaccinations was repeated by Dr Brendan Hudson GP, Chair of Sutton Clinical Commissioning Group and Vice Chair of the Health and Wellbeing Board, who added: “I urge parents of unimmunised children to contact their GP to arrange for them to be vaccinated. GPs are eager to provide this important service.”

FURTHER ACTION ON SPEEDING

Previous posts on this site have described how Richard and Heather presented a petition to Sutton Council last July on speeding in Cavendish Road. This led to the biggest speeding survey ever in our Ward, and to agreement on width restrictions to reduce speeding at two points in Cedar Road and two points in Cavendish Road.

In addition we have proposed and obtained funding for additional “20 mph” roundels to be painted on roads within the South Sutton 20mph area. This will enable the Council to put 20 mph “roundels” on the road at the east end of Cavendish Road to match those at the west end. There have always been roundels at the west end, so drivers know it is a 20mph zone they are entering. At the east end there is no roundel as the driver is already in a 20 mph zone and the law said the roundels could only be placed at the entry point to the zone. A recent change in the law means the roundels can now be displayed within the zone to re-enforce the message. We hope to have additional roundels at several points within the 20mph zone to re-enforce the message that you are in such a zone.

We are convinced this will help with the speeding problem in Cavendish Road, and elsewhere in the 20mph zone.

roundels

PROMOTING THE SUTTON TRAMLINK

tram

Sutton Council has made public detailed plans for an extension of London Tramlink to the town. The plans were made public at a meeting on Thursday 23 May attended by Councillors, local business leaders and the Under Secretary of State for Transport, Norman Baker MP, who was at the launch event to give the project his backing. .

The planned route would run from the existing Tramlink Croydon-Wimbledon line at Merton through Rosehill and St Helier, Angel Hill, and Sutton High Street to a terminal at Sutton station. A later second phase would link the town centre to the Royal Marsden Hospital.

The tram connection would cut local journey times and costs, reduce pollution on the streets of Sutton and help regenerate areas such as the St Helier Estate by encouraging investment, improving access and widening the job market in the areas concerned.

The extension through our Ward to the Marsden hospital would be of importance as it is expected that the development of a research centre at the Marsden will create many local jobs. 

The Tramlink is a major plank in the “Opprtunity Sutton” programme, which Richard is closely involved with as vice-chair of the Housing, Economy and Business Committee.

SUTTON SOUTH LOCAL COMMITTEE DISCUSSES SOCIAL ISOLATION

Care Minister Norman Lamb MP with Heather, launching Sutton South Hello!

Care Minister Norman Lamb MP with Heather, launching Sutton South Hello!

The South Sutton, Cheam and Belmont Local Committee devoted half its meeting on 23 May, held at Christchurch in Christchurch Park, to discussing the “South Sutton Hello!” project and social isolation in the area. There were a number of presentations and themes for discussion, after an introduction by Heather as Chair of the Steering Group.

Heather reminded us that South Sutton Hello is an initiative to combat loneliness and isolation, supported by major local charities like AgeUK, Citizens’ Advice Bureau, Sutton Mental Health Foundation, and local residents’ Associations such as SSNA and the HRA. It is a non-political initiative with support from all political parties. 

It was aunched at Christchurch on 9 May by the Care Minister, Norman Lamb MP and is intended to be a pilot for similar initiatives elsewhere. Sutton South Ward chosen as on the basis Campaign to End Social Isolation toolkit, it is a ward where the risk of social isolation is particularly high:

–         the Ward has the highest proportion of over 65’s of any Ward in Sutton

–         the proportion over 85 is double the Sutton and national average

–         there are a large number of people living in sheltered accommodation for the elderly or in single occupancy flats

–         over three quarters of residents live in purpose-built blocks of flats

–         almost half of all households are single person households

–         but a quarter of residents in the Ward say they regularly volunteer in some capacity, so there is a high level of community activism.

The project has drawn together a listing of the various community initiatives in Sutton South, particularly those run by the churches and AgeUK. It has produced a first newsletter and will follow this up with more. There are a number of specific activities it has promoted:

–         the Wednesday “Hello Club” at Christchurch run by SCILL (Sutton Centre for Independent Living and Learning)

–         Chair based exercise classes organised by AgeUK for the Sutton and Surrey Senior Citizens Club

–         The “Second Saturday” social club for older people at the Friends’ Meeting House, where attendance has increased five fold since the project started promoting it.

AgeUK say there has been a 106% increase in callers from our Ward to its Information and Advice service since the project started promoting it. The project is seeking volunteers, particularly as befrienders. These are organised by the Sutton Centre for Independent Living and Learning. There is a phone number 0208 770 4065, or email information@scill.org.uk.

At its meeting, following the discussion, the Committee agreed the extension of controlled parking to Eastleigh Close, a project Richard has championed on behalf of the residents there, who have voted for it in successive consultation exercises.

The Commmittee also agreed to a proposal Richard made for additional “20mph” roundels in the road in the Sutton South 20mph area, to combat speeding.

RICHARD AND HEATHER CONTINUE THEIR RESPONSIBILITIES, FOR SOCIAL SERVICES AND ECONOMIC GROWTH

 

Heather, Richard and Mary Burstow on the bench they donated to Richard Sharples Court

Heather, Richard and Mary Burstow on the bench they donated to Richard Sharples Court

 

May the 20th. was the date Sutton Council held its “annual” Council meeting that elects the new Mayor and allocates Councillors to the various Council Committees. Richard and Heather are both continuing with the responsibilities they have had since last year – Heather as vice-chair of the Adult Social Services and Health Committee, Richard as vice-chair of the Housing, Economy and Business Committee.

Both have a variety of other appointments, many related to these main responsibilities. Heather is a member of the South West London Joint Health Scrutiny Committee and the Merton, Sutton and Surrey Joint Health Scrutiny Committee. She is also a member of the committee responsible for appointments of senior officers. Richard continues to chair the Sutton Joint Health and Safety Committee (“joint” with recognised trade unions) and is a member of the Standards Committee, the Scrutiny Committee and the Sutton Town Centre Partnership.

RICHARD CALLS FOR STRONGER POWERS TO ENFORCE PLANNING DECISIONS

Sutton Council’s Development Control Committee strongly supported an appeal by Richard, at its meeting on 22 May, for stronger powers to be available to planning authorities to enforce planning decisions.

The Committee held a general discussion of the planning history of St. Jude’s nursing home in Mayfield Road, triggered by the latest planning application.

Richard pointed out to the Committee that there had been a succession of structures built in the small garden of the nursing home without the owner bothering to observe the requirements to apply in advance for planning permission. Some were still not in compliance with the planning permission obtained.

He argued that the basic problem was that planning law is weak in terms of the tools for enforcement provided to the authority, in contrast to the field he used to work in, health and safety, where enforcement can be direct and immediate. As a result it seems to residents that the developer acts with impunity and nothing is done. Enforcement is a slow process with numerous opportunities for appeals and delay available to the developer.

He mentioned to the Committee that, when elected in 2010, he arranged some meetings between the owner and local residents, which seemed to improve the atmosphere locally for a time. He was personally very disappointed that these had not sorted out the problems.

However, the Committee decided, with evident reluctance, that with regard to the particular small modification to an already extended building that was the subject of this particular application before them, there were no sound planning grounds to refuse it.

BIN COLLECTION ON A WEEKLY BASIS GUARANTEED FOR YEARS TO COME

bin

Sutton householders can rely on having weekly bin collections for the next five years after Sutton Council promised the Government it would continue to maintain the service on this basis.

The Leader of the Council has written to the Department for Communities and Local Government pledging the authority to carry on collecting residual waste on a weekly basis weekly through  to 2016/17.

The move follows a successful bid for £2.8million of funding from the Waste Collection Support Scheme.

Richard and Heather have been concerned to ensure a weekly pattern of collection is maintained and are delighted that this commitment has been given.

Weekly bin collections are very important to residents and we have worked very hard to ensure that we continue providing that service.

In spring last year we made radical changes to our collection system in order to make the service more adaptable and cost-efficient and we will continue focusing on providing a high-quality, value-for-money service.

In addition to weekly collections, the authority is also committed to continuing crucial work on promoting more recycling and cutting the volume of waste sent to landfill.

The decision to retain weekly collections has been agreed, but it will be formally ratified by Sutton Council’s Environment and Neighbourhoods Committee.