Welcome to the latest electronic newsletter.  If you have any questions or comments regarding the newsletter please e-mail us at news@spelthorne.gov.uk

News

Half-term play scheme vouchers Spelthorne Borough Council is offering subsidised play scheme places for families who live in Spelthorne and are in receipt of benefits.

Other news

Holocaust Memorial Day
Councillor praises staff
MEND success in Spelthorne
Help with keeping warm this winter

More news in brief

Adult Badminton Coaching Courses

Are you interested in taking up a new sport or want to improve on your existing skills?

Racqueteers Badminton Club in partnership with Spelthorne Borough Council is running coaching courses for beginners and improvers from February. The courses are a mix of coaching sessions and game play sessions to help build on existing skills and get new players into the sport. All sessions are part of this friendly badminton club and all levels are welcome.

Start date: Thursday 4 February

Badminton for beginners coaching course
Time 8.45-9.45pm
Venue Bishop Wand School Sports Hall, Sunbury
Cost £30 for 12 week course (mixture of coaching sessions and supervised game play)

Badminton for improvers coaching course
Time 7.45-8.45pm
Venue Bishop Wand School Sports Hall, Sunbury
Cost £30 for 12 week course (mixture of coaching sessions and supervised game play).

For more information on the courses contact Leisure Services on 01784 446433 or e-mail leisure@spelthorne.gov.uk.

The club are also looking for new adult members and anyone interested in joining can contact Andy Kelly on 07789 610550 for more information. Anyone from the age of 16 years and upwards can join. People of all standards are welcome to come and join in. The regular adult club night is Thursdays 7.30-9.45pm at Bishop Wand School.

Surrey Cricket Coaching

The Mark Butcher Course for U6-U8 will run every Sunday at the Spelthorne Leisure Centre from 24 January - 28 March from 2-3pm at a cost of £49.

The Mark Ramprakash Course for U9-U10 will run every Sunday at Spelthorne Leisure Centre on 24 January - 28 March from 3-4.30pm at a cost of £99.99.

For an application form or more information call 08712 461100 or visit the surrey cricket website www.britoval.com/surrey-cricket/development/junior-coaching (external website)

Leisure Directory 2010

The 2010 Leisure Directory is now available for you to download.

Have Your Say - dates for your diary

Spelthorne Council’s ‘Have Your Say’ public meetings will be held at six venues across the borough in June and July.

Each will include one or two presentations on topics of interest to the area and an audience question and answer session. Residents will also have the opportunity to individually meet and raise issues with local councillors, council staff and several of the Council’s partners including Surrey Police, Surrey NHS, Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals Trust, Spelthorne Community Safety Team, and Surrey County Council.

The dates are:-

Sunbury Common:  10 June, Kenyngton Manor School, Bryony Way, Sunbury
Ashford:  17 June, Thomas Knyvett School
Shepperton:  22 June 8-10pm, Shepperton Village Hall (following the Residents’ Association meeting)
Staines:  24 June, Methodist Church Hall, Thames Street
Lower Sunbury:  1 July, Sunbury Manor School
Stanwell:  15 July, St David’s Hall, Everest Road.

All meetings are from 7-9pm except at Shepperton where it will be 8-10pm.

Details will be advertised on the council website, on community noticeboards nearer the time, and on outdoor banners a week before each meeting.

For Have Your Say enquiries contact Joanne Jones on 01784 446421, e-mail haveyoursay@spelthorne.gov.uk or visit the website www.spelthorne.gov.uk/cou_area_forum_dates (external link)

NSPCC Sponsored Areobathon

The NSPCC Aerobathon is being held at the Spelthorne Leisure Centre on Monday 8 February from 6-8pm.

Grab your leg warmers and come along. Qualified instructors will take you through a sponsored workout that can really make a difference to children’s lives.

Registration is £5 and includes entry to the Aerobathan and a t-shirt. To register, pick up a leaflet from the Leisure Centre or download one at www.nspcc.org.uk/areobathon (external website). Then ask everyone you know to sponsor you, turn up and enjoy a great workout and help children in the UK have a happier life.

Garden waste collection

You are running out of time to sign up for the 2010 garden waste collection scheme at the special price of £40. After 31 January the cost will be £45 so apply today and save yourself £5.

Clean Sweep

Spelthorne Council regularly clean local roads and pavements using a mechanical sweeper. However, this service is disrupted in roads where cars are constantly parked.  

If a road near you if affected by this problem, the Council can liaise with the Police to clear the vehicles and undertake a thorough clean. The Council will also liaise with Surrey County Council to clean the gullies at the same time.

If you feel your road requires a 'clean sweep' then please call Natalie Jones on 01784 446411.

Your local NHS ambulance service is changing

The South East Coast Ambulance Service is asking residents for their views on how the service should be run.

South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Trust provides ambulance services to around 4.5 million people – that’s more people than the entire population of New Zealand. We have 63 ambulance stations, more than 3,000 staff, cover an area of 3,600 square miles (across Kent, Surrey, Sussex and north-east Hampshire) and on average we receive an emergency call every minute of every day.

We want the people we serve to have a say in the way we run our service, so we’re inviting you (and the people you work with) to become ‘members’ of South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb). Becoming a member is simple, free and it’ll mean you’re supporting us as well as having your say about how we can make our services even better. Membership doesn’t need to take up your time – you can just receive our free quarterly newsletter, with details of the latest developments in life-saving treatments and technology, useful tips, interesting public health information and real-life stories – but being a member will also give you the chance to get more involved if you want to.

Members can also stand for election to our Council of Governors, and will be able to vote for the governors who will work with our Directors to shape SECAmb’s future. The way SECAmb is governed is changing because we are applying to become a Foundation Trust. Foundation Trusts are still part of the NHS, meeting NHS standards and providing free care when it’s needed, but we will be accountable to the public, our staff and governors (our ‘membership’) rather than central government. This is why it’s important that we involve local organisations and the people we represent as we move forward.

The more people that get involved, the better we can be sure we’re providing the emergency and community services you need, so please join us and encourage your colleagues, friends and family to do the same. You can sign up online here: www.nhs-membership.co.uk/seas (external website) or phone the membership office on 01273 897840 for a membership form or more information. Thank you very much for your support and we look forward to welcoming you as a member.

Drive SMART

A new initiative to tackle anti-social driving was launched by Surrey County Council and Surrey Police at the end of 2009. Drive SMART was developed after the issue was continually raised as a major concern by residents in the county and includes such things as;

• speeding
• driving whilst using a handheld mobile phone
• bad or dangerous parking
• tailgating or aggressive driving.

As well as a high profile advertising campaign aimed at educating drivers, Drive SMART includes investment in new equipment and schemes to help tackle these issues, such as handheld speed detection devices, vehicle activated speed signs and driver awareness courses.

There are opportunities for residents to get involved in Drive SMART by joining local schemes aimed at tackling anti social driving such as Community Speed Watch which focuses on volunteers addressing the issue of speeding within their communities.  Anyone interested in setting up a Community Speed Watch scheme should contact the local casualty reduction officers on 0845 125 2222 for more information.

Schools can also get involved by joining the School Speed Watch scheme.  This scheme empowers pupils to detect and communicate with speeding motorists in a bid to encourage safer speeds in areas close to schools. If you are interested in setting up a School Speed Watch scheme you should contact the local community travel team on 01483 517515 or 020 8541 7111.

Much more information, statistics and safe driving tips can be found on the website www.drivesmartsurrey.org.uk (external website)

'My Spelthorne'

My Spelthorne allows you to find out about the services and facilities in our Borough.  Simply set a location and use the my house, my nearest or my maps tabs to access a wealth of local information.

Recent planning applications

The provides a list of all the planning applications either validated or decided by us each week - View the planning applications

Job vacancies

Current job vacancies

Events

View the calendar of local events

Calendar of Council meetings

View the Calendar of Council Meetings

Publications

Borough Bulletin
Rubbish and recycling calendar

Follow us on Twitter

You can now follow us on Twitter, visit http://twitter.com/spelthornebc (external website)

Find us on Facebook

You can now find us on Facebook - visit www.facebook.com (external website) and search for 'Spelthorne Council'.

Roadworks in Spelthorne

Surrey County Council's website provides information on roadworks in Spelthorne.

Useful contacts for those having difficulty in the downturn

Money worries information page
Age Concern (external website) - 0800 009966
Citizens Advice Bureau (external website) - 01784 444220 or 01932 765041
Revenues Team (Council Tax and Business Rates) - 01784 446490
Housing Section - 01784 446380
Housing Benefits - 01784 446374

Partner links

Community web (external website)
DirectGov (external website)
Spelthorne Together
Surrey County Council (external website)
Surrey Alert (external website)
Surrey Police (external website)
Surrey PCT (external website)

Media links

Radio Jackie (external website)
Star FM (external website)
BBC Sussex and Surrey (external website)
Eagle Radio (external website)
Radio Wey (external website)
Staines and Ashford News (external website)