Olly Wells

As I am sure many of you have noticed in the latest Focus, I am standing down as a councillor for Knaphill.  It has been a real honour to serve residents as councillor in Knaphill for the last four years.  In the next few months I am likely to be moving to London to make my commute to work more manageable. This means that I cannot give the role of councillor the time it deserves. However I know that in Lisa we have a candidate who, if elected, will make an outstanding councillor who will work tirelessly for the residents of Knaphill. Lisa’s track record over the last 18 months has been one of relentless determination to get things done for residents and I know she will be able to do even more if elected as councillor. Please give her your support in the elections on May 3rd.

Looking back I have been pleased with the impact of my work as a councillor for Knaphill and Woking.  I am sure I will have forgotten some of the things I have been doing, but thought it might be useful to list some of the main activities here:

Case work – including housing, parking, roads, planning, noise complaints and rubbish collection

Obtaining a bench for the green in Lower Guildford Road

Getting hedges and trees trimmed and street lighting repaired

Ending the use of St John’s Primary school as a polling station

Helping to set up the Cabin youth evening at the Vyne

Campaigning on Human Rights – especially campaigning to lower the flag for Aung San Suu Kyi

Improved recycling facilities at the Ambassadors

Reducing speeding traffic in Knaphill

Reducing illegal and inconsiderate parking

Campaigning for youth employment and apprenticeships

Encouraging Woking to stay at the forefront of environmental issues

Campaigning for lower parking charges

Petitioning for more litter bins and a tidier village

Representing the views of cyclists on the Woking Cycle Forum

Promoting activities in and around Woking

Suggesting innovative ideas to develop the council

Thank you for all your support!

I will be archiving this blog following the election in May 2012.  I will change references on the front page of this blog, from my being a current Knaphill or Woking Councillor to say former Councillor.

I was impressed by the second presentation and consultation event held in July for the potential development at the Brookwood Farm site in Knaphill. It was my impression that concerns raised in the first consultations had been listened to.

I raised one concern at the second consultation regarding the design of pedestrian access for the site, in particular the path leading through Grindstone Handle Corner. My concern, echoing concerns raised by residents to me, was that if pedestrian access to Knaphill passes through Grind Stone Handle Corner, it would likely emerge as the most popular pedestrian access due to the other pathways that are immediately accessible from it via Grindstone Crescent and Bagshot Road via Ivydene, making it the most direct route to the centre of Knaphill. This would create a route that I do not feel Grindstone Handle Corner could or should sustain. It is my hope that at the next stage of the development, this concern will have been absorbed into the design, removing the potential issue in Grindstone Handle Corner.

If you have not already done so, please do take the opportunity to give feedback here.

During 2009 Woking Borough Council spent nearly £1 million on expensive consultants.  By 2010 this had risen to nearly £2 million and looks set to be nearly £2 million again in 2011.  This does not in my opinion represent good value for the tax payers in Woking.  I would much rather have seen this money spent directly on services for local people or even used to reduce Woking’s large debts. With an estimated over £20,000 spent putting in a cycle crossing on the Bagshot road in Knaphill and then removing it again, the Conservative administration running Woking Borough Council really does need to do better, I do not think we can trust them with our money at present.  If we are spending so much on consultants on an annual basis I wonder if we would be better off hiring more specialist staff to carry out these tasks at better value for residents.

Following the media comment about Nick Clegg wanting to address the issues of poor social mobility in the UK through ensuring that it is not ‘who you know’, but ‘what you know’ in the UK that makes a difference.  I would like to add my view that there is actually nothing wrong with helping friends and family out with internships, but equally there is a need to address issue of social mobility.

Rather than weakening or removing advantage that currently exists, effort needs to be made to create opportunity for those without it. This is a serious issue in need of resolution, if we are to enhance social mobility and move further towards a meritocracy in this country. I would advise the coalition to create a system that requires organisations with over a certain number of employees, for example 25, that offer internships to be required to offer an equal number of ‘backdoor’ internships as internships through a national government scheme. To overcome advantage created by location, universities could be required to offer free accommodation to those not living in the region of their internship for up to 2 weeks in the summer, with a transport and business dress subsidy available in a way similar to the current, soon to be abolished education maintenance allowance (EMA).

Talking to residents recently about the consultation regarding the development of the land at Brookwood Farm, there are, as is to be expected, key themes which come up time and time again.  These recurring themes, are the points around which I will formulate my checklist of aspects I will look for in the details of the development as they emerge over the next two consultations and in the final plans that are likely to come to the planning committee in the autumn.

Two of the largest concerns from residents are interlinked, the number of and type of dwellings as well as the access to the new development.  Nearly all the residents I have spoken with take a view that the new development should be in the region of no more than half the maximum number of homes being considered, taking a lead from existing properties, especially the newly developed properties in Raynes Close.  There is considerable concern about access to the development, with strong consensus, with which I firmly agree, that it is not possible to have access through any of the existing roads in the area such as Grindstone Handle Corner, Oakwood Gardens, Coresbrook Way, Oak Tree Road or Spravel Road. However there is also concern that the likely access at the Redding Way – Bagshot Road junction will not be able to cope with the additional traffic, in what is already a congested road.  It is unlikely that another access point will be found and for this reason, the size of the development must be limited, to ensure capacity at this junction is not breached.  In a similar way, it is important that should any plans be approved at the planning stage, adequate attention is given to other local infrastructure such as schools, doctors and dentists.  Residents can be sure that local Liberal Democrats understand this.

Having already mentioned road access, it is important to look to ensure that plans have considered access by foot, for Knaphill and Brookwood residents wishing to pass through the development, for new residents to the development, for people wishing to access the country park and for residents in the immediate vicinity whose roads were not built to cater for large pedestrian access to roads that had not yet been built.  I am thinking of Grindstone Handle Corner and Oakwood Gardens in particular when I say this.

The proposed extension to the Brookwood Country Park is important, although it must not be used as a distraction from the main development, as some have perceived is being attempted. Concerns surround how water will be managed to ensure that we will not create a new set of properties susceptible to flooding.  It is also important to see how the development can enhance and assist with the redevelopment of the canal.

A fundamental question regarding the housing development and the country park, is where they will sit in relation to each other.  Will the country park surround the development on all sides, setting the housing further away from existing housing, further down the land, or will it be located close to existing housing?  The majority of residents I have spoken to, have identified this as key, with the subtle use of the slope of the land and allowing the country park to surround the development, the slightly preferred design, as long as such a design does not create potential hotspots for anti-social behaviour. A delicate balance needs to be struck for this to be achieved.

Parking is an area that also requires careful consideration.  It is important that some parking is provided to ensure that existing local roads do not become a car park for visitors to the country park, at the same time, there is not capacity on local roads for the country park to become a destination of choice for significant numbers of people from outside Woking, and for this reason parking should be limited.

I have been pleased that on the whole residents are pragmatic about the development, most understand that it is extremely likely that the land will be developed and that it is now important to make sure the development is one that is in the best interests of current and future residents, as well as of a size, that Knaphill and Brookwood can sustain.

Please remember to take part in the consultation by visiting the website about it.  I am happy hear from residents about this development or any other issues regarding Knaphill, my contact details are on this site.

I wholeheartedly and sincerely wish to encourage residents in Knaphill to vote for Lisa Harding on 5th May.

Lisa is possibly the most energetic, dedicated and empathetic candidate I have ever met. She is single minded in her determination to deliver for residents in Knaphill. I have been impressed and possibly put to shame by the extent she is able to engage and connect with residents. She has a track record working for a national charity as well as being someone who puts her all into her local community.

Lisa’s promises 1. to listen, 2. to stay visible, 3. to work for you, with you and 4. to be open and honest, speak volumes about the kind of local councillor she will be, if you vote for her on Thursday 5th May!

Lisa is the positive choice for a vibrant Knaphill. To find out more about Lisa see her blog – http://lisaharding.mycouncillor.org.uk/