The Rotary Club of Epsom will mark historic progress toward a polio-free world while urging the community to help end the paralyzing disease. On Saturday 22nd October 2022 Epsom Rotary members are taking action for World Polio Day (24th) to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio, a vaccine-preventable disease that still threatens children in parts of the world today.

There will be a stand in the Epsom Market Place, by the Clocktower, with members of the Epsom Rotary Club providing information on polio and the work being done to eradicate it. The Epsom Clock tower will be lit-up purple. The colour purple stems from a symbolic purple dot painted on the fingers of children to show they have been vaccinated.

When Rotary and its partners launched the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988, there were 350,000 cases of polio in 125 countries every year. We’ve made great progress against the disease since then. Today, polio cases have been reduced by 99.9 percent, and just two countries continue to report cases of wild poliovirus: Afghanistan and Pakistan. And we remain committed to the end.

With polio nearly eradicated, Rotary and its partners must sustain this progress and continue to reach every child with the polio vaccine. Without full funding and political commitment, this paralyzing disease could return to polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk. Rotary has committed to raising US$50 million each year to support global polio eradication efforts. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has pledged to match that 2-to-1, for a total yearly contribution of $150 million.

Past Epsom Rotary Club President, Veronica Smith, is organizing the event and hopes that members of the local community will come and visit the stand and give support to this very worthy cause.

Rotary has contributed more than $2.2 billion to ending polio since 1985.

About Rotary
Rotary is a global network of 1.2 million neighbours, friends, leaders, and problem-solvers who unite and take action to create lasting change in communities around the globe. For more than 115 years, Rotary’s people of action have used their passion, energy, and intelligence to improve lives through service. From promoting literacy and peace to providing clean water and improving health care, Rotary members are always working to better the world. Visit endpolio.org to learn more about Rotary and the fight to eradicate polio.

Vice Lord Lieutenant of Surrey Sir Stephen Lamport came to Epsom Saturday 24th September. Addressing an audience in Epsom Methodist Church he condemned the aggression of Russian President Putin. He welcomed to Surrey those refugees from Ukraine who have come. He applauded the work of local charities, including Surrey Stands With Ukraine.

His speech was followed by 90 minutes of classical music performed by Ukrainian musicians. Sergei Sinkovski and Yevheniia Semydilko played Bartok duets on violins and Vivaldi. Kateryna Bolkunevych sang Casta Diva from Bellini’s opera Norma and Song to the Moon by Dvorak. Her powerful voice filling the vaulted Worship Hall. She was accompanied by pianist Bogdana Ravliuk who played Ukrainian composer Lysenko’s elegy.

Epsom poet Audrey Ardern-Jones, who’s Ukrainian mother fled Kiev in WWII to escape the Nazi occupation read three poems including a haiku. Translated and read in Ukrainian by the evening’s co-presenter Darina Dvorinchenko.

Young star of Surrey’s Yehudi Menuhin School of Music, Vadym Perog, born in Odessa, played a Mozart sonata for violin accompanied on the piano by Svitlana Kosenko.

The evening was crowned by Juliya Komyshan who brought tears from the standing audience with the Ukrainian national anthem. She played and sang other music using the traditional Ukrainian bandura instrument; to the amazement of all.

Jazz pianist Gabriel Latchin’s Trio performed in the Oaks Room (Conservative Club, Church St Epsom) on Tuesday last. The ever-growing Epsom Jazz Club audience were thrilled with the booking. The Trio performed wonderfully varied sets featuring unique versions of songs by Bossa Nova pioneer João Gilberto, a beautiful reworking of “They All Laughed” by the inimitable Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong, and Latchin’s own composition “Carlora” (a dedication to his parents).

American jazz bassist Christian McBride is quoted as saying “Gabriel is an excellent musician and one hell of a nice guy”. No-one could possibly argue with that.

He’s made a name for himself as one of the UK’s finest musicians, known for his effortlessly swinging feel, deep repertoire and compelling performances, and Epsom’s Tuesday night crowd lapped the three musicians up.

Gabriel Latchin was accompanied on stage by the rock-solid Jeremy Brown on double bass and long-standing collaborator Josh Morrison on drums. A truly wonderful Jazz Trio and understandably a number of the audience were keen to purchase and take home a personalised CD.

And if that wasn’t enough, Epsom Jazz Club had also organised an interval act! Ukrainian refugee Yulia Komyshan had previously performed on the Bandura at a Ukrainian Music Evening held at Epsom Methodist Church, and her remarkable rendition of a blues number went down equally well this week with the Jazz enthusiasts. Incidentally, there’s another Ukrainian Music Evening this Saturday 24th September – again featuring Yulia and her Bandura!

The next Gabriel Latchin Trio album is scheduled for release in early 2023. But until then we’ll just have to make do with listening to his first three albums “Introducing”, “The Moon And I” and “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” on rotation.

Epsom Jazz Club returns with its monthly residency at The Oaks Room on Tuesday 18th October, featuring the ever-gigging and ever-swinging London Django Collective. This is sure to be a popular concert – for more information and to purchase tickets in advance visit EpsomJazzClub.com

@EpsomJazzClub on Twitter/Instagram/Facebook

It has been announced yesterday that Epsom & Ewell have both won silver in the annual South & South East in Bloom competition. Stoneleigh was awarded a commendation in this year’s competition.

This is the first year that Ewell has taken part in the competition and the second consecutive year that Epsom has won an award. Last year Epsom town centre entered for the first time and won a silver award.

Councillor John Beckett, Chair of the Environment and Safe Communities Committee, said “It has been an absolute joy to see the contributions to this year’s Epsom & Ewell in Bloom. We’re over the moon that both Epsom and Ewell have won silver awards, Epsom for the second year running.

“I extend my sincere thanks to all the residents, volunteer groups, schools and businesses who made this year’s Epsom & Ewell in Bloom such a huge success.

Ewell Village saw ‘blooming’ themed windows in shops along the high street and beautifully knitted floral decorations, created by the Ewell Yarn Bombers, on post boxes.

Ewell Castle School re-used wellies to create fabulous displays and St Mary’s Church in Ewell produced stunning floral displays.

Volunteers populated cast iron troughs with flowers creating welcome splashes of colour in Epsom town centre, planted bulbs on street verges, and have been helping to keep displays watered over the summer.

Jubilee themed planting schemes in Rosebery Park, depicting a crown and a colourful feature bed, were planted by U3A volunteers. 

Plans are already being formulated for Epsom & Ewell to take part in South & South East in Bloom next year. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who is committed to ensuring our Borough is the best it can be for the local community, for visitors and for wildlife, all year round”.

Not an Epsom and Ewell report but Guildford’s ambitions may signal a local future? [Ed.]

Congestion charge could be coming to Guildford as the council looks at ways to reduce traffic and raise money to support sustainable travel. As part of wide-ranging plans for the town centre, including more than 2,000 new homes, opening up the area around the river and overhauling the one-way system, officers are also starting to look at the options for some form of charge to drive into the town.

A meeting of the borough council’s executive on Thursday (September 22) approved £3m to be moved into the relevant budget for the next stage of planning to begin. The meeting heard that more had to be done to encourage businesses to set up and stay in the town, and more measures needed to be taken to protect from flooding.

Council leader Cllr Joss Bigmore introduced the range of consultants at the meeting as “a number of very expensive people” who would talk through the plans as they currently stand. All works will go through the usual planning stages at the borough council. Andreas Markides, from independent consultancy Markides Associates, told the meeting a lot of work had been done to gather data on how people were travelling to the town and where from, using car parks, traffic surveys and mobile phone data.

He said many elements would be considered including improved cycling and walking in the town, a better park and ride service and the consideration of “some form of congestion charging”. Mr Markides added: “I don’t know at this stage what form that will take, there are dozens and dozens of different forms. “But I think that would be a very good way of not only deterring car traffic to come into the town, but also to get money that we can put towards more sustainable measures.” He said the next step was to work on traffic modelling plans with Surrey County Council and looking at the whole town.

The basics objectives of the plans were as follows according to Mr Markides:

Getting rid of the one way system because two-way roads mean slower traffic and more attention paid to pedestrians;
Opening up the riverside to the town centre, “cutting out” a lot of existing roads “so that the the town centre can roll down to the river as required by the master plan”;
Removing some traffic lanes to give priority to cyclists, pedestrians and buses;
Maintaining access to all key destinations in the town such as the bus station, train station and car parks.

A review of all polling districts and polling places in Epsom & Ewell is taking place following the recent boundary review by the Local Government Boundary Commission.

The purpose of the review is to ensure that:

•              All electors have reasonable access to voting facilities

•              Polling places are accessible to all electors including those with disabilities

The 2022 review started on Monday 12 September and views are invited from electors within the district as well as from persons or bodies with expertise in relation to access to premises or facilities for persons with any form of disability.

There will be a change to some of the polling stations residents’ use as a result of the review.

More information on this review including maps showing proposals can be found here: https://www.epsom-ewell.gov.uk/council/elections-and-voting/electoral-boundaries

Councillor Neil Dallen, Chair of the Strategy and Resources Committee at Epsom & Ewell Borough Council said: “We’re pleased that this review will facilitate more accessible polling places in Epsom & Ewell. We hope anybody with personal, or professional expertise in this area can take the time to share their views before the deadline of 17 October 2022 at 5pm.”

Epsom & Ewell Borough Council will be directly contacting:

• The Member of Parliament for Epsom and Ewell, Chris Grayling.
• Surrey Coalition of Disabled People (www.surreycoalition.org.uk).
• All Epsom and Ewell Borough Councillors.
• All Surrey County Councillors for the borough.
• Election agents who acted at the 2021 County Council elections.
• Candidates who stood in the 2021 County Council elections.
• Registered political parties who regularly field candidates at all elections in the Borough.

Comments must be made in writing and be emailed to: electoralservices@epsom-ewell.gov.uk or posted to:

Electoral Services (Polling District/Place Review), Epsom and Ewell Borough Council, The Town Hall, The Parade, Epsom, Surrey, KT18 5BY.

The deadline to respond to this review is 5pm on 17 October 2022.

Epsom & Ewell Borough Council regularly reviews its polling districts and polling places. The last full review took place in December 2019.

Jack and Emily Brown of Stoneleigh are delighted to announce the birth Wednesday 6th April 2022 of their first child named Sara Louise.

Born Beaconsfield – bred in Ewell – Frank Nutting – 80 years young Friday 8th April 2022. Keep going Frankie – love Diane and Paul.

Nearly 150 families have been left “in limbo” and facing additional stress without school transport as Surrey County Council deals with more than 500 applications. The authority said “urgent” steps were being taken to deal with the backlog, described by one councillor as a “tsunami” of cases.

Image: Aimee James and her son Isaac.

One single mum on Universal Credit is paying around £10 a day to take her son to school by public transport, and claims she has not had it confirmed by the council when she will be reimbursed. Aimee James’s son, Isaac, is in his first year at Gosden House School for children with learning and additional needs.

She told the LDRS she had transport approved by the county council in June for Isaac, but before the August bank holiday, just days before the start of the school year, received an email to say it would not be available for the start of the school year but with hopes it might be by the end of October.

While she said the school have been understanding about the difficulties she faces, having to drop her other child at school in Woking and then come back to Guildford to get a bus to the school, Isaac is still doing shorter days because she “can’t be in two places at once”.

No confirmation of when reimbursement will come Miss James said she only has a couple of hours in the middle of the day before she has to turn around and do the journey again for pick up. She added: “It’s really stressful because I’m a single parent, and I don’t drive. I’m also on Universal Credit, so trying to get him to school is a real pain.” Her son, who has autistic traits, is “not brilliant” on public transport and Miss James said the transition has not been an easy one for him.

While the council has confirmed it will reimburse those who are out of pocket while waiting for transport to be arranged, Miss James said she hasn’t had confirmation of when this money will come in. She added: “At the minute, life on Universal Credit isn’t brilliant anyway. Because I’ve got to spend out before they reimburse me, I’m sort of skint before they give me my money back.”

A spokesperson for the county council said “complex and significant challenges” and a 20 per cent increase in the number of applications for transport on last year were leading to the delays. They said staffing resources had been increased and temporary financial allowances were being given to allow families to make alternative arrangements where possible.

‘I’ve never seen it like this before’ Councillor Nick Darby, Residents’ Association and Independent Group Leader on the county council, said he’d heard of several cases from residents and also from other councillors. He described it as like a “tsunami” of cases, and said he had never seen it like this before. He’d heard of children who simply couldn’t go to school, others whose parents had taken most of the day out of their jobs to do school runs, and children who were “hugely stressed” at the lack of routine.

He called for better communication from the council with parents and councillors, saying because many of these cases related to children with additional needs, it was “very difficult and challenging” for the parents concerned.
Cllr Darby said the council was “just not delivering what we should”, and of the lack of communication with families, said: “Just ignoring it doesn’t do us any good.”  ‘I’m crying a lot, because I’m so emotional’
Another parent who has been juggling multiple school runs is Claire Nash, whose daughter Justice is currently attending a mainstream school but awaiting a place at a specialist school.

Her school taxi was cancelled last school year but Ms Nash said it should have then been extended until July 2023, because of the circumstances she faces in trying to get her four children, three of them with additional needs, to school.

Having emailed the council on September 6, she is yet to hear back at the time of writing, and is currently getting her daughter to school late every day after taking her eldest two children to school and then waiting for a mini bus to take her son to his school. She said: “I’m so stressed out, my life is very stressful anyway, but I’ve lost sleep over it.  “I’m crying a lot, because I’m so emotional. It’s extra stuff I just don’t need. My life’s already hard and I have to fight for the things that should just be easy to get considering my circumstances.”

A Surrey County Council spokesperson confirmed that as of September 20, there were 529 school transport applications being processed, of which 196 were received before the start of the academic year.
There were 149 families who had had their eligibility confirmed but had not yet had transport scheduled.
These families had been offered temporary financial allowances in order to make alternative arrangements.
As well as this, there are currently 141 families going through an appeal process for school transport, which the spokesperson said the independent appeal team were working through at an increased rate in order to process them as quickly as possible.

The spokesperson said they could not comment on any individual children, but the council “would like to sincerely apologise to anyone experiencing delays” with their applications.  They added: “As with many services nationally we are dealing with complex and significant challenges, particularly with driver shortages in some areas.  “We are concerned about the delays some families are facing and are taking urgent steps to address this by increasing staffing resources and offering temporary financial allowances to enable families to make alternative arrangements, where possible.  We are determined to do everything we can to support children and young people that need us most. We know how important it is for children and young people to have access to their education setting and we are working tirelessly to manage increased demand and address issues.”

Surrey County Council will launch a new campaign on World Car Free Day, 22 September, to encourage residents to change the way they travel to stay healthy, save money and help the environment by reducing their carbon footprint.

In Surrey, 41% of carbon emissions come from transport, with around half of that coming from private vehicles. For shorter journeys such as the school run, the commute to work or a trip to the shops, residents are being encouraged to consider leaving the car at home and walking or cycling instead  

The County Council has teamed up with BetterPoints to reward anyone in Surrey who opts to travel by foot, bike or public transport, instead of using a car. Each car-free journey earns residents points which can be redeemed for high street vouchers to spend at shops, local coffee shops or can be donated to charity.

Surrey County Council is developing Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs) across the county to help determine where best to prioritise improvements to continue to enable residents to walk and cycle more often. Residents can use an interactive map to ‘pin’ locations and comment on how walking and cycling could be made easier there.

Matt Furniss, Surrey County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, Infrastructure and Growth, said: “We know it’s not always possible for everyone to walk or cycle everywhere, but for shorter journeys we could all think about making a small change which on mass would make a big difference.

“We’re continuously looking at ways to improve our infrastructure to make walking and cycling easier for the people of Surrey and would really encourage feedback on our interactive map.”

The council has a target to be a net zero carbon council by 2030 and a net zero county by 2050, in line with government targets. Information about making active journeys can be found on the Surrey County Council website.

Surrey Police chiefs have revealed the “nervy” moments they had ahead of the Queen’s funeral passing through the county. While the operation “went very well” from the force’s perspective, those high up did admit to underestimating just how many people would show up along the streets as the coffin passed through on its way to Windsor.
Superintendent Graham Barnett, the silver commander for the operation in Surrey, said in a press briefing today (September 20) this was one of “the very few events that has never happened” on this scale and in our lifetimes.
He said contingency resources and several partners all working together were important on the day, from Surrey Fire and Rescue, Surrey County Council, as well as the borough and district authorities and the National Trust way finder volunteers around Runnymede.
The coffin passed through 6.2 miles of roads in Surrey on its journey to Windsor, on a route that was planned “with the public in mind” to allow as many people to bid farewell to the monarch as possible.
Supt Barnett said his most “nervy” moment was when the procession passed Town Lane on its way into Staines, when people wanted to get forward and see the coffin.
He added: “I was under no illusion that Staines was going to be busy, that the A308 was going to be busy, Runnymede meadows of course can cater for huge numbers of people.
“So we were aware. Even I underestimated quite how many people would come out to show their respects, and I will be the first to put my hand up and say there was a couple of nervous moments for me as people increased.”
He said all contingency resources were “pushed in” to support the lining of the route.
Supt Barnett added: “The reality is, we were always expecting large numbers. But I was surprised at quite how large and what a fantastic turnout we had from the public of Surrey, and further afield of course, to see Her Majesty off.”
He confirmed there were no reported anti-monarchy protests in Surrey, with all public engagement being “very supportive” both towards officers and in terms of taking “one last chance to be involved in something so historic”.
The “clear steer” given to Supt Barnett from Chief Superintendent Jerry Westerman was that giving resources for the event could not affect “business as usual” for the force.
He said officers worked longer days and cancelled days off to play their part and that resources were only allocated after ensuring the usual needs of the public could be met, and then increasing that by ten per cent.
Chief Supt Westerman confirmed no national debrief had as yet taken place, only a “hot debrief” which looks at immediate issues after the event.
He added: “This operation, from our perspective, went very well. But we can always learn lessons and improve.
“And where it goes well, it’s equally important that we make sure that in future events, it goes well.”
He added that there would always be some form of “Operation Bridge” in place,  the name given to arrangements made for funerals of the Royal Family, and so a debrief with other partners was important to make sure they were always ready for the next one.
The force’s Chief Constable Gavin Stephens had taken on the role of the Commander of the Civil Services Contingent and so was pulled away from his usual policing duties in Surrey to be part of the central London ceremonies.
He said he had to “put his faith” in the “brilliant” team in Surrey as he went “off-grid” as the force lead.
Chief Constable Stephens said the events on the day were all about “discipline and following instructions”, with all participants knowing what their role was and sticking to it, whether lining the route, in the middle of a procession or monitoring crowds.
He added: “It’s the combination of everybody following their individual instruction that makes it look like such a spectacle.”

A £10million mental health unit which will allow young people to be treated nearer to home is under construction in Charlwood. The new facility will have 12 beds for young people aged people between 12 and 18 years old, providing in patient care for those with acute mental health needs.

Funding for the unit has come in the form of around £6m from NHS England as part of a national programme to make sure specialist services are available for the needs of local populations, and £4m from private company Elysium Healthcare.

The mental health unit will prioritise young people in Surrey and, where possible, across other south east regions. It will be built and managed in a partnership between Elysium Healthcare and Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, a provider of mental health, learning disability and drug and alcohol services for people of all ages across Surrey, Hampshire, Croydon and Sussex.

According to the trust’s website, when completed the unit will provide, for the first time in more than ten years, inpatient care in Surrey for young people with acute mental health needs, closer to their home and community.
On the site of April Cottage, Farmfield Drive, which was previously owned by Surrey and Borders, the facility will have 12 inpatient beds for young people as well as communal living and outdoor spaces to encourage socialising and independence.

There will also be an on-site school for the young people to continue with their schooling during treatment.
Graham Wareham, chief executive of Surrey and Borders, said the trust was please to be partnering with Elysium Healthcare to “transform the care experience for young people needing inpatient services in Surrey.”
He added: “Young people need to be cared for close to home when they are at their most vulnerable with acute mental health needs. The opening of this new unit will help us provide care and treatment for many young people, so they get the support they need without having to travel far from their families, carers, and friends.”
Joy Chamberlain, chief executive officer of Elysium Healthcare, said the project would “create a new benchmark for the future”. She added: “I am delighted that Elysium and Surrey and Borders Partnership are collaborating on this joint venture. We are bringing together expert knowledge, clinical acumen, innovation, and capital to deliver the best care for the young people of Surrey.”

The facility is due to open at the end of 2023.