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Elmbridge Borough Council’s Leader’s Budget statement 24th February 2010

0% INCREASE IN THE ELMBRIDGE PORTION OF THE COUNCIL TAX

‘I am really pleased to have presented my fourth Conservative Administration budget speech in Council last night (24th February 2010) especially as our team has worked tirelessly to achieve the zero increase in the Elmbridge portion of the Council Tax for all our residents for the third time in four years. An accumulative saving of over £4m on operational cost with minimal effect on front line services.’
Cllr Roy Taylor - EBC Leader of the Conservative Administration

Elmbridge Borough Council’s Leader’s Budget statement 24^th February 2010

I am delighted to confirm that we have achieved the ambitious target we set ourselves last February and for the third time in four years I am pleased to be able to recommend to this council our budget details and spending plans for the 2010/11 fiscal year without imposing any additional financial burden upon our Council Tax payers.

In the four years since we formed the Administration, the Elmbridge component of the Council Tax has risen by just 4.9%, compared to an overall inflation rate of 12%, and I have to say it contrasts with the staggering 60% increase in the last 5 years of the RA Administration.

When I delivered my budget statement here in this Chamber last year I said that it was formed against a background of the worse economic conditions since this borough was formed in 1974 and possibly the worse since the great depression of the 1930s. Well Mr Mayor the true effects of Mr Brown’s disastrous handling of the nation’s economy continue to worsen and this has had an inevitable damaging and detrimental impact on our own finances. The Country has a visible debt of £848billion according to official figures as of last week and if one includes the ‘invisibles’ and public pension deficits that figure rises to somewhere between £1.3 and £2 trillion depending upon which commentator you elect to believe.

It is truly an awful financial position for the Country as a whole and for us in Elmbridge in particular due to the extremely poor government grant formula and derisory annual settlement. Nationwide this is a legacy which will leave every man woman and child paying for Mr Brown’s almost relentless financial mismanagement for many years to come. Quite what the level of squeezing of funding will be for Local Authorities in the future is yet to be revealed.

Additionally the National economy has shrunk by 6%. We are not immune and are expecting this council’s 2009/10 income from chargeable services to shrink by almost 11%.

The simple headline statement for this Council’s budget is as follows:

• Against continuing and ever more difficult economic circumstances we are proposing no increase in the Elmbridge portion of the Council Tax
• Our Council continues to provide tremendous value to our residents at just £3.83 per household per week again using the Band D property as the standard comparator

For the fourth year running we have absorbed a further £1.8m of financial pressures and we have achieved this by:

• Continuing to scrutinise and review our income sources
• Continuing to scrutinise and reviewing every aspect of the Council’s business by following on from the VFM reviews with the nationally acclaimed BEAM reviews which delve deeper into operational practises to streamline and optimise our business activities
• Continuing to look at ways we can deliver services more economically
• Continuing to review staffing levels and introducing further measures which will reduce staff numbers by almost 10% of the levels applicable in 2008/9 by the end of 2010/11 fiscal year
• Freezing salaries for officers and staff, and for the second year, freezing allowances for members
• Using the interest equalisation reserve to off-set the continuing fall in interest rates on our investments

Moreover

• During this current year our income stream from the Council’s activities is expected to show a shortfall of £1.2m on that forecast last February as I indicated a moment ago, approaching 11% less than we forecast. The Council’s Chief Executive and management team took immediate prudent steps to deal with that shortfall as soon as the trend became clear, and this Administration has fully supported the measures taken. The Borough is overly dependent on housing development which has declined sharply as a result of the recession and consequently the income from land searches, building control and planning applications has fallen dramatically. There has also been a further modest dip in car parking income and a few other discretionary service delivery areas
• as in previous years we have continued to ensure a balance between income obtained from service users and income generated from Council tax payers
• and in all our reviews and actions we are taking every precaution to ensure that changes in service delivery continue to protect the vulnerable members of our society

The basis for delivering this budget is sound, admittedly cautious but nevertheless progressive:

• it is a balanced budget
• it is fully in accordance with our medium to long term financial strategy
• We have retained healthy reserves for what we believe will continue to a trying and uncertain economic future. To reduce these last year Mr Mayor, as was suggested by members on that side of the Chamber, when it was already clear to us that so many potential perils lie ahead, would have been hugely irresponsible, and to do so now would be equally so. We are not prepared to do this and our Medium and Long Term Financial Strategy clearly sets this out in the papers before you.

And this Administration is committed to preserving and protecting our valued front-line services. The last year alone has seen significant enhancements to our Borough.

• We have built year on year for providing investment within a sound and sustainable framework. The work this Conservative Administration has put in since 2006 has provided a solid foundation for all the difficulties being thrown at us now and I am confident that it will continue to do in the coming couple of years or so particularly when I suspect the Nation’s financial woes are more likely to be even more painful
• We are continuing to think creatively - last October I made it clear to business representatives that we are here to do business. I offered a special deal to encourage use of our car parks by employees of local businesses . The response has been slow but progressive and we now have a strong indication of wide interest from the business community. Accordingly my colleagues are in the final phases of developing a charging structure which will be attractive, and those details will be rolled out within the next month.
• I am also pleased to say that we are well advanced in the major upping of Walton High Street from the ECIF funds we put aside, and this work is scheduled to start in July
• Several other ECIF awards have been made to various business initiatives around the borough
• We continue to protect the Quality and character of the Borough by – taking over the grass cutting from SCC and increasing the number of cuts and, continuing to run the Street Smart service
• The dogmatic chasing of every opportunity for outside funding resulting in success and our ability to open the new Synthetic Turf Pitch next to the Xcel leisure Centre
• We have reduced our impact on the Environment by more than doubling our recycling targets since 2006 and reducing energy usage in our properties
• We are providing services to our community 24 /7.
• Against all the odds in these difficult times we are continuing to widen the councils activities with residents and businesses by expanding our abilities to deal with challenging issues
• We have leapt at the opportunity which presented itself via SCC to develop a seventh day centre for the elderly in Thames Ditton. We reacted swiftly and I am pleased to say that this facility will be open and operational in April on target and within budget.
• And we have extracted contract savings from the waste collection service and recycling which together total almost £750,000 and has helped us achieved recycling rates of over 50% as mentioned earlier
• We have provided for additional spending pressures such as Homelessness and Housing Benefit subsidy reduction
• With our feet firmly on the ground this is a budget backed up by a sound, robust financial strategy and businesslike approach that continues to balances the needs of service users with those of the Council taxpayer and one that anticipates a continuing and increasing demand for the Council’s service

In addition, we have a fully financed although more modest capital programme:

• With a general capital programme provision of £900,000
• Plus specific earmarked provisions of £590,000 (including the reinvestment of some external funding and Section 106 monies)

Revenue growth improvements and Capital Programme cover a wide range of activities, benefiting all of our residents, and include:

• Building upon our enhanced waste management programme, new recycling contract and street cleansing services
• Continued investment in the upgrading of children’s’ play areas
• Further optimisation of our community transport provisions
• Plus investment in some Day Centres for retired people

We are also extending our co-operation with partners to develop shared services support, best use of assets and combining operational centres.

All this, despite a derisory increase in Formula Grant received from this Labour Government

• in 2010/11 we will receive a net increase in Formula Grant of just £80,000, an increase over last year of only 1.25%
• this equates to a total government grant of just £ 47.21 per resident, the lowest government grant settlement in Surrey and it continues to be one of the lowest in the Country
• But as I said  earlier, I expect the financing of public finances to be seriously curtailed in the years ahead and we are yet to discover the overall effect on our numbers

Mr. Mayor, let me now turn briefly to the process within the Council for members’ input into Overview and scrutiny of this budget. Last year we scrapped the Finance Panel as it proved to be restrictive in that not all members were in full possession of the facts until very close to the February Council meeting, and had almost no chance to debate and properly scrutinise it. Instead we changed tact.

• Our full financial strategy was submitted for Full Council approval in July 2009
• The bulk of our plans went to Cabinet and onto Council in September followed by smaller financial proposals  in October, November, December and finally February – the reasons for us doing this was twofold:
• Firstly to allow officers to move ahead with approved proposals so that we have best chance to realise savings from the start of the 2010/11 fiscal year
• And secondly so that members had ample time to study and scrutinise the proposals – and where they felt necessary members had the opportunity to suggest amendments, tweaks or whatever to enable Council achieve best results from these proposals

This change in the way we operate has made the financial plans of this Administration more open and transparent than ever before. Every member of the Cabinet, including myself, has appeared before their relevant O&S Committee to answer questions about the budgetary implications for each portfolio. More information has been provided to members, and earlier,  than any budget setting process since I have been a member.

Mr. Mayor, our record in providing high quality services with sound financial management has been recognised again.  The Audit Commission has awarded us a top rating, 3 stars out of four in every category scrutinised which put us comfortably in the top quartile of all Local Authorities in the Country. A record we deserve to be proud of. And we shall maintain our effort to deliver our services more economically and effectively. As last year I make no apologies whatever for such a policy. In this recession, it is our ongoing duty to hard-pressed Council-taxpayers that we explore every opportunity to increase efficiencies and promote innovations

Looking forward, in addition to the dire state of the national economy we have other specific factors to deal with:

• The triennial review of our pension scheme takes place in April this year and will be published prior to March 2011
• We are already aware that the underfunding of Surrey public pensions as a whole will be well in excess of £1billion – the Elmbridge portion included - and we await guidance as to how the government of the day determine how we should deal with that
• And we have no idea how our formulae grant will be viewed going forward – for budgeting purposes we have assumed a 5% reduction year-on-year for the next three years
• Obviously we are unaware of other possible ways central government may revise funding local authorities so, if any emerge, we shall have to review and deal with these changes as they occur
• On the plus side, there are early and encouraging signs that income from planning applications, land searches and car parking have bottomed out
• Our medium and long term financial strategy has factored in a modest and partial recovery for these income streams
• Additionally we are participating in the Surrey First initiative where all the Boroughs and Districts in Surrey together with SCC are collaborating to explore savings through shared delivery of both back office support functions and frontline services

Mr. Mayor, before I conclude, I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to the Chief Executive, his colleagues on the CMB, and the Council’s entire workforce. We could not have made such progress on so many fronts without their unstinting support, dedication and professionalism. This has also been a tough year for our employees, and on behalf of all Councillors and our residents, we see in their efforts in public service at its best. For that I am extremely appreciative.

It should not pass that whilst all this work was being undertaken, the Chief Executive set a target to improve our IIP status and not only did so, but achieved the Gold Star rating; almost unique for a Local Authority and a brilliant achievement.

In summary we have in this budget, even under the most trying of circumstances

• promoted service improvements, and will continue to innovate 
• achieved further efficiencies, and will strive to find more
• Secured substantial financial savings on our improved recycling contract
• protected front line services
• invested sustainably for the long term
• set a balanced budget, backed up by healthy reserves
• Continued to act prudently and creatively for an increasingly uncertain economic future.

Mr Mayor, as my colleague, Cllr Roger Whittaker, said at the last Cabinet meeting, “Some of our residents in Elmbridge have fallen on hard times. Jobs have been lost and pensioners have seen their pockets hit. Our overriding priority has to be to protect residents and this we have done with a zero per cent increase”.

Accordingly,

I fully commend this budget to the Council

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Royal Regiment Artillery Homecoming Parade in Esher
February 2010

To mark the end of their latest six month deployment to Afghanistan, soldiers from 22 (Gibraltar 1779-83) Battery, 32 Regiment Royal Artillery, accompanied by The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery and the Royal Artillery Band, marched along Esher High Street.

A huge crowd clapped and cheered as they marched by and the Mayor of Elmbridge, Councillor James Vickers, a former soldier, took the salute with Master Gunner St James’s Park, General Sir Timothy Granville-Chapman GBE KCB, the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey, Sarah Goad JP, Ian Taylor MP for Esher & Walton, local Conservative Councillors and other dignitaries.

click above picture to view video

Esher turns out to support soldiers' parade ........ more

Local EBC Conservative Councillors attended

Residents Have Their Say At Council Tax Meeting
19 January 2010

On Tuesday 19 January Elmbridge Borough Council (EBC) offered residents the chance to meet with the Leader of the Council, Councillors and Senior Officers, to hear about the emerging budget and service priorities and to have their say about providing services for Elmbridge residents for 2010/11.

Councillor Roy Taylor, Leader of the Council presented an overview of the Councils achievements over recent years and set out the challenges it is facing in trying to maintain services in the face of shrinking budgets.

The Council collects Elmbridge residents Council Tax every year and provides a wide range of services, from refuse collection and centres for retired people to parks and pest control. Over the last four years, EBC has been recognised as one of the best councils in the country and the Borough has been named as having the best quality of life.

Councillor Roy Taylor, said: "The consultation was very successful and I hope it was informative and worthwhile for everyone who attended on the evening. I would like to thank all the residents who spared the time to attend and make contributions".

Robert Moran, Chief Executive of the Council, said: "As a Council we provide some excellent services but we are always looking at ways to improve services. It is important that the Council is accountable directly to its residents. Listening to our residents views and opinions at the consultation will be a great help to us doing so in the future".

View Council Tax Presentation (8.6mb)

View Questions & Answers
 

Email forwarded from Cllr Roy Taylor Leader of Elmbridge Borough Council after a meeting he had with Rob Moran - EBC Chief Executive 8 January 2010

Subject: Services supported during this week of adverse weather conditions

Dear Cllr Taylor

I understand that you are aware of the fantastic commitment from our staff teams and volunteers this week.  I thought you might find it helpful to have an update on the range of work we have been involved with this week.

As the majority of our excellent volunteers are themselves over retirement age, it was necessary to stand many of them down from delivering Meals on Wheels this week, as we did not want to risk any accidents that they may have trying to reach untreated properties across Elmbridge.

Community Transport Drivers along with Community Support Service staff have supported the Meals on Wheels Service, which due to the suspension of Community Transport Service for health and safety reasons, has seen an increase.

A check up telephone call was made from the Centres to Meals on Wheels customers and vulnerable Centre clients on a daily basis.

Community Transport clients were contacted daily and offered the Meals on Wheels Service.  This meant that all Centres were increasing their Meals on Wheels rounds to support the more vulnerable community transport passengers.

In addition one or two people who would have relied on the Centre for a hot lunch, but were unable to reach the Centre also received a hot meal.  Due to the adverse weather conditions all rounds have taken longer, so we have split rounds and returned to the Centre to collect additional meals, in order for the meals to retain temperature levels. 

Also due to the suspension of the Dial a Ride Service we have not been able to carry out our regular shopping trips, which is a lifeline to many customers.  However, we would not want to risk these passengers falling. Customers were contacted on a daily basis and as the week progressed it became more of a problem, as some customers had no essential goods.  As a result our Community Transport Officer has taken shopping in on her way home from work to support the very vulnerable customers.

We have been very grateful for the excellent support received from Leisure and Cultural Services.  In working with Ian Burrows we have been able to use the countryside rangers and their four wheel drives and the shout vehicles to deliver meals on wheels to the more isolated locations in Elmbridge.  I will be contacting Ian again on Monday to review whether we need their support again next week.

In addition, we have had colleagues in other departments who have offered and helped as volunteers during the week.  I was at Cobham Centre on Wednesday and I am aware that Councillor Odone came into Cobham Centre and delivered meals to the local sheltered housing scheme and surrounding areas on foot.  I understand she is assisting again this weekend.  These very kind offers of support have made a real difference.

This weekend, with weather conditions still very poor, we have felt it more appropriate not to use volunteers to drive and to support with staff covering 7 rounds each day.   Kim and I along with other members of the Community Support Services team, including transport drivers, are working both Saturday and Sunday to support the service.

Following discussions with Rob Moran and David Wiltshire we have purchased 245 loaves of bread and milk for our most vulnerable customers.  These will go out with complimentary cards from this weekend explaining that they are from Elmbridge Borough Council and that we will be seeking to maintain Meals on Wheels Services but if they have concerns regarding the adverse weather conditions then they should telephone us.  This maintains a vital link with the Council. 

I await the next weather report as we determine services daily, but we are so very lucky to have such a fantastic team of staff and volunteers.

Kind regards,
 

Melanie Bussicott
Head of Community Support Services
Elmbridge Borough Council

 (Editor’s note - a thoughtful and brilliant initiative from our  Chief Executive, EBC Officers and Leader. Please check on your neighbours to see if they are OK, thanks)

Conservative Administration make Elmbridge top place to live in UK for the second year running.

Elmbridge topped Halifax's quality of life survey 2009, which scored local authorities in Great Britain according to a range of factors, such as employment, earnings, home-ownership, the environment, education and health, for the second year running.

The group said 95% of people in Elmbridge were in good health, people in the area had a high average life expectancy of 81.1 years, higher than average weekly earnings of £1,064, while 76% owned their own home. The area also had above average employment rates, while children got above average GCSE results, and it typically enjoyed a good climate with 32.7 hours of sunshine a week and less than average rainfall.

Spokesperson stated ‘This shows the Conservative Administration of Elmbridge Borough Council are running a tight ship and also offering great services to people of all ages.’

Articles: Times   Sky News  Guardian  Daily Telegraph
 

Conservative administration makes Elmbridge one of the best places to live in England!

Elmbridge Borough Council organisational assessment 2009

Overall, Elmbridge Borough Council performs well

• Managing performance 3 out of 4
• Use of resources 3 out of 4
• Managing finances 3 out of 4
• Governing the business 3 out of 4
• Managing resources 3 out of 4

Summary

Elmbridge Borough Council performs well overall. The Council is addressing the issues that its residents see as a priority. These are; making Elmbridge a safe and healthy place to live which has a pleasant town centres with a strong economy, supporting the local community, delivering affordable housing, providing good levels of service to its residents, ensure people get on well and have equal access to services and protecting and sustaining attractive, green and unique character of the borough. The Council has strong and clear leadership with which to deliver its aims and objectives. Councillors provide effective challenge to Heads of Service to ensure delivery of priorities and key projects.

The Council has been proactive in the way in which it has tried to address the issues created by the current recession. The Council has created the Elmbridge Civic Improvement fund to help invest in projects to promote the boroughs businesses and facilities. It has also provided wide ranging advice through its ‘Recession buster' web pages.

Elmbridge scores 3 out of 4 for managing performance. It understands what is important to local people and is making improvements in these areas. Over half of residents are satisfied with the way the Council runs things this is the 46th best result nationally. The Council is working with other organisations to address the need for affordable housing through the East Surrey Housing and Employment partnership. The provision of affordable housing in a relatively affluent area with high average house prices remains a challenge and the Council is taking action to facilitate increased availability. The recession has affected the demand on services and the Council has coped well with the rise in demand on its benefits and homelessness services. The Council involves its community is making Elmbridge a good place to live, it uses effective consultation to shape its services and is continuing to develop ways in which residents can gain access to its services.

The Council score 3 out of 4 for Use of Resources. The Council has a history of excellent financial management and was in a strong financial position heading into the current economic downturn. The Council has a proven history of managing its finances well against its budgets. The Council has sound budget monitoring arrangements in place. The Council's culture ensures continuous challenge of service costs and value for money. This is supported by strong performance management arrangements The Council has good people management systems in place. The Council's progress on equalities issues remains slow. The Council is only meeting level 2 of the Local Government Equalities Framework

About Elmbridge Borough Council

Elmbridge is the second biggest district in Surrey, located 15 miles from central London. It is densely populated, with 131,000 residents. There is a mixture of towns, villages and countryside, with over half the land designated as Green Belt.

There are low levels of deprivation, unemployment is low and wages are high. House prices in Elmbridge are high. People are generally better qualified than in other areas. The ethnicity of the area is mostly white, however, people from Black or Minority Ethnic backgrounds is above average for the South East.

Health of people is generally good, with high life expectancy. However, men living in the most deprived areas live 5 years less than those in less deprived areas. Although overall poverty is low, over 2,500 children live in low income households.

The Council is Conservative-led, with 21 of the 60 seats being held by residents' associations. The borough has a five year vision with five top priorities, these are:

- Commitment to better services for our residents;

- Commitment to value for money;

- Commitment to our community;

- Commitment to our staff and volunteers; and

- Commitment to the environment.

Organisational assessment in detail

How well is the organisation delivering its priority services, outcomes and improvements that are important to local people?

Elmbridge’s priorities reflect the needs of local people and good progress is being made in delivering outcomes against them. The Council is good at involving local people in setting its priorities and improvements to its services. The Council is effective in identifying its priorities through effective consultation. The Council regularly collect feedback from service users and residents to ensure that priorities are aligned with residents needs and to test satisfaction with services and progress against priorities.

Safe and healthy communities, vibrant town centres and a strong local economy.

The Council is working in partnership to deliver its priority to create a safe and healthy community. The Community Safety Partnership recently engaged with local residents in Walton at a Community action day attended by Surrey Fire & Rescue; Elmbridge Borough Council; Surrey County Council and Surrey Police. Residents were also asked to complete a community safety questionnaire to understand perceptions of safety and levels of antisocial behaviour.

The Council and its partners are tackling crime, the Council, County and local police have created ‘no cold calling zones’ across the borough to help reduce distraction burglaries. Following successful consultation in the pilot areas of Claygate, part of Hersham and a small section of North West Cobham the launch of zones was extended in August. Levels of crime within the borough have reduced significantly in the last year. The Community Safety Partnership has reported a 16.5 per cent reduction during 2008/09. The most significant reductions are in vehicle crime. Activities have included increasing the number of accredited car parks to 16 and dedicated road shows to raise awareness and promote crime reduction.

The Council is working with local businesses to ensure a vibrant economy and cope through the current recession. The Council is taking action to assist local business through the current recession. The Council has created the Elmbridge Civic Improvement fund (ECIF) which will provide funds to local businesses to help them improve the local street scene and help promote business in the area. The Council accepts that the amounts involved will not necessarily create jobs, but will help allow businesses to survive the current challenges.

The Council has identified a significant part of these funds to increase its capacity to deliver its key flagship activity to improve Walton town centre. Over a third of the ECIF budget has been awarded to the Walton High Street improvement project to allow the areas profile and identity to be raised. It has increased membership of its business network, over 250 businesses are now members and are being invited to join projects and events. Further promotion of the Network continues including the use of local radio. Community safety and fire safety messages have also been promoted to businesses. A grant has been awarded to support the development of a website for Cobham Chamber of Commerce.

The Council is delivering changes to support the local economy and promote the health of residents. It has delivered a campaign to increase take up of small business rates relief, launched a two year free swimming initiative in April 2009 and increased the tennis for free offer to 2 sites allowing an additional 80 children to attend sessions monthly.

High quality community services and affordable housing, and efficient public services.

The Council continues to deliver affordable housing in the borough. The Council achieved 64 homes against its own target of 34 during 2008/09, this was a result early completion of one project and other initiatives. Targets for 2009/10 have been amended to reflect the current economic conditions. Wherever possible the Council is working to make land available for development and to encourage the provision of affordable housing. The Council will need to develop innovative solutions to encourage further development in the coming years.

The Council is working in partnership to increase access to affordable housing. It has signed up to the East Surrey Housing and Employment local partnership. Joint funding has been agreed for this partnership for the next two years. The aims of the partnership are to deliver housing, employment and training advice through enhanced housing options services, improve further the areas homelessness prevention activity and to involved social landlords and address issues resulting from the current recession.

The Council is using new IT solutions to increase capacity within its services. In October 2008 the Benefits service implemented an electronic document management system which has built capacity helped manage the increased demands during the recession. A new land charge administration system is being implemented which will allow the Council to deliver the service with a reduced resource allocation.

A thriving and inclusive borough.

The Council is supporting community organisations and residents to make a difference to the local area. The Council has a dedicated voluntary support officer who works with community groups and organisations to provide advice and assistance in securing outside funding. It has 800 active volunteers; it has committed to enhance and renew this strong base and has held a number of volunteer recruitment and development events.

Work is being done to promote community cohesion. The Council is working with various sectors of the community to promote understanding. Centres for Retired People have developed a strong Childrens Centre Agenda. The Claygate and Oxshott Childrens Centre is one of the first centres for both older and young residents, activities such as the Teatime dance project in partnership with local schools and the RC Sheriff. The aim is to bring young and old together through dance in a fun and creative way whilst improving health. Through the One Elmbridge Partnership the Council is targeting actions towards its most deprived areas. Work continues on projects in the St John’s Estate and its surrounding areas in Walton.

The Council has launched the 'DisableGo' website which provides information to people with disabilities on access issues. Over 1000 premises have been reviewed and visitors to the website are able to consider if access is suitable for them prior to visiting. The website is proving popular with significant numbers of hits.

Better access.

The Council is improving access to services. A customer services improvement programme has been introduced which has delivered a number of changes to the service. Including a review of the Councils customer service standards, changes to the main reception area, a new information service at Walton library and a standardisation of open hours for all services at the Civic Centre. These improvements have lead to increased levels of satisfaction. The overall customer satisfaction increased to 72 per cent from 65 per cent in local surveys.

Enhanced electronic access to Council services is being delivered. The Council has revised its website.. Work continues to enhance the ‘My Elmbridge’ service on the front-page of the website. The new look website enables residents to, at a glance, check out the services that affect or interest them. Users can now personalise what they see or don't see on each page, and check out what is "nearest" to them.

Environmental responsibility and climate change.

The Councils is taking the lead in promoting environmental responsibility, and the challenges of climate change. A Climate Change Group, including Members and officers is in place. The group is looking at where the Council can reduce its own impact on the climate. Refurbishment works at the Civic Centre and water and energy saving measures have been implemented. Water butts have been installed to provide water for the green areas outside the Civic Centre, a reduction of nearly 1 million litres of water per year has been achieved following installation of water saving cisterns. Energy consumption is expected to be reduced by more than 80,000 KWh at the Civic Centre, enough electricity to power 14 houses. Since April 2008 more than 150 people have been helped with energy advice through its Care and Repair service and web portal to Warmfront. Also, 2000 energy saving light bulbs are being distributed free of charge to vulnerable residents.

The Council is promoting the use of public transport as an alternative to driving to work to reduce its carbon footprint. In partnership with local businesses, a pilot shuttle bus between Esher station and the town to make it more convenient for people to travel by train and also help to reduce congestion is in place.

Elmbridge is recycling and composting more household waste than last year. The Council reviewed the specification of its waste collection service and took on board local objection to alternate weekly waste collection. A trial of segregated weekly kitchen waste for composting was introduced. It has allowed the Council to jointly procure equipment with two other authorities, achieving significant long term savings, addressing residents concerns and meeting local demand for weekly kitchen waste collection. The full roll out of this service will be during the later part of 2009. It has also introduced a direct debit facility to encourage take up of the garden waste service to its already growing garden waste collection service-currently with almost 13,000 households subscribing.

The Council and its Environmental forum are promoting environmental awareness among residents. The Council’s Winter 2008 magazine was focused on sustainability and promoted ways in which residents could reduce energy consumption. It included specific help for vulnerable people including the elderly. The Forum produces regular newsletters and involves residents in environmental projects.

Retaining the Borough’s attractive, green and unique character.

Residents are satisfied that the area is being kept clear from litter and refuse. Results from the 2008 place survey show that 7 out of 10 residents are satisfied with the local area being kept clear of litter and refuse, ranked 18th best nationally. The street cleaning service achieved a 5 star rating from the British Cleaning Council which recognised the work being done to keep the borough clean and tidy.

Grass and verge cutting has improved following the return of the service to the Council. The number of annual cuts has increased from a reported five to eleven. A more effective mapping process is being developed to ensure all areas are covered by the service.

The Council is improving public open spaces. It is investing in maintaining and improving Esher Commons Site of Special Scientific Interest. This has improved access to the Black Pond area, allowing more light and providing a pleasant place for walking and exercising. It will also allow the remaining trees space to develop and spread, as well as developing woodland for the longer term. The second year of restoration was undertaken on Oxshott Heath and Fairmile Common during the winter of 2007/08.
view full report

Elmbridge Business Network Newsletter - Winter 2009-10

Free and easy way to grow your business Elmbridge firms are being invited to join an exciting new initiative to help grow local business. Elmbridge Borough Council is inviting local businesses to join its leisure discount scheme, the More Card, by offering discounts and offers to cardholders. Supported by Elmbridge Business Network, the scheme is intended to increase footfall by reminding residents of the excellent variety of traders operating in Elmbridge and offer them a little ‘more’......... plus much more news

Elmbridge Is A Champion

Elmbridge Borough Council, under the Conservative administration, is delighted to announce two recent successes in relation to Investors in People (IiP).

Firstly, Elmbridge Borough Council has retrospectively been awarded Gold Status in its Investors in People assessment (IiP). This is the very highest accolade among the 38,000 public and private organisations that have IiP and requires them to achieve above a threshold score on the higher "Profile" standard. Elmbridge has exceeded this and becomes one of a handful of organisations to have their people practice accredited at this level.

In addition, Elmbridge Borough Council has been selected to be an Investors in People Champion. Investors in People Champions are a prestigious group of role model organisations that promote Investors in People through a series of best practice sharing activities.

The purpose of the Championship programme is to:

• Recognise and reward organisations which have been outstanding in promoting the values and principles of Investors in People. They lead by example in the way they manage and develop their people
• Share and learn - encouraging the dissemination of practice in people management, to support the continuous improvement, and raise performance

Champion Investors in People
|Cllr Christine Elmer, Portfolio Holder for Corporate Development said, "This outstanding result is well deserved and the achievement says a great deal about the Council as an organisation and the quality of staff it employs".

|Robert Moran, Chief Executive for Elmbridge Borough Council, said, "The new champion status reflects the emphasis we place on investing in staff development. We know that developing quality employees helps ensure we deliver quality services. The result is well deserved and puts Elmbridge Borough Council at the forefront of IiP nationally".

  Seven Hills Road Closure Scotia Gas Networks statement - latest - December 8th 2009

Your local Hersham Councillors visited the SGN exhibition at the Seven Hills Hotel and had assurances from Mark Meloy, SGN construction manager, that we would be kept update at all times so we can advise you immediately what is happening.
Please come back here often for the latest information. Editor.

SGN Statement:

‘We will shortly be starting an essential £3 million project to reinforce and renew the gas network in Seven Hills Road between Cobham and Weybridge/Walton on Thames.
Start date: 28 December 2009 
Duration: Up to the beginning of September, including road closures at certain times 
Location: B365, Seven Hills Road, from its junction with Byfleet Road to the junction with Queens Road 
Description: This project involves laying a new gas pipe along Seven Hills Road, from the grounds of the Hilton Hotel to the roundabout junction with Queens Road, to increase capacity in the network. Work will also be taking place to renew parts of the local gas network by replacing old, metal mains with new, durable plastic pipe.

We need to lay the new gas main because of an increase in the demand for gas in the local area. The new main will help to ensure that adequate supplies of gas are maintained in the future, while the replacement of existing mains will also ensure a continued safe and reliable supply of gas to homes and businesses.

The size of the new main and the requirements to maintain the safety of road users means we need to close Seven Hills Road at certain periods while work there takes place.

UPDATE: We have worked closely with Surrey County Council and have listened to the concerns of residents and road users regarding this project. As a result, a revised programme of work has been planned, including closures of Seven Hills Road for certain periods during the Christmas/New Year, Easter and summer holidays. Additional work will take place outside these dates but will not result in road closures.

The outline of the planned programme of work, which will begin on 28th December, is shown below.

While we realise that our work will still cause disruption, we are working hard to try and minimise this and will make every effort to complete this project as soon as we can.

During the closures of Seven Hills Road, through traffic will need to use a diversionary route via Queens Road, Esher Bypass, Copsem Lane and the A3 and vice versa. Access to residents, businesses and the school in Seven Hills Road will be maintained throughout and we will be working seven days a week and extended hours where it is safe and possible to do so.’

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Questions and Answers

What work is taking place?

The principal activity is reinforcement of the local gas network. This involves laying a new, 3.6km gas main along Seven Hills Road. The second aspect of our work is replacement of existing metal gas mains with new, durable plastic pipe. We have combined these two activities, bringing forward our mains replacement to avoid the need to return to Seven Hills Road to carry out this work in future years.

Why is this work necessary?

We need to reinforce the local gas network as a result of increases in the demand for gas and the new main is needed to maintain future gas supplies to the local area. The replacement of existing mains is in line with a national programme of replacing metal mains with plastic pipe and is also designed to ensure a safe and reliable gas supply to homes and businesses.

What will the affect be on the local road network?

The work will mean the closure of Seven Hills Road on three separate occasions over the Christmas/New Year, Easter and summer periods. Specifically, the road will be closed from 28th December to 3rd January, 29th March to 11th April and 20th June to 29th August. The road will remain open for pedestrians and cyclists and access to residents, businesses and schools will be available at all times. Additional work will take place outside these dates but will not involve road closures.

What is the diversion route?

For through traffic, the alternative route southbound (travelling from Weybridge and Hersham to Byfleet and the A3) will be A317 Queens Road, A244 Hersham By-pass/Esher Road/Lammas Lane/Claremont Lane/Copsem Lane, A3, A245 Byfleet Road. Northbound traffic will be diverted along the same route in the opposite direction.

Why have you changed the work programme?

Planning for this project has been taking place for many months and has happened in consultation with Surrey County Council. Along with the council, we have listened to feedback from local residents and road users and have altered the programme to minimise overall disruption caused by the closure of Seven Hills Road. We have been able to draft in extra resources and have planned a different way of working so that the closures occur as far as possible in periods when traffic will be lighter, in particular during school holidays.

Why does Seven Hills Road have to be closed at all?

Due to the size of the pipe being laid and the plant and machinery required to move the pipe, equipment and materials, we would be unable to provide enough room for vehicles to pass. Safety is our number one priority and there is a legal requirement to provide a minimum safety zone between the edge of the working zone and any moving traffic.

Why can't temporary traffic lights be used to keep the road open?

We examined the option of using temporary traffic lights but for the reasons outlined above this is not possible while certain work takes place within Seven Hills Road. Even without these considerations, the use of temporary lights would restrict our work (including the movement of materials around site) and would result in the project taking far longer to carry out.

Why can't the main be laid somewhere else?

The new main needs to connect two existing points on the gas network and Seven Hills Road provides a natural route between these two points, which are at each end of the road. We have looked at the possibility of laying the main in the verge at the side of the road but this contains a large amount of other utilities' plant. Any attempt to lay the main on land adjacent to the road would involve going across private land and through residents' gardens and property, which would not be acceptable. In addition, due to the layout of the gas network and other obstacles such as railway lines and the A3, to lay the main along other public highways to connect the two points on the network would mean the project taking far longer and causing much more disruption.

Why haven't the public been consulted about these works?

Planning of this project has involved close liaison with Surrey County Council and we have also listened to the concerns of residents and road users, including at a drop-in centre that was organised at the end of November. Prior to work beginning, advance warning signs will be erected as widely as possible in addition to diversion signs.

Will extended hours be worked?

Yes - we will be working seven days a week and extended hours where safe and possible to do so. We will make every effort to complete the project and reopen Seven Hills Road as soon as we can.

Why can't work take place 24 hours a day?

Seven Hills Road and the surrounding area contain a number of homes and other properties, including a hotel. Our work will involve activities that cannot reasonably be expected to be carried at night due to their impact on local residents at this time.

Background - Scotia Gas Networks (Southern Gas Networks) state:

‘We are working on a 30 year programme to replace all the metallic pipes within 30m of property with new polyethylene (PE) pipes. These PE pipes are more flexible and robust and if left undisturbed will last for decades, ensuring the continued benefits of gas for years to come.

As a consequence of our renewal programme you may be affected by our works. Modern methods of pipe laying mean that we can often use techniques that allow us not to dig up lengthy stretches of the highway and can even insert the new pipes inside the old ones.

We pride ourselves in the work we do and will always strive to minimise the inconvenience caused by keeping our customers informed and by working closely with local authorities, police and transport companies when planning our projects.’

For more information about Scotia Gas Networks (Southern Gas Networks) mains replacement click here
We will keep you informed ..............

Dominic Raab is the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate - 21 November 2009
A full house at the Esher & Walton Open Primary selected Dominic as the Conservative parliamentary candidate.

Over 700 people who registered to attend the Open Primary gave a full endorsement of Dominic as their parliamentary candidate. The meeting lasted over 3 hours and all six prospective candidates were vigorously interviewed. Without exception everyone who attended felt the Open Primary was an excellent way to select a candidate.  ....more