Yet again, it would appear that Waverley Borough Council is holding secret meetings with developers planning even more housing estates in Cranleigh.
This time, they were caught out by Cranleigh Civic Society who learned that Waverley had rented space in a church in Godalming to hold the meeting so that even whistleblowers in the council would not know about it. See the email chain below (the Monitoring Officer has to give honest replies to objective questions). However, we find it hard to believe Waverley’s statement that there was no suitable venue within the Council Offices. They had from February to organise this!
Last time it came to light through good investigative journalism by The Surrey Advertiser that exposed the fact that Waverley was holding secret meetings, in a front page editorial on the 16th October 2015.
This is just one of several ways Waverley is trying to force new housing estates into Cranleigh without consulting Cranleigh residents, and without having to sort out our many infrastructure problems first.
Please come to the Village Meeting at 7pm on Thursday 25th May at Cranleigh Village Hall and learn about the various ways Waverley Borough Council is unfairly treating Cranleigh residents in their rush to get housing built in Cranleigh. And, more importantly, what you as residents can do about it. Oh, and please tell all your friends and neighbours!
The article published in the Surrey Advertiser in 2015 is attached here:
Attached below is the leaflet we have been distributing around the village:
———- Forwarded message ———- From: MonitoringOfficer <MonitoringOfficer@waverley.gov.uk> Date: Mon, May 8, 2017 at 2:02 PM Subject: RE: Secret meeting this week
To: Adrian Clarke , MonitoringOfficer <MonitoringOfficer@waverley.gov.uk>
Dear Mr Clarke
Thank you for your email and I can confirm that a meeting is taking place this afternoon between developers, utility companies and Waverley Borough Council. This is not a secret meeting, but a meeting to which members of the public are not able to attend. The reason for the meeting taking place at the Baptist Church in Godalming today is because there was no suitable venue available at the Council Offices in the Burys.
The first meeting of the Group took place in February, the minutes of which have been available to view on the Waverley website. Here is a link to the page on the website where the minutes of today’s meeting will also be posted in due course.
Kind regards, Emma
[Incidentally, Robin Pellow is no longer employed at Waverley Borough Council and the Monitoring Officer is now Robin Taylor. He can be contacted via the monitoringofficer@waverley.gov.uk email address.]
Emma McQuillan
Democratic Services Manager and Deputy Monitoring Officer
Policy and Governance
www.waverley.gov.uk/committees
Direct Line: 01483 523351
………………………………………….
From: Adrian Clarke
Sent: Monday 08 May 2017 09:48
To: MonitoringOfficer
Subject: Secret meeting this week
Dear Mr Pellow,
We learned at a meeting with a utility company last week that Executive members of Waverley Borough Council have arranged a secret meeting this week with developers and utility companies to discuss Waverley’s plans for dumping new housing estates in Cranleigh.
We were were told that the venue is the Baptist Church in Godalming, a venue chosen well away from the council offices at The Burys so that the meeting can be held in secret.
Please would you confirm if this meeting is, or is not going ahead, and if it is, if the public are invited to the meeting to scrutinise Executive members’ actions.
We enclose a copy of an editorial in the Surrey Advertiser dated 16-Oct-15, exposing this dubious practice in the past. We had hoped that Waverley’s Executive members had in the meantime adopted a more open, honest approach to your meetings.
Kind regards,
Adrian
Adrian Clarke
Cranleigh Civic Society
“Speaking up for Cranleigh”
email: info@cranleighsociety.org
Website: www.cranleighsociety.org
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cranleighsociety
Twitter: @CranleighSoc
What is the difference between and meeting that the public are not able to attend and a secret meeting? Only those with a PhD in c(r)ookery need answer!
Instead of more housing and sly meetings,how about a new school that was promised 10yrs ago! On a sensible site with sensible access? You know like the site that Cranleigh primary is already on ? That one that can house 2 schools comfortably that everyone likes? Oh no you can’t can you because??? Hmmm not really any good enough reasons are there? But don’t worry my children will keep going the old school that’s falling apart and you (Waverley/Surrey county council) won’t maintain!!