If you care about what happens in Hambledon, and in particular about those decisions that impact on our lives but are taken at national or local government level, then please take time to consider and contribute to an important policy process. Waverley Council, in common with all borough councils, is required to produce a Local Development _frame_work.



When completed, this will guide and control decision making over a wide range of issues. Through Hambledon Parish Council, Waverley is asking for the opinions of local people on a variety of topics so that it can better understand what matters to us as a village community. This will help shape the _frame_work it produces. Homes, jobs, schools, environment, shopping, transport and roads are matters that we all care about locally but where decisions are taken at a higher level. So we should take this opportunity to make sure our views on these are expressed. Waverley has provided a questionnaire and Hambledon Parish Council has already responded to Part A, which requests factual data. Part B is where our views as villagers are invited. The parish council has filled in Part B in draft form but wants to know whether its reflects our views and aspirations.

Please do post your views and suggestions Just click reply.

You can view or download the draft questionaire here:
http://www.hambledonsurrey.co.uk/component/option,com_docman/task,cat_view/gid,26/Itemid,64/?mosmsg=Thank+you+for+your+submission.

I read the document and I have a comment for the Aspirations section:

How can we get cars off the roads? I would like to enable myself and my children to cycle to/from local schools (2.6 miles each way). Currently roads to Milford and Busbridge are too dangerous for cyclists, so I would hope that a network of paths/cycle ways would be created in the unused grassed margins between Hydestile crossroads, and Milford Station, Rodborough School, and Busbridge Infants. This would be much more likely to be used than the miles of overgrown and unused cycleways along the A3, or the pointless, unused and expensive 6 foot stretches of cycleways and associated signage and kerbing in Home Farm Road and Rake Lane. Give us the facility and we will take our cars off the road. PS we don't need signs, markings, etc. just a tarmac path.

I would also correct the submission where it states that Witley is the only station. Milford is much closer for the northern parts of Hambledon. Milford still requires drive and park to use it.

I have an additional comment about planning.

Whilst we see Waverley Planning's new, more relaxed approach to allowing domestic extensions - often very large extensions over 40% of original floor area get waved through, I find it frustrating that they seem to thwart attempts for residents to build home offices. Enabling residents to partly work from home will have benefits - reducing traffic, boosting local spending, reducing polution. Yet when proposing low impact, sympathetically designed home offices in AONBs within the confines of gardens the planners seem obstructive -preferring to allow only a double garage without any design merit. This seems counter productive.

If the _object_ion is that home offices could become separate dwellings then merely enforce the agreement, as you would if you found a garage was being converted for dwelling use.

I agree with Paul Osborne that a pathway/cycleway from the Hydestile Crossroads to Milford Station would be an excellent idea - although this is not strictly speaking a Hambledon issue, as it would be just outside our parish boundary. It would be wonderful to know that our children could walk or cycle to Rodborough School without the risks of using the narrow but busy Station Lane.
The owners of Tuesley Farm have agreed to create such a pathway as part of their planning permission for the poly tunnels. However, I understand that some _object_ors to the poly tunnels have opposed the pathway if it is near their properties and, anyway, the poly tunnel _object_ors are now seeking to get a judicial review of Waverley's approval of the poly tunnels. No doubt all of this opposition is stalling any plans to build a much-needed safe cycle and pathway from Hydestile to Milford. What a shame!

Thank you Stewart.This certainly was a plank in Tuesley Farm's planning application but as you say a small handful of locals was against it.I am sure we could ask them to reinstate this,as soon as these the present problems are resolved.

Having read the PC's draft submission, I agree that mention should be made about the use of bicycles - throughout the village - current traffic flows make their use extremely dangerous. Also, on traffic, Hydestile crossroads remains a deathtrap.... What, by the way, is 'rural proof'?