Surrey County Council is responsible for around 2164 miles (3482 km) of public footpaths, bridleways, restricted byways, and byways open to all traffic across the whole of the County. A new Rights Of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP) is being drafted which sets out how Surrey County Council can make sure the public rights of way network meets the needs of the public, now and in the future.

Hambledon Parish Council will be giving feedback on what improvements can be made within the Parish. We are looking for additional feedback from those who use the network, please get in touch with the clerk if you have any thoughts you would like to add.

Suggestions may include:

• gaps between almost adjacent rights of way,
• sections of footpaths which become all but impassable to those on foot,
• sections where a right of way is severed or is busy that could benefit from being bridged.

Please get in touch via email: [email protected] by Friday 26th January 2024.

Surrey County Council have also provided a questionnaire that you can fill out that goes directly to them: https://www.surreysays.co.uk/environment-and-infrastructure/rowip-public  . This questionnaire closes on 10th March 2024.

The Village Web Team and its contributors send season’s greetings to all village residents.

Our photos depict the Christmas Eve community carols singing outside Hambledon shop. Great music, wonderful singing and a massive attendance. Hambledon at its best!

Thank you to all who organised or attended this and the host of other activities held in the lead-up to Christmas. There has been live music and dancing at the village hall, carols outside the Merry Harriers followed by a Christmas-themed quiz, a candlelit carols service at the village church and a seasonal market at the Old Coal Yard.

If you want details of church service times or shop opening hours, please refer to the recent posts on this news website.

It’s another busy Christmas week in the Village. On Wednesday The Merry Harriers hosts a communal Carol singing led by our very own musical vicar Simon Willetts, with a few elves assisting. Carols will start at 7pm and will be followed by a Christmas Quiz (expect more communal singing) starting around 8:30pm. The pub will be open from 5pm and, weather permitting, will have an outside bar and fire pits lit, plus some seasonal bar snacks. Currently the forecast is for a dry evening.

Christmas Eve brings the customary carol singing at the Village Shop at 12 noon with mulled wine and minced pies and carols lead by David Kirby’s band of friends (plus a few elves) and the Hambledon Village Shop Choir. There is no charge to attend, any donations are gratefully received and will contribute towards the costs of running the event. (PS Chiddingfold are running a similar carols event this Christmas Eve, can’t wait to see their Christmas inflatables next year.)

For a full list of Church events over Christmas see here.

Finally, please note the Village Shop hours over the festive week:

The shop, deli-cafe and Post Office will operate normal* hours except on the following days:

Christmas Eve – Deli closes at 12:00
Christmas Day – CLOSED
Boxing Day – CLOSED
New Year’s Day – CLOSED

*Normal shop hours are: 7 days a week 08:30-14:00
*Normal Post Office hours are: Mon-Fri 09:00-13:45, Sat 09:00-12:15, Sun CLOSED

Read how grants awarded in 2022 by the Hambledon Community Fund have benefitted the community this year:

HCF Autumn Newsletter 2023

Following the recent water outages a public meeting will be held with Thames Water next Friday, 15^th December. A number of representatives from Thames Water will be present including the Interim Co-CEO. The meeting will be opened by Angela Richardson MP and chaired by Jeremy Hunt MP. It will be necessary to register your attendance in advance.

The meeting will mostly address the most recent outages and what caused it. Hambledon was not impacted by this incident, but it may be of interest as the meeting will also cover what action the company is taking to ensure our water infrastructure is resilient for the future.

The excessively wet and muddy bridleway 186 beside the Merry Harriers is likely to receive substantial maintenance and improvements next summer, Hambledon Parish Council has been told.

The parish repeatedly raised the appalling state of this right of way with Surrey County Council, which is responsible for footpaths and bridleways, finally resulting in an SCC officer carrying out an inspection.

With an increased budget expected to be approved for maintenance, he has subsequently contacted the parish council to state that it hopes to carry out repairs in 2024.

Bridleway 186 is an important walking, cycling and riding route, connecting the village with Hambledon Common and Enton, but has become almost impassable. At the eastern end, between the Merry Harriers and Dare Mead, run off means the path is wet and boggy all year round. At the western end, where it reaches the common, a small stream floods a wide area.

John Baker, a SCC countryside access officer, has made several visits, including one with parish councillors, and is now proposing a raised section with a ditch and soak-away to one side at the eastern end and an improved culvert to take the stream under the bridleway at the western end.

This is subject to further inspection by SCC-appointed contractors and other approvals.

Mr Baker said: “Our budget for next year has not been set, but assuming it remains as we have been told, I am confident that this path can be done during Summer 2024.”.

Budget restraints have led to rights of way maintenance across the county being shelved, but the increase in outdoor activity during the Covid pandemic, and the pressure that has put on footpaths, has brought about a change of approach.

The parish council has constantly raised the state of Bridleway 186 with SCC. Village volunteers have carried out some maintenance, including the laying of sleepers, but the necessary repairs would be way beyond the parish budget.

Mr Baker indicated the parish council may be able to use Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) to go towards repair costs, despite Waverley Borough Council previously indicating this would not be possible. Hambledon’s parish clerk is now investigating this.

Hambledon residents and others living nearby will have seen that the owner of the field beside Station Road and Hambledon Road, at the Hydestile Crossroads, has employed contractors to remove vegetation on the roadside banks.

This has resulted in a considerable change to the landscape, as did the earlier removal of trees. The preservation of hedgerows is important as they are a vital habitat for wildlife. However, Waverley Borough Council stated today that the work has been carried out lawfully and the landowner intends to replant.

It was a week of goodbyes, swiftly followed by hellos, as Hambledon’s “local”, the Merry Harriers, changed hands.

The village’s popular freehouse had been in the ownership of the de Savary family since 2017. Following the death of Peter de Savary last year his widow Lana decided to sell the pub if an appropriate buyer could be found.

That has now happened, and last week Sam Fiddian-Green and Alex Winch, the business partnership behind the acclaimed Hilltop Kitchen at nearby Munstead, took over the reins at the 16^th Century pub.

The previous weekend (Nov 11^th and 12^th), regulars said goodbye to the de Savary era, and to parting chef Nick Ash, in fine style, with a crowded meat raffle on the Saturday afternoon and a final session on Sunday evening.

Rock Hill will remain closed for up to four days for emergency carriageway repairs to a water leak and the resulting pothole.

This follows injuries to cyclists in two separate incidents. Both hit the pothole descending Rock Hill in the direction of the Merry Harriers and adjacent to Hambledon Nursery School. One suffered a broken nose after being propelled over her handlebars on Friday evening and the other received facial injuries after coming off his bike at the same location yesterday morning.

Both required hospital treatment at Accident and Emergency.

Hambledon Parish Council has been in touch with Surrey County Council Highways Department and Thames Water and, yesterday evening, a barrier was erected around the leak.

This morning, engineers returned and closed the road off to begin assessing the work required. It is not the first time this leak has emerged and, as before, there seems to be some dispute over whether the water company or the highways authority is responsible for the repair.

The council has spoken to the engineers currently on site. No work was taking place and it was clear that they were awaiting further instructions. They said that repairs are likely to take three to four days and during this period the road will remain closed to vehicles, although pedestrians and bicycles can pass.

They were asked if traffic light control could be introduced to allow vehicles to pass but the answer was “no” because the road is too steep and narrow to allow safe passage.

It seems the repair, when it comes, will not address the underlying issue of why this problem reoccurs, but will involve excavation, infilling and resurfacing. It was made clear that, with so many repair issues on local roads to be attended to, this is all the village can expect.

• Rock Hill is also known colloquially as School Hill

Hambledon Road remains open from the Hydestile Crossroads to the Merry Harriers and nursery school in one direction, and from Lane End through the village to Church Lane in the other. The signposted diversion is along the Petworth Road towards Milford, turning right into Culmer Lane/Water Lane, and then Station Road to Hydestile (or the reverse of).

Drivers should be aware the Culmer and Water Lanes are narrow, steep in places, badly rutted and with a considerable amount of surface water. Motorists may prefer to taking a longer diversion through Milford.

A carriageway water leak on Rock Hill, approaching the Merry Harriers, has now developed into a large pothole. A cyclist hit this earlier today, was treated initially for his injuries at the nearby Hambledon Nursery School, and has since been taken to A&E.

Over the weekend, a cyclist hit the same pothole, went over her handlebars and suffered facial injuries including a broken nose. She was cared for by Merry Harriers staff until an ambulance arrived.

This leak has previously been reported by Hambledon Parish Council but despite repairs, the problem keeps returning. Today the council has, once again, reported the issue to Surrey Highways and also to Thames Water.

It has also been reported by the Nursery School following the accident today and staff have been told that the issue has been “escalated” by Thames Water.

Hopefully temporary repairs can be made as soon as possible and the parish council will press for a more effective permanent repair.

In the meantime, please take extra care when descending Rock Hill and we are grateful to the nursery school and to Louise at the pub for the help they have given. Also, thanks to David Edmiston for swiftly placing some warning cones by the pothole.