Chairman's Blog - March 2018

NEW SECONDARY SCHOOL 

The council reports that hundreds more parents are applying for school places this year, due to the rise in population and the improvement in local school results.   The council has received 2,296 admission applications for September 2018, which is 268 more than last year. They say that there is an urgent need to build a new secondary school. 

 A new Harris Academy Wimbledon is due to open on a temporary site in September this year at Whatley Avenue (off Martin Way).  This will be a non-selective state school for both girls and boys. The school is due to move to a permanent new school building in High Path, South Wimbledon, in September 2020. 

Official figures from the government show that all the borough’s secondary schools continue to be judged good or outstanding by Ofsted; and Department of Education results show that the progress pupils locally have made between the end of Key Stage 2 and the end of Key Stage 4 in eight subject qualifications, with maths and English given extra weight, is among the best in the country. 

ROAD TRAFFIC CRASHES AT THE JUNCTION OF CROSSWAY AND WESTWAY 

The local Guardian reports that a resident of Westway has seen six crashes at the junction of his road with Crossway within the last two years, and that he has had to replace his fence three times due to cars crashing into it. He is demanding that the council narrow the road or that CCTV measures are put in place to prevent a serious injury at this junction. 

It is a very busy junction, particularly in the rush hour, and used by vehicles going to and from the two level crossings. Many pedestrians, including children, need to cross it.

The council states that it will carry out a further investigation into road safety in the area and will ask for police reports. 

BUILDERS CHURNING UP GRASS VERGES 

The trend for people to improve their homes by building extensions, including loft extensions, means that a number of local roads now have large builders’ and scaffolding lorries parked near them for much of the day. These roads are often narrow and were not designed for vehicular use. The result is that the lorries park on grass verges, leaving wheel ruts and destroying the grass, or else on the pavement or asphalt verge, damaging that.  Prime examples of this can be seen in Heath Drive, off Grand Drive. 

I understand that it is a requirement of planning permission that builders reinstate public property that has been damaged, but it is not always possible to find out which builder has caused which damage.  

The problems in Heath Drive have been reported to the council by the Councillors.  Building inspectors, when they certify the extensions, need also to make a note of the damage done to the local infrastructure, and ensure that this is re-instated at the builders’ cost.

AGM

Our AGM will be held on the 11 April 2018. Click here for further details.

John Elvidge