Since the last issue the Bookham Vision team has been working hard behind the scenes in preparation for this far-reaching consultation process.  You won’t have seen much of the activity to date, but I can assure you much foundation activity has been done already.  I can also assure you that you’ll be seeing and hearing a lot more from us moving forward!

A major milestone has been the award of a grant from Mole Valley District Council of £8,000 to help fund the project.  Add this to the £5,000 previously granted by Surrey County Council and we now have sufficient of a war chest to proceed full ahead.

For the project to be successful we need to make sure it represents the views of as many residents, workers and visitors as possible, across all the areas the plan will cover, so that our data is factual and supportable and the plan is seen as credible.  Please don’t be shy.

To remind you, we’ll be seeking your input on matters concerning the environment (waste, recycling, green spaces, broadband and mobile coverage, carbon reduction etc), Bookham’s economy (employment, retail and leisure, industry and agricultural, services and commercial and so on), transport and access (cars, trains, buses, parking, footpaths etc) and the social and community aspects of life in Bookham (schools, recreation, healthcare, crime and policing, culture etc).

In early October a large proportion of the volunteer group (about 70 strong) and now called the Forum, met for the first time to review progress and get an idea of the scope from the Work Group leaders.  Everyone seemed impressed by the achievements so far, and by the professionalism, subject-matter expertise, and organisation of the Steering Committee.  An important part of the meeting was to outline the timetable of activities, which sets out 4 major phases running through to end 2009, or even in to the first part of 2010.

Before we can embark on the public consultations it’s important to get a snapshot of where we are today – a fact-finding exercise; gathering publicly available data and talking to various ‘stakeholders’.  There have already been discussions with Council officers, Heads of some of our schools, some businesses and so on.  In mid October the Steering Committee met with representatives of Mole Valley District Council Planning Department, for example, to get a good mutual understanding of each other’s activities and make sure we are well coordinated.  On that note, you might be interested to know that the “proposed submission version” of Mole Valley’s Core Strategy document comes out on November 14^th for 8 weeks for consultation and feedback (it will be on their website www.molevalley.gov.uk).  The Core Strategy sets out MVDC’s proposals on where development will be directed for the next 20 years, what type of developments and how they will be delivered. It’s being put out for consultation so that residents and developers alike can provide feedback, so it’s important you have your say.

We’ve also been talking to other Village Plan groups to learn about their experiences; there have been about 30 plans in Surrey, and they’ve produced some good results for the villages concerned.

Look out for us at the Bookham late night shopping event in December, and make a note in your diary to come and see us on the following Saturday, the 13^th December.  That’s when we’ll be going public.  We’ll be having a launch event that day where you can hear more about the process, meet the Bookham Vision team, and importantly give us your initial views on life in Bookham – a first (but not the last) chance to have your say.  We will publicise details of the time and place in due course.

The task is a large one, so we would always welcome additional volunteers, either to get involved in a particular Work Group, or simply to help deliver and collect leaflets.

In the mean time, as ever, please feel free to email or call Trevor Sokell ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 01372 452052) or Nick Applegarth ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 01372 458456) if you have any questions, comments, or would like to help.