The survey closes at 9am on 20 January 2025.

Reigate & Banstead Borough Council, together with Horley Town Council, want to hear from residents, visitors and local groups to help improve sport, exercise and play facilities in open spaces in Horley. By taking part, you could be in with a chance to win a £100 shopping voucher.

Your Councils want to hear:

- what you think about Horley’s current open spaces and facilities
- how you use these facilities and open spaces
- your ideas about how sport and exercise and play facilities can be improved.  

Horley Town Council Chairman and Mayor said, 'Since becoming a town councillor and later on town mayor, one of the most common views I hear from residents is Horley doesn't get its fair share of investment compared to other towns in our area, so I've made it a priority to encourage as much investment in our town as I can.

One key area is our outdoor open and play spaces and working closely with some Reigate and Banstead borough officers, we've partnered up to create a survey to get feedback from Horley residents and visitors on what you want and where.

"Oh no, another consultation, just deliver something!" I hear you say, and to an extent I agree, but we have to work the system to get what we want.

For the town and borough councils to justify spending potentially a lot of money of some great facilities, we need a really strong voice of support from residents, and ultimately that boils down to numbers. With these survey results, we can then go to funding bodies like the National Lottery, Sport England, the county council and many others, and they are far more likely to give us the money if we can provide evidence that the demand for the facilities is there.

So, we need as many people as possible to fill in the survey please. If you have 5 people in your house, please get all 5 people to respond. If you have friends or family that come to Horley, even infrequently, please get them to fill it in as wellRich Michalowski, Executive Member for Planning, Place Delivery and Regulatory services, said: “By taking part in our surveys, you will really help us to shape the Borough Council’s future plans to make major investment in Horley’s open spaces to improve facilities for sport and exercise, for children’s play and to provide things for local teenagers to do". 

There are two surveys – one for individuals and one for groups and organisations. To take part visit www.reigate-banstead.gov.uk/Horley-open-space.

Have you every wondered who is doing roadworks or when they might next pop up on your route to work? The OneNetwork interactive map shows all planned in roadworks. Access is open to all by clicking on this link

If you need to report a roads issue such as potholes or streetlights you can do so here 

A new era is opening for Horley's grand roundabout as support and funding grows for an imaginative campaign to bring it new wildlife and colour.

Since 2020 several people living near the roundabout, at Cheyne Walk and Upfield, started planting spring bulbs in the green verges outside their homes. In that year some of them asked Horley Town Council if shrubs and trees could be put in the roundabout itself.

For years the roundabout had been an uninspiring grass area with two trees – until one tree blew down in a gale and had to be removed. But in early 2023 Surrey's highways department planted four trees and 300 small whips that may one day grow into hedges.

To nurture the trees a group of waterers was formed; each young tree, now well established, was regularly and meticulously tended by a team of ten. Whips, which could largely fend for themselves, were also given necessary care.

To help wildlife, grass cutting on the roundabout was cut back – and the area achieved Blue Heart status, awarded by Surrey's highways officers in a campaign to encourage wild flowers and increase biodiversity.

This year, care of the roundabout was taken a step further with the formation of Upfield and Cheyne Walk Roundabout Residents' Group – it has six committee members and its own bank account. Committee members and helpers, one volunteer from as far away as Henfield, have been busy planting bulbs and flowering plants after the group got a £500 grant from Horley Town Council. Members also raised more money and were able to match the council's cash.

Next year will see the results of all the digging, planting and nurture as the roundabout comes alive with cowslips, English bluebells, autumn crocus, wild narcissi, red campion, ox-eye daisy, knapweed yarrow – and the yellow rattle which will hamper the growth of unsightly overgrown grass.

The group is seeking further grants and the planting and nurture, hard but rewarding work, continues. More help would be very welcome; if you would like to join in please contact the group and come to the next day when we turn out in gardening garb to bring colour and new life to this big and important open space - written by Ian Chandler treasurer of ‘Upfield and Cheyne Walk Roundabout Residents Group’

Recognising the need for an update, the HLHS committee decided in 2020 to rework and reprint the book. Long-standing member and original contributor Veronica Ballard generously took on this task. By 2023, Veronica had completed a thoroughly updated version, ready to reflect the town’s growth and changes.

Unfortunately, the new version was never printed. With book sales declining and digital resources becoming more popular, the committee decided to make the book available online instead.

Today, 'The Street Where You Live' is proudly hosted on our website, ensuring it remains a valuable reference for anyone eager to learn more about Horley’s streets. The early chapters remain unchanged, preserving David Hall’s original words and honouring the contributions of past members, including Os Brown, Jean Shelley, John MacFarlane, Peter Blakey, Richard Cooper, and Peter Gwynne. These individuals are fondly remembered for their dedication and passion.

We hope this online version continues to inspire curiosity and interest among local residents. To explore The Street Where You Live, click here.

Doug Cox
Horley Local History Society

Reducing our carbon footprint
Going paperless is good for the environment as it saves precious resources - including trees, water and energy.
The carbon footprint for our paper bills, including paper manufacture, printing, delivery and then disposal of the bill is estimated to be 22.5 tonnes a year (equivalent to driving over 81,000 miles or the annual greenhouse gas emissions of more than three UK residents).   

Saving money
Going paperless will save thousands of pounds in printing and postage each year – money that can be spent on other public services instead
It costs the Council 71p to print and post each Council Tax bill – with over 95,000 bills sent out last year the savings will soon add up.

Manage your account online
It’s easy to register for Council Tax e-billing and then you can then manage your Council Tax account online whenever you need to.
Council Tax e-billing is fast, free, reliable and secure

Sign up here for e-billing

 
Most local households won’t see any changes as 90% of the Borough households can already recycle food waste, paper/card and dry recyclables using kerbside collection. 

For the remaining properties (mostly flats) additional funding has been agreed to allow the extension of kerbside recycling services.

There are currently 22 recycling sites in the borough, and they attract large volumes of non-recyclable rubbish - commercial and trade waste as well as household rubbish. Much of it is fly-tipped and difficult to recycle which is why these sites will be closed. 

The Simpler Recycling legislation will have a greater impact on the Council’s existing trade waste service, which currently collects non-recyclable waste, paper and card from around 650 businesses across the borough. The Council’s trade waste service will be gradually withdrawn over the next few years and the Council will be working with these customers to find alternative providers. 

For more information on this please see the full statement

Surrey residents looking to upgrade their homes with energy saving ‘retrofit’ measures can now access guidance from Surrey County Council’s new Home Energy Improvement Guide.

Over 300,000 homes in Surrey have low energy performance, meaning people live in homes which are poorly insulated, expensive to run, and prone to damp or mould due to inadequate internal air quality.

Retrofitting homes can be a complex process, often with a lack of clear guidance on how to begin. To support residents kickstart their retrofit journey, Surrey County Council has created the Home Energy Improvement Guide as a comprehensive and user-friendly resource to help residents on their journey to a more affordable, comfortable and healthy home.

Residents can access detailed and practical advice on appropriate retrofit measures for three common house types, and how to arrange for their installation. These range from simple cost-effective upgrades like draught proofing, to full-scale retrofits including solar and heat pump systems.

Using the guide residents can focus on the sections relevant to their house type or the measures and initiatives that interest them most. Information on what funding and support the Council and other organisations can provide is also available.

Marisa Heath, Surrey County Council Cabinet Member for Environment said: “We know from public consultation with residents that many people in Surrey are concerned about the climate crisis and high energy costs and would like to make improvements to their home to reduce their energy usage and their carbon footprint.

“However, many residents are unsure where to start and don’t know which measures would suit their particular property or which measures would be most effective.

“We commissioned this guide to provide homeowners, landlords and local tradespeople in Surrey with practical information on how to make our homes more energy efficient and lower carbon.

“I hope that you will find this guide useful and wish you well on your journey to a more comfortable, lower energy and lower carbon home.”

For more information and to download the free Home Energy Improvement Guide visit: Home energy improvement guide – Surrey County Council