SACF

Public Meeting of the Committee

19 April 2024 0 Comments

The next meeting of South Ashford Community Forum will be

at 7:30pm

on 24 April 2024

at Christchurch Community Hall

Christchurch Road, Ashford, TN23 7XB

Please note the change of venue and time

this is due to St. Francis Hall being out of use

There is restricted parking at Christchurch.
A Brownie group have a meeting ending at 7:00 pm. Please do not enter the building until  the children have left and leaders have cleared away.

The meeting will be held as a Committee Meeting to which all residents of the Community Forum area are invited. The format will be a round table discussion to which all attendees have the opportunity to contribute.

We are aware that an event is happening at the Civic Centre and our Councillors may not be able to attend.

Agenda

  1. Welcome
    Sign in
    Apologies
  2. Minutes of meeting of 24 January 2024
    Matters arising
  3. Reforming South Ashford Community Forum
    • 3.1 Constitution
    • 3.2 Bank Account
  4. Finance
  5. Planning
    • 5.1 Updates
    • 5.2 BP Filling Station
    • 5.3 HELAA Submissions
  6. Any other business
  7. Date of next meeting

Minutes of Meeting of 24 January 2024

We have prepared a draft constitution for discussion under item 3.1. This was arrived at by editing the 2006 Constitution.

South Ashford Community Forum Draft Constitution

Although consultation has not opened on the proposed sites for inclusion in the Local Plan to 2041, we will start to draw opinions on those in South Ashford.

The table below lists all in Beaver, Norman And Victoria Wards.

HELAA Site reference Call for Sites Consultation Portal Response ID Address Ward CF Area
HELAA/LP41/198 1178822 Land at St Stephen’s Walk and Stanhope Road, Ashford, TN23 5BD Beaver South
HELAA/LP41/103 1178424 Land south of Asda, A2042, Ashford, TN24 0SD Norman South
HELAA/LP41/146 1178675 Land off Norman Road and Romney Marsh Road, Ashford, Kent, TN24 0SD Norman South
HELAA/LP41/163 1178745 Land south of Norman Rd, Ashford TN23 7DG Norman South
HELAA/LP41/188 1178800 Coneybeare, Eastmead Avenue, Ashford, TN23 7SB Norman; Victoria South
HELAA/LP41/210 1178916 Old Stanhay Works, Ashford, TN23 7HE Victoria South
HELAA/LP41/211 1178920 1 Victoria Road, Ashford, TN23 7HE Victoria South
HELAA/LP41/217 1178959 Beaver Road, Ashford, TN23 7RR Victoria South
HELAA/LP41/221 1178984 26 Bank Street, Ashford, Kent, TN23 1BE Victoria South
HELAA/LP41/061 1178083 Kent House, Station Road, Ashford, TN23 1PJ Victoria Central
HELAA/LP41/169 1178756 County Square Shopping Centre, Elwick Road, Ashford, TN23 1YB Victoria Central
HELAA/LP41/186 1178797 Civic Centre, Tannery Lane, Ashford, TN23 1PL Victoria Central
HELAA/LP41/194 1178811 Kent Wool Growers Site, Brundrett House, Tannery Lane, Ashford, TN23 1PN Victoria Central
HELAA/LP41/205 1178848 Elwick Place Phase 2 Victoria Central

SACF, News, Planning Policy

Public Meeting of the Committee

12 January 2024 0 Comments

The next meeting of South Ashford Community Forum will be

at 7:00pm

on 24 January 2024

at St. Francis Church Hall

Cryol Road, Ashford, TN23 5AS

The meeting will be held as a Committee Meeting to which all residents of the Community Forum area are invited. The format will be a round table discussion to which all attendees have the opportunity to contribute.

We will be joined by Chris Morley, Councillor for, and Deborah Prior, Clerk to, Kennington Community Council for a discussion on whether a campaign should be launched for a Community Council for South Ashford (and  other unparished areas)

Agenda

Minutes of Meeting of 22 November 2023

SACF, Community Councils

Public Meeting of the Committee of South Ashford Community Forum

6 November 2023 0 Comments

A meeting of the Committee of South Ashford Community Forum will be held

at 7:00 pm

on 22 November 2023

Please note the meeting will be held

at St. Francis Church Hall

Cryol Road, Ashford, TN23 5AS

As decided at the meeting of 27 September, the meeting will be held as a Committee Meeting to which all residents of the Community Forum area are invited.

We would like more Committee Members, ideally from

  • Polling District BE1, Beaver
  • Polling District NO1, Hampden
  • Polling District VI2, Watercress

If you would be interested in joining the Committee, please contact me or attend the meeting.

An Agenda will be posted here.

The minutes of the meeting held on 27 September 2023 can be downloaded from the link below

Minutes of Meeting

News, SACF

Meeting to re-establish South Ashford Community Forum

21 October 2023 0 Comments

27 September 2023

The minutes of the meeting held on 27 September 2023 can be downloaded from the link below

Minutes of Meeting

My thanks to all who attended, particularly those who stepped forward to form a Committee.

We would like more Committee Members, ideally from

  • Polling District BE1, Beaver
  • Polling District NO1, Hampden
  • Polling District VI2, Watercress

If you would be interested in joining the Committee, please contact me.

The next meeting will be at 7 pm on Wednesday, 22 November 2022, subject to confirmation of a venue.

News, SACF

East Stour Park refused.

20 February 2020 0 Comments

Riverside view of proposed development

Members of Ashford Borough Council’s Planning Committee, yesterday evening voted to Refuse the Planning Application for the East Stour Park Development.

After a local resident had spoken in objection to the development and the developer’s architect Guy Holloway had spoken in support, Chair of South Ashford Community Forum, Bob Shrubb, objected to the Development. He raised issues relating to:

  • The Sequential and Exception Test required to ensure that development is carried out in areas of lower flood risk and that the wider sustainability benefits to the community outweigh flood risk and that the proposed development would be safe,
  • The impact on the movement of wildlife through Ashford’s Green Corridor and
  • The site not being allocated for development in Ashford’s Local Plan although it had assessed through the land availability assessment process through which sites are allocated.

South Ashford Community Forum are pleased that a large majority of Members (15:1) chose to Refuse the application, but are aware that the option to appeal the decision is open to the developer.

The Community Forum believe that the reason for refusal (Green Corridor Policy ENV2) is sound and trust, if an appeal is submitted, that the Council are able to evidence the case to the inspector. We also believe that the validity of the developer’s Sequential and Exception Test should be independently reviewed.

Ashford Borough Council, News, Planning and Development, SACF

Jemmett Road

5 October 2019 0 Comments

In 2015 South Ashford Community Forum raised the condition of Brookfield Road and Jemmett Road at one of it’s meetings. We were told “There are jetpatching works scheduled for Brookfield Road in coming weeks and Jemmett Road has been patched in recent months. The specific roads referred to are structurally sound and therefore do not require reconstruction as suggested.”

The County Councillor commented that Brookfield Road is the priority due to the sheer traffic volume which includes heavy vehicles. To ensure a more permanent solution the concrete slabs need to be taken out and new surface laid down. The patching work at Jemmett road is not to satisfactory standards.
We pointed out that when Ashford College move out of their site in Jemmett Road, the demolition and construction works on the site could potentially damage Jemmett Road.

At the time we photographed the defects in Jemmett Road.

As the works on the college site are now well advanced we have raised the issue again with the current County Councillor and carried out a further photographic survey. The photographs have been plotted on a Google Map which can be viewed at https://drive.google.com/open?id=1MNtG_QOD6T7E_Huinyni6yierYk

  • Photographs taken in 2019 are shown by red markers
  • Those taken in 2015 are shown by blue markers
  • Green markers have similar photographs taken in 2019 and 2015

The photographs show a severe deterioration in the general condition of the road and that repairs undertaken in or before 2015 are themselves beginning to fail.

Kent County Council, News, SACF, Transport

Response to East Stour Park development

12 June 2019 0 Comments

Satellite image of site

South Ashford Community forum has drafted its response to the planning application for the proposed East Stour Park Development.

We are aware that a petition has been started against the development. Petitions cannot be presented at meetings of the Planning Committee so will have no effect on the decision. All who wish to object to this development should submit their comment using the process set out on the Ashford Borough Council website: https://www.ashford.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control/making-planning-applications/comment-on-applications/

South Ashford Community Forum will include the issues listed below in its comment. You may include these issues in your own comment but need to formulate them into suitable paragraphs.

  • Site is in Green Corridor
  • Development would add further severe restriction to the Green Corridor and movement of wildlife in an area adjacent to which such movement is already constrained by the station, railway and roads round it.
  • The proposed ‘enhancement’of the Green Corridor does not adequately mitigate the loss of Green Corridor.
  • The exit of traffic onto Norman Road so close to the Kimberley Way Roundabout will create a hazard
  • Site is not allocated in local plan; development not required to meet 5y  housing need.
  • Developments of the proposed size on greenfield sites should go through the SHEELAA selection process and not be considered as windfall sites.
  • The sequential test does not include the Homeplus site.
  • The claim that properties in Riversdale Road would flood before the site is incorrect as experienced in 2014.
  • There is no mention in the current Green Corridor Action Plan of a Wetland Country Park in the South Willesborough Dykes.
  • Development of the South Willesborough Dykes, or part of it, as a country park would have a severe negative impact.

Ashford Bourough Council Case Reference: 19/00709/AS
http://planning.ashford.gov.uk/Planning/details.aspx?systemkey=112528

News, Planning and Development, SACF

South Ashford Community Forum AGM

8 March 2019 0 Comments

The Annual General Meeting of South Ashford Community Forum will be held

  • at 7:00 pm
  • on Thursday 28th February
  • at South Ashford Baptist Church
    Brookfield Road, TN23 4EY

Agenda items are:

AGM

  • Previous minutes
  • Report
  • Future of SACF
    proposal to change the operation and constition of the Forum
  • Election of Committee

Ordinary Meeting

  • Previous minutes
  • Council Tax
  • Victoria Park
  • Health: Sustainability and Transformation Plan
  • Development
    • Local Plan
    • East Stour Park
    • Halstow Way
    • Poplars

All who live or work in South Ashford are welcome

Future of South Ashford Community Forum

A proposal to change the way that the Forum operates will necessitate a change of the constitution. Please click on the links below to download copies of the:

SACF

Guide to your councils

22 September 2018 0 Comments

We are making it easier to find information about your councils (Kent County Council and Ashford Borough Council)

Under our new menu item Councils and Government you will find:

Representatives: Your elected representatives in Kent County Council and Ashford Borough Council as well as Parliament and European Parliament

Council and Government Services: Lists of services provided by Kent County Council and Ashford Borough Council. We will expand this to government departments in the future.

News, SACF, website