Earlswood and Redhill Common Steering Group minutes - 3 March 2024
Wednesday 3 March 2024 at 6.30pm at Reigate & Banstead Town Hall, Castlefield Road, Reigate.
24/01. Attendance and opening remarks
Chair welcomes members to the meeting.
| Name | initial | Position/representation | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cllr King | JK | Chairman (Cllr) | Present |
| Cllr Elbourne | ME | Cllr | Present |
| Cllr Proudfoot | AP | Cllr | Present |
| Michael Hill | MH | RBBC Officer | Present |
| Thomas Carmona | TC | RBBC Officer | Present |
| Matin Bacon | MB | Reigate Society | Present |
| Ben C | BC | Horley Piscatorial Society | Absent |
| Simon Elson | SE | Reigate Area Conservation Volunteers | Present |
| Ollie Williams | OW | Local School, St. John’s | Apologies |
| Richard Feist | RF | Merstham Cricket club | Present |
| Tommy Mathews | TM | Boating | Absent |
| Amie Vaccaro | AV | Woodhatch Greenspace Preservation Volunteers | Present |
24/02. Enforcement Issues
Do the public know how to raise issues? Call 101 or JET team. Ask JET if they can attend the next meeting.
24/03. Redhill Common Management Plan
Changes to be made following the feedback from the steering group. Then its to be signed off. Work programme can be amended each season and year.
24/04. Earlswood Common Management Plan
Due to be signed off. Work programme can be amended each season and year. Potential for a new Management plan for New Pond Farm to be written; the committee had an appetite for this. Intention is to review to manage and review grass cutting and hedge cutting regimes. MH and TC said a cutting regime needs time to establish.
24/05. Work Programme including Barley straw
RACV have been controlling Laurel on Redhill Common. There is work to do on Chain Pond and Woodhatch Road. Laurel, Himalyan Balsam and Reedmace to be controlled. Promotion of Water Mint and Purple Loosestrife. Bracken cutting rotation plan made and had first year of implementation. Chain pond has been cut back, woodland thinning. Fallen tree at lake now moved. TC to instal Barley Straw to the Upper Lake.
24/06. LNR/ SNCI status
TC and SE to meet to discuss SNCI expansion. It will give the common more protection. LNR is statutory; SNCI is non-statutory.
24/07. AOB
Boating infrastructure due to be gone by Easter. Creation of a lakes subgroup. There is to be a borough wide pond surveys which would ascertain pollution sources and aquatic plants to be surveyed.
24/08. Actions
- TC to email group once the boathouse has been removed.
- JK to create a lakes subgroup
- TC to book room for next meeting COMPLETED
- JK and Officers to invite a representative from JET. COMPLETED
- SE and AP to meet to discuss the right plants for ponds
24/9. Date(s), time(s) and venue(s) for future Steering Group meeting(s)
Wednesday 15 May 2024, Town Hall.
Notes:
1. Numbering system:
- The next set of minutes should begin with the next consecutive number following the last numbered item in the previous set of minutes, e.g., 19/13 (last number in last set of minutes); 19/14 (first number in the following set of minutes).
- When the year changes, the first two digits should also change to reflect the change of year, e.g. 19/78 (last); 20/01 (first).
This system avoids the need to retain agenda.