Stoneleigh Toilets Closure:

SUPPORT GROWS FOR SARA'S CAMPAIGN TO STOP THE CLOSURE OF STONELEIGH'S TOILETS:
We have recently received a further ten letters objecting to the RA councillors unconsulted and unwelcome decision to close the Stoneleigh toilets. Some of these latest letters appear below. Many of the other letters can also be viewed by scrolling down on this page. The newly-received batch of letters includes one from Valerie Logan, President of Stoneleigh Women's Institute, who writes on behalf of the Stoneleigh W.I., as follows:
Dear Residents' Association councillors,
We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open. These toilets are a very useful facility for people shopping and for the people coming off the trains (non corridor!!!). We have very little public facilities in Stoneleigh.
Yours faithfully,
Valerie Logan,
President, Stoneleigh W.I.

Mr K, B.Sc. BA. I.Eng. MIET., writes:
 I strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and I urge all RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
As a pensioner I have a medical condition that necessitates frequent visits to the bathroom and am very grateful that there is a facility in Stoneleigh. Quite a number of times I have alighted from a train and have been able to exit on the Stoneleigh side to avail myself of the facility, since those on the platform have been closed for a very long time by BR.
I have in the past had occasion to make use of the facility when I have had family visitors from other parts of the country, who, like myself, have had the need to visit a toilet - especially after travelling down from London. I do not feel that the annual saving of the £7000 should be in the forefront of any argument, since this would be minimal in comparison to the loss of trade in Stoneleigh and the consequential closure of shops and businesses.
I sincerely hope that SARA's campaign will have a positive effect. If not, then we can look forward to another vandalised and disused building being a "blot on the landscape" in Stoneleigh and joining those others around the borough. Could this ring the 'death knell' for the voting into office of RA councillors?

Miss C, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 I am writing to say I strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and I urge all RA councillors to reverse the decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
I write as an older member of the community and as such know that it is very important that toilet facilities should be available, especially in an area where people may spend some time shopping. I imagine that parents of young children are also likely to need the facilities.
Public health matters have been shown to be extremely important, and of course in days gone by it was the improvement of sanitation, rather than doctors and medicines, which improve the health of the nation.
It seems unbelievable that RA councillors should take this backward step.

Mr and Mrs K, from Auriol Ward, write:
 As parents of two young children, we regally visit Stoneleigh Library and the local shops on Stoneleigh Broadway and often need to use the public toilets.
Also, as regular travellers on trains from Stoneleigh (daily by Mr K) these toilets are an extremely important facility as no other facility is available, particularly so early in the morning. We will endeavour to show our support for the campaign against the closure by attending the protest on Saturday 19th June.

Mr and Mrs E, from Stoneleigh, write:
 To our SARA Councillors
We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the public conveniences in Stoneleigh and other areas of our borough.
You've made this decision without any discussion with the people who voted you into office, as you did over awarding freedom of Epsom and Ewell to the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment of Surrey, backing down when you realised the wrath of the residents.
We have voted for the SRA (as was) since moving here in 1975 because we believed you as residents yourselves would have our best interests at heart. We are now having doubts and will have to think twice about our vote at the next local elections.

Mr and Mrs W, from Auriol Ward, write:
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
We are unable to come to the protest on Saturday due to important prior commitments but feel strongly that this closure will make a very negative impact on the trade of the Stoneleigh shops and as there are no toilet facilities on the station either, it will be a problem for rail users too!
Please reconsider.

Mrs L P, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 I strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
I have recently had major spinal surgery and have an irritable bladder. I use these toilets on a fairly regular basis. When I am going through my 'constant need to go' phase I welcome these toilets as otherwise I would wet myself.
I am a Stoneleigh resident and therefore rarely drive to the Broadway in fact in my bit to conserve the planet I walk most places rather than drive.
You are probably asking "why not use a toilet in the pub or cafe". Well it defeats the object as you feel obliged to buy a drink either a soft one or a tea / coffee and then when you continue shopping - you have to "go again." You are already taking away the rights to park free on a blue badge but you are taking away my human rights of using a public toilet.
What else are you going to hit! The blind - by charging them for having a guide dog? it's totally disgusting. Therefore you leave me no choice but to pee in an alleyway or on the streets for surely as God made little apples, people will do this making Stoneleigh a 'stinking village'.

Mr and Mrs B, from Auriol Ward, write:
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
We live in a very mixed community where elderly residents and families with children frequent Stoneleigh Broadway and use the good local public transport services of SW Trains and the E15/16 bus service. A public toilet is essential in such a community (especially as the station toilet is not open) and without this facility residents (and visitors) will be forced to shop elsewhere should they need to be sure a public toilet is available to them. This will, in turn, surely lead to trading losses and eventually shop closures - that would be a disaster for all concerned.

Miss M and Miss S, from Auriol Ward, write:
 To RA Councillors
Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA Councillors to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
We have always found these toilets a great asset when shopping in Stoneleigh, visiting the library and especially when travelling by train. One of us, because of a physical condition always needs to make use of the toilets when walking from home to the station before continuing the journey by train.


E-mails and letters supporting SARA's campaign to persuade RA councillors to reverse their decision to close Stoneleigh's only public convenience continue to arrive daily. A recently-received e-mail from Mr E.B., reproduced in full below, more than adequately reflects the very real concerns also voiced by many other residents:
"These are the second public toilets in Stoneleigh to be closed. The first were in the Kingston Road on the east side next to the fish and chip shop, closed about 30 or 40 years ago.
 Over the years the public toilets in Epsom have improved from the miserable antiquated hole at the bottom of the clock tower to more sanitary and modern toilets next to the public library and in the southern end of the Ashley Centre. Stoneleigh is also a shopping centre - a smaller one, true - but it is in need of the same facilities as Epsom, though smaller according to its size. Like Epsom it draws shoppers from outside Stoneleigh, not as many as Epsom, though like Epsom shoppers need to be served if they are to continue to shop in the area. In the last couple of years many shops have closed on the Broadway, the lack of such a basic amenity as a public toilet will add to the decline.
If Epsom and Ewell Borough Council are so keen to save money, instead of depriving the public such as is naturally necessary to them, I would suggest they first give their municipal attention to the tax imposed on the council tax payers to support their employees' final salary pensions schemes while those in the private sector struggle to maintain less generous pension funds. A substantial part of the council tax is allocated to council employee pension schemes.
Employees and employers in the private sector must study their customers' wishes and requirements or they will lose business, and their living; so must local councillors study those who vote for them if they wish to be re-elected."

SARA's Chairman, Bill Slaughter, said, "I was deeply touched to receive a copy of this letter, sent directly to the Town Hall, by a Stoneleigh resident. The gentleman's very real concerns about the RA councillors penny-pinching decision to close the only public toilets in Stoneleigh epitomizes many of the other comments already received by letter and e-mail."

SOME OF THE RECENT LETTERS AGAINST THE RA COUNCILLOR'S CLOSURE OF THE STONELEIGH TOILETS:
 Mr C and Mrs P H, from Haslemere, write:
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh. We urge the RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
After living in Stoneleigh for 26 years we still return often to garden for a disabled friend, to go to the hairdressers and to visit old neighbours. After an hour's journey we are always in need of a "comfort stop" before beginning the purpose of our visit. Closure of the only toilets in the area would be most inconvenient.
We appreciate that there is a need to reduce expenditure but what will happen if these toilets are closed?
There will be a loss of custom to the shops because people will be wary of going to an area where relief is not possible.
We wholeheartedly support the efforts of SARA to keep these toilets open.

Mr L, from Ewell, writes:
Please may I say with sincere respect that I consider it vital that the only public convenience in Stoneleigh is kept open for all to use.
It is such a blessing for people living in and visiting Stoneleigh, those people who shop in Stoneleigh Broadway and use Stoneleigh Library. These people can safely use the toilet and wash their hands with soap and water. Many people rely on the toilets, especially older residents who like to shop in Stoneleigh and visit the Library.
I use the public convenience in Stoneleigh each time I visit Stoneleigh and I am really grateful for the toilet being there. In addition, people who are out on the road, such as public service and delivery staff, can safely use our toilet whilst at work.
I do wish SARA well and would like to thank them so much for their very great help and efforts in trying to keep Stoneleigh's public convenience open.

Mrs B, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 I strongly oppose the decision by RA councillor to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh. I urge the RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
Yet again it shows how out of touch these councillors are becoming from the electorate they represent. Commuters use these facilities as well as shoppers. This penny-pinching council should look elsewhere for their savings.
I could suggest that the "refuse operatives" who empty the wheelie bins, pick up not only the rubbish they leave behind but they should clean the street as they go along. A bit slower perhaps, but negating the need for a litter pick on a regular basis in many residential streets.

Mr G, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 I strongly oppose the decision by RA councillor to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh. I urge the RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
Having been a resident of Stoneleigh for all my life (62 years) and a regular commuter from Stoneleigh station, I have always appreciated this useful facility particularly as the station toilets were closed many years ago. As a non-car driver and retired, I rely on public transport and my own feet to get around and as I get older the need for public conveniences in both Stoneleigh and Ewell is most important to me.
I feel the closure of these facilities will have an adverse effect on the quality of life in the borough for many, particularly those of us who have been council tax payers for many decades. I accept that financial savings have to be made but I am sure less essential services could be reduced or dispensed with - the Borough magazine,' Insight', springs to mind.
I hope this letter clearly represents my views and will assist in a reversal of the disgraceful decision.

 Mr J and Mrs A H, from Stoneleigh, write:
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh. We urge the RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
If these toilets are closed there will be fewer customers to the Stoneleigh shops and library, with the result being more empty shops.

Mr B, from Ewell (Auriol Ward), writes:
 It is obscene to close all toilets in the borough, no thought whatsoever for the elderly.
The RA councillors are thoughtless and clueless.

 Mrs C, from Stoneleigh writes:
 I, and many other elderly people, need to use these toilets when I come shopping, or for other business reasons use Stoneleigh Broadway, and in future will probably not support the businesses there. It will also be a health hazard as people will use the street and alleyways and Stoneleigh railway station. I hope these folks [the RA councillors] taking this action will suffer badly themselves one day when they are afraid to go out. I am extremely disappointed I cannot join the protest on 19th June as I will be away on a few days holiday, but I hope the turnout is high.
This protest has my full support and I hope sense will be seen and the toilets kept open.

And Mr H, from Stoneleigh, writes by e-mail:
I fully support the campaign to keep the loo in Stoneleigh open. If the council are that keen to cut costs maybe they ought to investigate reducing some of their staff costs.
It appears that they are doing everything to affect the shopkeepers in Stoneleigh Broadway. As a local resident living in Elmwood Drive I want the shops in the Broadway.
If the loos are closed people will go to other areas to shop since they will have no where to go if they are caught short. In other areas where there are no public toilets the shops usually provide facilities for their customers.
Closing the loos is just another reason to keep people away from the Broadway!!
KEEP THE LOOS OPEN TO KEEP THE STREETS CLEAN.
You have my support.
PS: Sorry I can't be there on Saturday.

An especially poignant letter has been received from Mr D.B., Stoneleigh.  Mr B's letter is as follows:
 "I must protest in the strongest terms about the proposed closure of the toilets in Stoneleigh Broadway. As I suffer from a kidney complaint that requires that I consume large quantities of fluid my life is necessarily planned around the use of toilets at regular intervals.
The loss of the toilets at Stoneleigh would make visits to the shops and particularly the library very difficult and train journeys very challenging and possibly health hazardous.
If it is necessary to curtail this facility for such a paltry sum surely ways should be explored to make it financially self-sustaining."

 One of the latest e-mails received has highlighted the fears expressed by many objectors. From Mr W, Stoneleigh:
"I fully support your campaign to keep the Stoneleigh public toilets open. If public toilets are closed people have no alternative to relieving themselves in the streets or other people’s gardens. It is for this reason that public toilets were built in the first place.
If the Council needs to save money it could reduce the frequency with which the grass in roadside verges is cut."

Typical of many e-mails already received is the following one, from Mr and Mrs C, Stoneleigh:
"The toilets are an important modern convenience and essential for many people when shopping locally and much valued and appreciated by the community and ourselves. My father also much appreciates them when he gets of the bus to shop before returning home.
At present people can shop having picked up children or use the computers at the library and know that the toilets are available if needed in addition to those with health issues which make them an essential priority before going anywhere.
The toilets are a facility that should remain for the health and benefit of the community as a whole. We do not want to see people relieving themselves in the streets or alleyways instead!!
If cuts need to be made we strongly recommend that the Mayoral car is cut as a non-essential item in this modern age which adds nothing to the prestige of the Mayor."

Mr and Mrs K, from Stoneleigh, write:
 It is with great and deep regret that we have learnt of the proposal to close the toilets by the railway station. We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open. You [the RA councillors] have possibly not heard of people, particularly older ones, who have medical problems and need to go to toilets very often.
Sometimes their need(s) is/are urgent and it is not possible to hold on. It is possible, indeed very likely that it we will see people urinating in public. You [the RA councillors] may say that is illegal to do so but then remember that RA councillors are forcing perfectly decent people in that direction.
Our councillors are supposed to serve the resident's interest and not the other way round and they must also remember that the next elections are not that far off.

Mr and Mrs J, from Stoneleigh, write:
 We strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
We have two major reasons for opposing this closure. Firstly that the most vulnerable members of our community, the elderly and the very young, will be deterred from visiting their local shops and services if this facility is removed. Both these age groups need interaction with the community for both physical and mental well being. Consideration of the knock-on effect of closure seems to have been ignored.
Secondly we are concerned that those in need of these facilities will seek other locations in which to relieve themselves. The use of alleyways, footpaths, open spaces and private gardens seem an obvious alternative. This would seem to us to be against the rules of decency and health and safety, and a retrograde step for our community.
We are utterly appalled by the actions of Resident's Association Councillors, elected to represent us. Their failure to comprehend the impact of the closure is beyond belief, as is their total disregard for consultation with the local residents association.
We strongly support the reversing of this decision.

Mr and Mrs B, from Stoneleigh, write:
 We are strongly opposed to such a closure on the grounds of public health and decency, both reasons we feel are even more important than the loss of trade to local shops.
We recently parked in the Kingston Road car park and were shocked on exiting to see a man relieving himself against the fence - in broad daylight! Clearly this is not the kind if behaviour one wishes to witness and neither does one want to see parents of young children 'holding them out' to answer calls of nature, but in the latter case what else could a parent do if no facilities exist?
From the above, it is quite clear that far from closing the only facility at present in Stoneleigh, another, possibly of the Portaloo type frequently seen in London, is required on the Kingston Road.
There are many ways the Council could raise - and indeed save money. A more robust attitude to catching and fining motorists who blatantly ignore parking restrictions would be a good start.

Mr and Mrs F, from Stoneleigh write:
 My wife and strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
We only live 10 minutes away from Stoneleigh Broadway but have had to use the toilets on several occasions prior to boarding trains, buses, etc., and especially if using the library for a lengthy period, when using computers in the library, for example.
Stoneleigh has a rapidly growing population, with the good schools in the area, and also an elderly community too - all of whom rely on this convenience - so please do not close this facility.

Mr and Mrs K, from Stoneleigh, write:
 My wife and strongly oppose the decision by RA councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and we urge all RA councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the Stoneleigh toilets open.
Like many senior citizens I suffer from prostate problems and the toilet closure means that I will be forced to stop shopping in Stoneleigh Broadway. This will entail taking the car out and going further afield.

 AND SOME OF THE LETTERS RECEIVED EARLIER:
Mrs S, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 Although my friends and I live near to Stoneleigh Broadway, we, who are no longer young, have found ourselves variously in need of these facilities especially as the library and the station do not provide any. It is ridiculous to expect people to suffer or to hope that the Stoneleigh Inn will let them in without spending any money.
I hope that the RA councillors concerned will one day find themselves in such a dilemma away from home and will then understand better. However, we cannot wait that long so I urge them to stop this proposal immediately.

Mr H, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 "I strongly oppose the decision by RA Councillors to close the only public convenience in Stoneleigh and I urge all RA Councillors to reverse their closure decision and keep the toilets open.
I am retired and use the library most days for up to an hour when it is open. My first port of call when I leave is invariably the toilets before I head home or use the local shops. If the toilets are closed I could find myself in embarrassing situations. I sincerely hope that common sense prevails."

Mr M, from Stoneleigh, writes:
 "My wife and I have lived in Stoneleigh 30 years, and visit the Broadway on a very regular basis for shopping and to take advantage of the many excellent eating establishments we have in our community. I believe it is very important to support the traders in that community, or we will lose them.
Imagine my horror, therefore, when I heard of the planned closure of our Stoneleigh toilet. This is hardly supporting the community, but hitting it below the belt, if you will pardon the pun, taking away what you would think was a very basic amenity for any civilised community.
As a sufferer with prostate problems, you can imagine the strength of my feelings, where this facility offers a very welcome relief when the discomfort reaches unbearable proportions.
Please reverse your decision and let common sense prevail."

AND FROM THE EPSOM GUARDIAN'S LETTERS PAGE, 17.06.10:

RA COUNCILLORS NAME THE DATE FOR THEIR CLOSURE OF STONELEIGH'S ONLY PUBLIC TOILETS - A REVISED STATEMENT BY SARA'S SECRETARY, MIKE SAMPSON:
 SARA Secretary Mike Sampson (pictured left), has issued a revised statement about SARA's STOP Campaign to prevent RA councillors from closing the only Council-operated toilets in Stoneleigh. The statement was revised after it became known to SARA that RA councillors will shut the toilets permanently on 24th June 2010. Mike Sampson's revised statement is reproduced in full, as follows:
 "Since the early part of this year, senior officers of Stoneleigh and Auriol Residents’ Association (SARA), with the full support of SARA’s General Committee, have been endeavouring to persuade Residents’ Association councillors on Epsom & Ewell’s RA-controlled Borough Council, to reverse their decision to close the Council-operated public toilets in Stoneleigh. The original proposal to close all three public toilets in the Borough - which includes the toilets in Stoneleigh Broadway - was formulated by RA councillors in the Spring of 2009 but at no time was the proposal ever placed before any of the monthly SARA General Committee meetings, at which there is always a specific Agenda item headed ‘Information to and from councillors’.
If SARA’s Chairman had not happened to be in the public gallery of the Town Hall at the Council meeting held on 16th February, SARA and the residents of Stoneleigh and Auriol Wards would have had no warning at all, even to this present day, that the only Borough Council-funded facility in Stoneleigh was about to be removed. As a result of this decision, SARA’s General Committee sanctioned a “STOP” Campaign to persuade RA councillors to reverse their decision to close Stoneleigh’s only public convenience but, despite several meetings between senior SARA officers and various RA councillors, the closure decision stands.
As Epsom Guardian readers will have seen recently in the excellent coverage given to this issue by our local newspaper, Auriol Ward RA Councillor Robert Leach complained that he and other RA councillors had not been consulted before SARA’s STOP campaign was started, even though he and three other SARA councillors had attended a General Committee meeting where the decision to commence the STOP campaign was taken! SARA’s requests to keep the Stoneleigh toilets open - which included a very constructive proposal by senior SARA officers that could have seen SARA sharing some of the cost involved in servicing the Stoneleigh toilets - have twice been rejected at private meetings of the RA Group of Councillors.
On Friday 14th May, SARA held its monthly General Committee meeting and the closure was discussed again. The minutes of the meeting record that there was no comment from any of the four SARA borough councillors present. Your readers will understand the surprise of SARA’s Chairman when he subsequently learned the very next day from another RA councillor that the order for the closure of the Stoneleigh toilets had already been signed and the toilets will close permanently with effect from 24th June 2010 – and, oh yes, all for a measly annual saving of just £7,000!
SARA’s STOP Campaign continues to gain increased support and will be reinforced by an organised public protest on Saturday 19th June 2010 from 2.00pm – 2.30pm, outside the Stoneleigh toilets at the station end of Stoneleigh Broadway. SARA hopes that many borough residents will join the protest and show their support for our campaign to persuade RA councillors to listen to what their electors want – and then act upon it."

FROM THE LETTERS PAGE, EPSOM GUARDIAN, 29th APRIL 2010:

 Commenting on the letter from Stoneleigh resident Mr Paul Eaves, SARA's Chairman Bill Slaughter said, "Mr Eaves's very perceptive letter reflects the dismay felt by most Stoneleigh residents. It is a great shame that RA councillors cannot bring themselves to acknowledge that their arbitrary and unwelcome decision to close the Stoneleigh toilets, without any prior consultation with the local Residents' Association, was a mistake that could still be rectified.
Stoneleigh Ward does not have a single Council-provided amenity other than the public toilets in Stoneleigh Broadway. Now RA councillors have decided that the borough council will do away with the only public amenity that it does provide in Stoneleigh. 
SARA has twice made strong representations to the RA Group of Councillors regarding the need for the Stoneleigh toilets to be treated as a special case and on both occasions its entreaties on behalf of residents and visitors to Stoneleigh have been rejected. If the current RA councillors don't reverse their decision to close the Stoneleigh toilets they will never again be able to claim that, under their majority control, Epsom & Ewell Borough Council  is a "listening" council."

FROM THE EPSOM GUARDIAN 25TH MARCH 2010:
 In a revealing article in the Epsom Guardian on 25th March, Thais Portilho-Shrimpton has written an excellent piece (full Epsom Guardian story below) highlighting SARA's Secretary Mike Sampson's statement, that the RA Group's chairman, SARA's Auriol Ward RA councillor Robert Leach, had made an "inaccurate and misleading" statement in the previous week's edition of the local newspaper. Cllr Leach claimed falsely that SARA had begun its STOP campaign to persuade RA councillors to reverse their unwelcome decision to close the Stoneleigh toilets before it had "debated or discussed the issue with the councillors first."

  
The truth of the matter, as portrayed in the Epsom Guardian article, is that Cllr Leach had in fact met with both the SARA Secretary and SARA's Chairman, Bill Slaughter, on 26th February to discuss the RA councillors unwelcome decision to close Stoneleigh's only public convenience. The closure issue was then fully debated at SARA's General Committee meeting on Friday 12th March, at which Cllr Leach was present and took an active part in the debate. At the end of the debate, a vote was taken and, by a 14-0 show of hands (with one abstention), the committee voted to commence a campaign to persuade RA councillors to accept that there are very special reasons to keep Stoneleigh's toilets open. (SARA's borough and county councillors attend committee meetings as guests of the Association but do not have a vote in committee decisions).

SARA Chairman, Bill Slaughter, thanked the Epsom Guardian for highlighting Cllr Leach's inaccurate and misleading claim and added, "In the Epsom Guardian article on 25th March, Cllr Ruby Smith said that she didn't recall a long discussion at the SARA committee meeting but said that she could be at fault because her memory is not very good. No-one can be blamed for having a poor memory but it must be pointed out that Minutes of the meeting were circulated on Sunday 21st March to all officers and councillors who were present at the meeting so Cllr Smith, like everyone else, would have received the Minutes several days before her comments to the Epsom Guardian.

RA councillors have always claimed that the council, under their majority leadership is - unlike councils controlled by national political parties - a "listening Council". Our aim is simply to persuade RA councillors to listen to the concerns of Stoneleigh residents, voiced on their behalf by SARA, and to reconsider and reverse their decision in the light of those representations. It is a fact that Cllr Leach did not ask for a delay in the commencement of SARA's STOP campaign so that further talks could take place, even though he had every opportunity to do so."
 
SARA SECRETARY - RA COUNCILLOR'S STATEMENT WAS  "INACCURATE AND MISLEADING":
Commenting on the article in the Epsom Guardian that accompanied the above photo, SARA’s Secretary, Mike Sampson (pictured) said, “I was astonished to read Auriol Ward RA Councillor Robert Leach’s inaccurate and misleading statement in the Epsom Guardian that SARA had decided to launch its STOP campaign to prevent the closure of Stoneleigh’s only public convenience when “it has not debated or discussed the issue with the councillors first.”

"Not only did I attend a two-hour meeting on 26th February with Cllr Leach to discuss the way forward on the issue, accompanied by SARA’s Chairman, but the matter was discussed at length during SARA’s General Committee meeting on Friday 12th March at which Cllr Leach, Cllr Chris Long and all SARA councillors except the Deputy Mayor were present."

"After a long debate on the matter, the General Committee voted to commence a campaign against the closure of Stoneleigh’s toilets on behalf of our members and Cllr Leach made no proposal whatsoever to delay the start of the STOP campaign whilst further talks were held."

SARA's Chairman, Bill Slaughter, had earlier issued a full press statement to the Epsom Guardian (parts of which were omitted from the Epsom Guardian article) which said, "Independent Residents’ Association councillors in Epsom & Ewell are renowned and respected for listening to their electors. And it is precisely because all RA councillors really do listen to residents that Stoneleigh and Auriol Residents’ Association (SARA) is confident the strong representations it is making to them will persuade RA councillors that there is a very valid case for retaining the Borough Council-operated Public Convenience in Stoneleigh Broadway, the second largest shopping precinct in Epsom & Ewell, for the benefit of our local residents, traders and shoppers who come from far and wide to shop in Stoneleigh."

“The reason that the majority of electors in Stoneleigh and Auriol Wards, as well as many other wards across the whole borough, choose to put their faith and votes in their elected independent Residents’ Association councillors is that they simply do not trust national party politicians in local government. Our SARA-sponsored Residents’ Association councillors serve the people of Stoneleigh very well indeed and they do so, like all RA councillors, with diligence, commitment and dedication to the local community they were elected to represent and without ties to any political party.”

SARA's GENERAL COMMITTEE VOTES TO START A CAMPAIGN TO STOP EPSOM & EWELL BOROUGH COUNCIL FROM CLOSING STONELEIGH’S ONLY PUBLIC CONVENIENCE.

On 12th March 2010, the General Committee of Stoneleigh and Auriol Residents’ Association (SARA) voted to campaign against the closure of Stoneleigh’s only Public Convenience which has been ordered by Epsom & Ewell Borough Council, following a unanimous vote by Residents’ Association councillors to close all the Council-operated public toilets in the borough  (see the article below this one).

 

RA COUNCILLORS ORDER CLOSURE OF STONELEIGH'S ONLY PUBLIC CONVENIENCE:
 At the meeting of Epsom & Ewell Borough Council on Tuesday 16th February 2010, Residents' Association councillors voted unanimously to close Stoneleigh's only public convenience (pictured left), together with all the remaining council-operated toilets in the borough. The unexpected move came as part of a package of difficult budgetary cuts - during which Residents Association councillors also voted unanimously to remove free parking for disabled Blue Badge holders in all council-operated car parks as well as the all-day closure of Bourne Hall every Monday.

The closure of the Stoneleigh toilets, situated adjacent to Stoneleigh railway station on Stoneleigh Broadway's busy shopping centre, has been costed to save just £7000 a year. (The other toilets ordered for closure are those in Ewell Village and Upper High Street, Epsom, with further annual savings of £7000 per public toilet). The decision means that there will now be no council-operated public conveniences anywhere in the borough of Epsom & Ewell.