 Welcome to our first newsletter! This is the first email newsletter from the Tattenham & Preston Residents Association which represents the residents of the Tattenham Corner and Preston Ward in the Borough of Reigate & Banstead. For many years we have published a paper newsletter three times a year that is distributed to all residents in the area. This will continue but we want to move with the times and offer a monthly email news bulletin to our members and neighbours. You may have noticed we have a new much improved website that aims to keep residents informed about our area. But this newsletter intends to go further with news, views and articles about a wide range of issues. Topics covered will range from what’s going on locally, things to do, the people who live and work in our community and useful information to help our daily lives. You can help shape this newsletter’s future by suggesting topics to be covered and commenting on the articles we have published. If you have any suggestions please contact our editor, John Kemp, by email here. You have already found this newsletter but you can also help to improve our circulation by telling your friends and neighbours about us and encouraging them to subscribe. Its easy to do and completely free. Simply direct them to our website for a sign up form. Local Attractions – Langley Vale Centenary Wood  Surely the most important addition to our locality, Langley Vale Centenary Wood, is the most invisible and difficult to find. In 2014 the Woodland Trust, UK’s largest woodland conservation charity, acquired over 600 acres of land as part of its First World War Centenary project to establish woodland areas in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to remember the millions of lives lost during that conflict. Since then many volunteers have already planted over 180,000 trees. The woods combine planted forest with open arable and grazing land to encourage wildlife as well as plant life. 59 species of birds have been recorded on the site including red kite and tawny owls. Animals spotted in the woods include five species of bat, yellow necked mouse, and bank vole. But what makes this woodland unique is its links to World War One. There are three features within the woods that commemorate the lives of those who died in WW1. The first is the Regiment of Trees. Stone soldiers stand in a grid of 80 trees representing the day that Lord Kitchener inspected 20,000 troops on Epsom Downs in 1915. The stone soldiers were carved from Sandstone by Patrick Walls. (More of this in a future article). READ MORE Kids Activities – Kick Football Academy  Do you have a child interested in improving his or her football skills? Organised by the Merland Rise Church, the Kick Football Academy provides football training for boys and girls in school years 1 to 7 (ages 5 to 12). Classes are every Saturday morning during term time from 10.30 a.m. to 12 noon. They are held on the sports field in Headley Drive, off Merland Rise. Led by professional FA coaches from the Kick Academy, it costs a nominal £1 a week to attend. New members are always welcomed. Further information can be obtained from Peter Brooks on 07840 131812 or just pop along on a Saturday morning and see for yourself. The Kick Academy is a charity that provides sports coaching to local schools and through Kick Academies within churches. Their motivation is to use active and exiting sports activities to encourage young people to engage with education and have an enriched experience of school. Finance – Know Your Credit Score  Big Brother is watching you – at least as far as your credit score is concerned. Like our DNA, we all have a credit score but what does it mean? If you want to open a bank account, lease a car, get a mobile phone contract, take out a credit card, get a loan or take out a mortgage your success will depend on your credit score. Find out how it’s calculated and how you can improve it. In the distant past, if you wanted to borrow some money you made an appointment to see your bank manager. You dressed up smartly and he (it was always a “he” in those days) grilled you about your savings, your prospects and suitability. A neat haircut and a smart suit helped. Today it’s all down to the computer and if she says “No” then you don’t stand a chance. READ MORE Commuting – New Flexi Season Tickets Available Soon  National Rail has announced that a new flexible season ticket will be available from the 28th June. This is designed to help the semi-commuter – working from home but also needing to visit the big city from time to time. It allows for 8 days travel during any 28-day period – so about two days a week but they can be any days during that period. To get one you have to have a rail Smartcard which will enable you to buy a pass online. We’ve been unable to get a firm price from Southern, but the cost is being pitched between the standard day return and a weekly season ticket. Please don’t quote us but this looks like something between £80 to £110 a month compared to £200 for a full monthly season ticket from Tattenham Corner to London Terminals. It’s a shame firm prices aren’t yet available. It looks like National Rail wanted to announce something to address criticism they have received for NOT having a flexible season ticket but haven’t worked out the detail yet. At the higher end of the pricing it doesn’t look like a great saving but at the cheaper end it could be a 25 – 30% saving over daily tickets. We’ll let you know when we have a firm price. Thank you for reading this newsletter! See you again next month |
Tattenham & Preston Residents Association
