The meeting will be chaired by Councillor Omar Bush

The meeting was held via Zoom, and chaired by Councillor Omar Bush with Chris Edge from the Raynes Park Association (RPA). Twenty-two residents and five councillors attended on Zoom with 155 additional views on YouTube. The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting and explained how the meeting would work. 

Chris Larkman and Tony Edwards

Chris Larkman gave an update on the ‘Kiss and ride’ on the south side of the station. Workspace responsible for managing parking and have promised to put up notices. Network Rail (NR) have put fencing in front of Station House and have cleared area to prevent fly-tipping. Chris is meeting with NR in April to review progress. The north side embankment still being considered. Cllr Crowe said he is still chasing is transfer of land on south side to be transferred from NR to Merton Council.

Tony Edwards said that a £1k grant for open space is available with deadline of 12 April so looking to see if any local open space would be viable. Cllr Dean suggested Skew Arch area but Tony said they haven’t found sufficient land there. Tony said he will share the criteria. Jane Plant said she will have a look at the criteria but said we need to be sure who the land belongs to and they have agreed to planting as we need to avoid making management of trees more difficult.

Kalu Obuka and Dr Vasa Gnanapragasam

Kaz Obuka and Dr Vasa Gnanapragasam from South West London Clinical Commissioning group gave a presentation on the take up of the COVID-19 vaccine in Merton. The presentation is attached to this report.

Kaz said the vaccination programme has been going well with more than 66,000 having received their first dose, all either over 50 or considered clinically vulnerable. They have been reaching out to communities within Merton including 35 online workshops with more than 900 attendees. Dr Gnanapragasam said the focus would be on individuals not just cohorts as COVID somewhere is COVID anywhere and would see more variations.

A resident asked about the Johnson and Johnson vaccine being the best defence against the South African variant. Dr Gnanapragasam said Johnson and Johnson has not yet been approved for use and vaccine distribution is decided nationally. Even with the vaccine rollout it is still vital to maintain social distancing.

Cllr Adam Bush asked about take up of the vaccine amongst BAME communities. Dr Gnanapragasam said there have been some issues and it is vital to address individual concerns. Kaz said the CCG has been holding events in faith centres to reach different communities and more of these venues will be used for vaccination centres.

A resident asked about long waits for blood tests at the Nelson as the environment for waiting is not COVID safe. Dr Gnanapragasam said the service at the Nelson is run by St Georges although samples go to either St Helier or St Georges. They currently do not have an appointment system to be more convenient but this is causing congestion. As a result they are considering introducing a booking system.

Cllr Omar Bush ask if Merton was on track to meet the national schedules. Dr Gnanapragasam said we will be if the public book appointments when eligible and GPs will be chasing unvaccinated to offer reassurance.

A resident asked if a booster will be needed and Dr Gnanapragasam said this is possible in order to adapt to variations but we do not know at this point. A resident also asked about pregnant women being vaccinated and Dr Gnanapragasam said women should speak with their GPs to assess the risk. There is no issue with breast feeding and the vaccine. A resident thanked Dr Gnanapragasam for the commitment of GPs to the vaccination programme.

Katie Halter, Climate Change Officer gave a presentation on the Climate Change Action Plan. The presentation is attached to this report. The Climate Change Strategy was adopted in November 2020 and the deliver plan was adopted in February 2021. The Plan covers Merton Council’s work to decarbonise and support it can give to others.

There has been a 40% reduction in Merton Council estate emissions since 2009. Merton Council took a number of actions in 2020 including switching to 100% renewable electricity; completing the roll out of LED street lights; spending £0.5m to decarbonise children’s centres and community buildings; £400,000 from the Neighbourhood Fund being spent on a Warmer Homes Project; updating the Local Plan and campaigns such as Climate Champions in GP surgeries.

Plans in 2021 include new community pledges, another round of Solar Together, and new Action Groups to encourage community projects. You can register for email updates on this work.

A resident asked about Solar panels. Katie said there was not a specific programme in Merton but we support the Solar Together programme. The round for 2021 has just closed. You could also raise specific ideas for solar energy at the Action Group.

A resident asked about the ecological cost of new car versus emissions from old cars. Katie said ecological can mean a number of different things but there is a reference in the Climate Strategy to a study looks at the embodied carbon not just emissions. Shows impact of production is considerable but this is a high level so it is difficult to be specific on the impact in Merton.

A resident asked about London plan targets and Katie said there are more stringent climate requirements in draft Local Plan being proposed.

A resident said that the following the consultation on emission based parking charges, the decision was to go ahead in spite of opposition. Katie said she was aware of the opposition. The basis of making charges different for different types of activities is well founded.

A resident asked about the impact of the expansion of the Ultra-Low Emission Zone, but Katie said the ULEZ deals with air pollution rather than carbon emissions. 

Matthew Hopkins, Census Engagement Manager for the Office of National Statistics (ONS), gave a presentation on the 2021 Census. The presentation is attached to this report. Census day was 21 March 2021 and this is a digital-first census with most households able to complete the form online. For those without digital access they will be able to request a paper copy and ONS field staff will visit households who have not completed their census form and can provide paper copies. Help will also be available online, through a call centre and locally from Merton Voluntary Service Council.

A resident asked about access to Vestry Hall. Matthews said the Support Centre is currently restricted to online & telephone support due to COVID restrictions. They hope to open up for drop in sessions by late April and to coordinate with libraries to use computers there. The support centre can be reached on 020 8685 1771.

Neil Milligan, Building and Development Control Manager for Merton Council provided an update on planning issues in Raynes Park.

• 2 Amity Road – demolition of office block to build flats. Likely to go to committee in May
• Bushy Road – prior approval adding two extra floors to a block of flats.
• 14 Worple Road – likely to go to committee
• Manuplastics – two supplementary applications for residential units refused. Appealed against so waiting for the hearing.
• Wyke Road – 8 flats granted at the planning committee. A Section 106 agreement will need to be reached.
• Burlington Road Tesco site – for 300+ units. There was a public enquiry in December and January, now waiting for a decision.
• Medical centre at 15 Amity – pre app for block of flats

Neil also said that the government had introduced new legislation to allow for shelters outside pubs, although this is likely to be a temporary measure. The Government is not extending virtual committees so likely to have to go back in person from May. This is subject to legal action and there might possibly be a hybrid option.

A resident asked about London plan has increased target for units and Neil said the new London Plan has a challenging target for Merton.

A resident asked about the Wyke Road section 106 going ahead despite ownership issues and a Network Rail covenant. Neil explained that planning decisions is not based on ownership issues or Network Rails’ view on enforcing the covenant which it would be up to them to do.

A resident asked about the speed limit on Bushy Road changing from 40mph to 20mph.

Neil said there is a programme to reduce across London and Merton, will need to check with colleagues. Cllr Fairclough said Highways had said they expected to add signage. FOLLOWING THE MEETING: the Highways team confirmed that Bushey Road is 30mph between A3 and Grand Drive and then becomes 20mph from Grand Drive toward Kingston Road. Unfortunately until very recently some of the old signs were not removed but I believe that all the correct signage are now in place

A resident asked about the Lesser site on Grand Drive. Neil said there are ongoing discussions, the site was put forward for Local Plan as area for development but has been has been empty for some years. Cllr Dean said a number of owners had blocked previous attempts to use for sport.

·         Nelson Blood Testing waiting times

·         Bushey Road Speed restrictions

Dundonald Church should be completed in June, move in July and opening in September

Garth Road Centre now back to appointment only.

Hartfield Walk works taking place without permission by Love Wimbledon. Neil said the application is being assessed so can’t comment on the merits. Cllr Fairclough has raised questions about of use of CIL and the process to date.

FOLLOWING THE MEETING Love Wimbledon has published details of the works on Hartfield Walk and frequently asked questions. They will also be providing updates.

7.15pm 10 June 2021

Cllr Bush thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting

Future meetings:

All at 7.15pm:

• Thursday 10 June 2021
• Thursday 16 September 2021
• Thursday 2 December 2021
• Tuesday 22 March 2022