We were surprised by the references to Claygate Village Association (CVA) in the current Focus newsletter published by the Claygate Liberal Democrats.
We welcome the statement by the Leader of Elmbridge Borough Council (EBC) with which we agree. For our part, it is nonetheless regrettable that the Focus article referenced CVA without any prior discussion with us, and to avoid confusion we want to make it clear that:
1. CVA is a non-political charity. All residents of Claygate are members.
2. CVA currently has over 100 residents who have been working hard on our “Claygate: The Way Forward” initiative since November last year. Any of those volunteers may have affiliations to one political party or another, but their work with us is in a personal capacity, and not representing any party.
3. Following the attempt last year to push through a redevelopment of a site in the heart of the village without consultation, CVA was invited to submit a report to EBC on Claygate people’s needs, aspirations and vision for the village.
4. CVA is launching a major survey next month, to help inform our submission to Elmbridge Borough Council. The survey is an initiative of CVA alone, and no political party is involved in designing, sponsoring or distributing the survey.
5. Data collected from the survey will only be used in aggregated and anonymised form. If you give us any personal data - which will be completely optional - it will be safeguarded in line with GDPR.
6. We are in regular dialogue with EBC’s permanent officers in relation to the work being undertaken by the CVA volunteers on our “Claygate: The Way Forward” initiative including the timeline for the production of our report. The timeline set out in the Focus bears little relation to this.
7. We are conscious that CVA is a long-established organisation that is held in affection for its community activities. While we respect and want to engage Claygate’s elected representatives, we are always sensitive that we do not appear to favour any political group. This is especially so when an election is approaching.
For further information, please contact us via our website or email us at claygateresidents@gmail.com.