The document below attempts to pull together in a timeline all the events and official statements made to date by Elmbridge Borough Council, Claygate Parish Council and others since November 2022 when EBC slipped into the news page on its website that a proposal for the potential future development of Torrington Lodge Car Park was being considered. However we believe that work on these current proposals started back in 2021 but it was not until June 23 that any details were made publicly available.
Elmbridge Council in its Vision 2030 document states “We will always be open and authentic in our communications with residents, transparent in our decision making and listen to the views of our community.” This clearly has not been the case for the residents and businesses of Claygate as our timeline document reveals.
We hope that Elmbridge Borough Council will now make amends for their lack of transparency to date and start to engage with and consult the community of Claygate about this major issue.
The Timeline is a lengthy document and will be updated and added to as events unfold and information becomes available. We have endeavoured to ensure the content is fair and accurate but inevitably with such a document and with events moving so quickly we may have got things wrong or overlooked some important detail.
Please let us know via the contact form if this is the case and we will amend the document as quickly as we can.
Summary of dates (detail & reflections within the document)
8 Nov 22 - Elmbridge Borough Council (EBC) post on News page of their website.
16 Nov 22 - Meeting of Elmbridge Cabinet to discuss development opportunity in Claygate. Public and press excluded. No published Papers or Minutes available.
7 Dec 22 - Cabinet Minutes of 16 Nov presented at full Council Meeting. Cabinet recommendation for EBC officers to sign an agreement with the developer for an M&S Foodstore agreed by full Council.
19 Jun 23 - Update on EBC website (after a gap of more than seven months)
20 Jun 23 - Cllr Bruce McDonald, Leader of EBC Facebook Post on The Claygate and Esher Community page: "Great news for Claygate M&S has confirmed that they will open a food store in our village"
23 Jun 23 - Esher Residents Association website posted as follows: M&S SIMPLY FOOD IS ON ITS WAY TO CLAYGATE and on their Facebook page: "M&S Food will be almost on Esher’s doorsteps..."
3 Jul 23 - Bruce McDonald’s Reply to comments on his FB post.
21 Jul 23 - Public meeting – Claygate Parish Council - Massive objection from over 200 attendees.
26 Jul 23 - Update on EBC website - 'We take those concerns very seriously'
26 Jul 23 - Statement issued by Cllrs McDonald, Coomes and Rollings on Liberal Democrats for Claygate and Esher Facebook page
26 Jul 23 - Meeting of CPC with Paul Clark, Kilo Properties, Kilo’s architect and a representative from M&S
3 Aug 23 - Meeting of Claygate Parish Council with Elmbridge Borough Council
4 Aug 23 - Email from Stuart La Frenais, EBC and update on Elmbridge Council website
12 Aug 23 - Extraordinary Meeting of Claygate Parish Council (see CCDB's notes of meeting)