Welcome to the LOSRA Website
As with any other local neighbourhood, the policies and actions which affect the character and future of Lower Sunbury are generally framed and implemented by a combination of local and national government, along with the vested interests and market forces which operate within those frameworks. Lower Sunbury is by no means unique in being under threat from a creaking infrastructure brought about by rapid urban development, the growth of traffic, and other pressures affecting the quality of life and the character of the area.
Working with the local authorities, we see it as the responsibility of residents’ and amenity groups such as LOSRA to address the underlying issues which fundamentally affect their members’ lives, as well as the minutiae of everyday life with which such groups are often concerned.
Please sign up to receive our regular e-bulletins by subscribing via the facility at the top left hand of this page. It goes without saying that, without your continued support we would cease to function so we urge you to join, or renew your membership now Subscriptions (£5 per household) for 2025 are now payable.
Appeal for Help with June 4th Platinum Jubilee Celebrations
Those who have been following the programme on Facebook or Sunbury Matters will know that a number of exciting events are planned in Lower Sunbury for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee on 4th June.
To make a success of the day, the organisers are looking for additional helpers for marshalling and other duties. If you are available to help out please contact Max Hook-Brown on: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Many thanks in advance.
Local Plan to go to Public Consultation
"Spelthorne’s Local Plan has been many years in the making, with many bumps along the road. The journey has not just been difficult and challenging, it has gone way beyond that. It has been divisive, bruising and at times unpleasant. It has fractured communities and turned councillors against each other. The reason for the acrimony is easy to discern: the government’s brutal housing targets which eclipse everything else in the Plan-making process." (Cllr. Lawrence Nichols, Leader of the Council).
Last night the Council voted by a sizeable majority for the Local Plan to go forward for public consultation (25 for vs 8 against). It is a great relief because the absence of a Local Plan would create a wild west for developers who would feel free to impose their will on yet more of our precious Green Belt.
The Association is happy to endorse the following comment by the Leader: "It is councillors who are responsible for agreeing the final shape of the Plan, but the massive amount of complex and detailed work has been done by a small group of Council officers. This has taken several years and crossed three political administrations. Our officers have answered hundreds of questions, many of them more than once. The Plan documents have been produced by these officers with great professionalism, considerable hard work and exemplary patience. It is their advice and guidance which will be minutely tested by the Inspector and other interested parties. As councillors we recognise the enormous amount of hard work that the officers have done to get to the Regulation 19 [Public Consultation] stage, and we thank them for their efforts"
Responses to the consultation will be directed to the Planning Inspectorate unfiltered and this website will keep you up-to-date.
Nicolas Meier, Guitarist, joins the Terence Collie Trio on 5th June at the RAC
UK-based guitarist Nicolas Meier has carved a reputation out as one of the world's most original and uniquely talented guitarists.
Drawing from a love of Turkish, Eastern & Middle Eastern music, Flamenco, Tango and more - all mixed with jazz - Meier's versatility and musical fluency extends well beyond that, even. (... so much so, that his considerable talents drew the attention of rock guitar legend, Jeff Beck, who made Nicolas a mainstay in The Jeff Beck Group - carrying him on two world tours during the course of the last several years.)
Nicolas joins the Terence Collie trio at the Riverside Arts Centre, Thames Street at 8pm on Sunday 5th June.
Code of conduct for dog owners
New signage will be installed in Council owned parks and open spaces to inform dog owners of the expanded Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) regulations.
The existing PSPO has had additions that require dog owners to carry suitable means for collecting any dog faeces, restrictions on the number of dogs that professional dog walkers can control at any given time, and a condition that a dog must be placed on a lead in a public area if required to do so by an authorised officer, police officer or PCSO. Dogs must also be on leads at all times in the Borough Cemeteries, some Council car parks as well as the leisure centre car parks.
To see the Council's notice, click here
The Avenue - What's in a Name?
An Avenue is defined as "a broad road in a town or city, typically having trees at regular intervals along its sides" The Avenue in Lower Sunbury is arguably the most iconic residential thoroughfare in the Borough largely due to the linear form of mature horse chestnut trees which both pre-date and have framed the detached houses for generations.
Indeed, we were inspired to adopt the horse chestnut tree as our emblematic logo at the Association's inception 50 years ago.
In recent years, whether through disease, the need to provide more parking spaces or, more sadly, for reasons of capricious fancy, many of these protected trees have been felled, unlawfully in some cases. (In January Spelthorne Borough Council successfully prosecuted a man for the breach of a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) for cutting the roots of a Horse Chestnut Tree in The Avenue without the authority of the Council).
Early last year, following receipt of a number of complaints, the Council enforcement officer carried out a tree survey of The Avenue to identify all the protected trees that have either died or have been removed with or without approval but not replaced. The aim of this survey was to encourage as many owners as possible to replace the trees with a whitebeam (sorbus aria) as recommended by the Tree Officer.
A letter was sent out to all the addresses identified on The Avenue specifying the replacement tree and a deadline by the planning office of 31 March 2022 was given. The response has been mixed. Some owners were delighted with this initiative and have already planted the replacement tree; others have refused for various reasons and some have simply ignored the letter.
Now that the deadline has passed the Enforcement Officer will be carrying out a survey to identify those that have not complied.
This may then progress to enforcement action such as prosecution.
It would be a great pity if it had to come to this. Householders in The Avenue may be the owners of the land on which the trees are situated but are the custodians of these precious assets for present and future generations.
Jump 66 Returns to the SCC on Friday 20th May
The next Music Night at Sunbury Cricket Club is on Friday 20th May and features JUMP 66, who played their first gig at the Club back in 2019, and this is the first chance we’ve had to get them back. They are one of the busiest and most popular bands on the circuit, playing a fiery and infectious mix of raucous R'n'B and swinging Jump Blues, with a touch of skanking 1950s Rocksteady.
They have honed their high energy show over the last decade, playing at the Glastonbury Festival in 2014, and are regulars at the Ealing Blues Festival, headlining the main stage in 2018, and the Swanage Blues Festival. They’re a resident band at Soho’s Ain’t Nothing But The Blues Bar, and have been regulars at the RamJam in Kingston and the Crawdaddy, so are equally at home in clubs or on the festival stage.
Boasting a highly credible musical pedigree, they’re an archetypal Music Night attraction, and we can guarantee a fine evening of house-rocking roof-raising entertainment. Take a look at their web site at www.jump66blues.com, where there’s more info, music clips, photos and a list of dates that shows both the frequency and the quality of their gigs.
Admission is £10.00 on the door, payable by cash or card. Hot food, prepared by the expert chefs from our resident caterers from the community food redistribution organisation Surplus To Supper, will be available from 7pm.
More...
Supporting Ukrainian refugees
The generosity of spirit Spelthorne residents have shown in times of difficulty continues to amaze the Council with 32 households offering up their homes to a potential 81 Ukrainian refugees as part of the government's Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Celebrating the Life of the Late Matt Dibble on 15th May at the RAC
Matt Dibble, the renowned composer, saxophonist and clarinetist died in May, 2021, aged 40, from a cerebral hemorrhage shortly after receiving the Astra Zeneca vaccine.
The concert at the Riverside Arts Centre will be a tribute to him and to his music.It will feature friends and fellow musicians.
For full line-up, venue and time, click here
London Irish Mini Festival, Sunday 24th April
After a two year hiatus the Amateur London Irish Mini Festival will once again be staged this coming Sunday, 24th April. In previous years, the inconsiderate parking by visiting parents has caused problems in nearby roads, often preventing residents from leaving or entering their driveways.
As in previous years, and for what it's worth, the Club has written to all competing clubs asking that they comply with the arrangements for parking which are as follows:
Car Parking
"No parking will be available at the London Irish Hazelwood ground. Kempton Park will provide all Festival parking. The designated entrance is the main entrance on Staines Road East. Marshals will be on hand to collect monies and direct you to overflow parking facilities if required. In addition they will direct you to buses which will transfer you to the Hazelwood ground which is a ten-minute bus ride from Kempton Park.
"Buses will carry shelters and kit.
"Out of consideration to residents in the immediate area please do NOT park in adjacent roads. A number of adjacent roads are too narrow to allow residents to park on, or leave, their houses because turning out of, or into, private drives becomes impossible if festival attendees park on the street.
"The police are likely to remove any cars that cause an obstruction for emergency vehicles or are blocking residents’ driveways".
It is hoped to have a number of signs (illustrated) available on the day.
Fighting Fund to Keep Kempton Green Needs Your Help
So far, KKG has achieved what it has through a lot of hard work and not much money. But we are now at a point where we have to instruct a lawyer to represent residents at the Examination in Public, where our new Local Plan will be scrutinised by a Planning Inspector.
So we are appealing to your generous nature – and your sense of fun.
Come along and enjoy an evening of fantastic music with Joglaresa at St Mary’s Church in Sunbury, (by kind permission of Father Andrew) on Friday 29 April from 7:00 pm. All proceeds to the KKG Fighting Fund.
Contact us on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to get your tickets.
Tickets can be paid for by direct transfer to our bank account;
Barclays Bank
Account name: Keep Kempton Green
Sort Code: 20-42-76,
Account number: 5326 5943
through PayPal – Reference This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
or,
by cheque, made out to Keep Kempton Green, to 20 Green Street, Sunbury-on-Thames, TW16 6RN.
All contributions, of whatever size, will be most gratefully received.
For further information about KKG, click here
Invitation to Mayor's Charity Spring Blossom Ball on 29th April
The Mayor of Spelthorne has asked our Association to publish the following invitation to this event and the charities he is supporting:
"The Mayoress and I would like to invite you to our Charity Spring Blossom Ball to be held at the Holiday Inn, Shepperton on Friday 29 April 2022. After 2 years of not being able to hold any charity events, we would be delighted if you could join and support us at this newly refurbished venue for an evening of fun and entertainment.
"As you will be aware throughout my 4½ years as Leader of Spelthorne Borough Council, I made supporting the business community a priority and I am sure this has benefitted your business.
"I am therefore asking for your support at our forthcoming Charity Ball and you can do this in the following ways:
- Booking a table (10 places for £700), or individual places for £75 each
- Donating prizes for our auction – prizes that are not easily purchased are especially welcome and productive
- Prizes for our raffle – including vouchers for goods or services
"Even if you are unable to attend, we would still be extremely grateful for any donations or sponsorship to assist with the fundraising for my two hugely worthwhile charities: East to West and Ashford Community & Youth Club, with both supporting young people in our Borough who are facing a mental health crisis. The Mayoress and I hope that this event will raise much needed funds to help these charities support out youth.
"It would be lovely to see you. To book, please return the RSVP slip (or email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) with your menu choices and either enclose a cheque or send a BACS payment to:
Account Name: Spelthorne Mayor’s Charity Fund
Account No: 23397498
Sort Code: 23-05-80
"Any donations or sponsorship should be sent to the same account.
"We sincerely hope that you can join us for a wonderful evening.
"Best wishes"
Cllr Ian Harvey
Mayor of Spelthorne 2021-2
Graffiti in Sunbury Cross Underpass
The Association is aware that many residents find the Sunbury Cross Underpass to be a quite forbidding environment and, having been a party to the discussions on improving that environment, we are very disappointed to read the following Council notice which is reproduced below:
"Spelthorne Borough Council is appealing for information after a spate of graffiti incidents in Sunbury Cross underpass.
"The underpass at Sunbury Cross has recently undergone a raft of works aimed at improving the appearance for residents and visitors. This has included the removal of overhanging plants and shrubs, pruning of the trees, repair of the paths, steam cleaning of the underpass, a repaint of the walls and ceilings and the installation of new stair treads.
"Unfortunately, since the improvements were made, graffiti has been sprayed on the walls of the underpass and the Council is calling for anyone with information about the vandalism to get in touch.
"Cllr Amar Brar, Chair of the Neighbourhood Services Committee, said: “Residents deserve to have a clean and pleasant environment and graffiti is quite understandably one of the things that really upsets people. It is also a terrible waste of taxpayers’ money, as it will cost thousands of pounds to clean up. We are publishing photos of the graffiti tags and ask the public to contact us if they can help identify the culprits.”
"Anyone with information is asked to contact the Neighbourhood Services team at Spelthorne Borough Council on 01784 446411."
Roberto Manzin Joins the Terence Collie Trio at the RAC on 17th April
These informed comments will tell you that a great evening is in store with the famous saxophonist, Roberto Manzin, and the Terence Collie Trio at the Riverside Arts Centre on Sunday 17th April.
"It was the first time I’d heard Manzin live, and his modesty belies the searing lines he plays, easily a match for Brecker or Bergonzi." - Sarah Chaplin, Jazzwise
"...He (Manzin) has to be heard to be believed!" -Jon Newey, Jazzwise
"Roberto Manzin’s licks are up to the minute" -Evening Standard
"Sax-player Roberto Manzin's solos have something of the chromatic excitement of Brecker and the soulfulness of Sanborn." - Alison Bentley, LondonJazz
"Scorching Italian tenorist Roberto Manzin" - Time Out
"An expressive player with an attractive sound, his improvisations reveal a skilful strategist, a melodist first and foremost, who gradually unfolds a solo and builds up to a compelling conclusion." - Charles Alexander, Jazzwise
Nashville Teens Return to SCC on Friday, 8th April
The next Music Night at Sunbury Cricket Club is on Friday 8th April, when the Club at last welcomes back THE NASHVILLE TEENS. The Club had to postpone their usual January gig because of the Omicron outbreak, and so slotted them back in as soon as a suitable date could be found.
THE NASHVILLE TEENS are one of the great names from the ‘60s who had two memorable Top Ten hits in 1964 with “Tobacco Road” and “Google Eye”, and have played storming gigs for the Club over many years, so are delighted to have them back again after the lengthy lock-down break. The line-up features their original lead singer Ray Phillips, who has had an unbroken half-century career with the band, as well as making solo records and performing with other line-ups like the British Invasion All-Stars with members of The Yardbirds, Creation and Downliners Sect. With him in the current Nashville Teens is a line-up of seasoned performers, including on bass Colin Pattenden, member of Manfred Mann’s Earth Band when they had their big hits back in the 70s with Simon Spratley of The Ian Campbell Blues Band on keyboards, Ken Osborn from Levee Camp Moan on guitar and Adrian ‘Spud’ Metcalf on drums. It will be another night of classic ‘60s R&B, featuring in Ray one of the great voices of the beat era. There’s more information at www.Nashville-Teens.com.
Food will be available as usual, so it's hoped you can make it down to get this year’s Music Nights off to a cracking start.
Admission is £10.00 on the door, payable by cash or card. Hot food, prepared by the expert chefs from our resident caterers from the community food redistribution organisation Surplus To Supper, will be available from 7pm.
