A. When the planning application is made by Waverley Borough Council for and on behalf of – Waverley Borough Council!

In fact – if eagle-eyed Farnham resident Mark Westcott, hadn’t been onto ‘Your Waverley’s’ little shenanigans around the Blightwells East Street redevelopment chances are ‘Your – We Always Obey the Law”  Gone to Potts – Waverley,’ wouldn’t have even applied,  or have considered, its own Retrospective planning application – let alone shine a light on it in public!

Yes! – The work on the Farnham Football Club’s new changing rooms has already been carried out,  if it hadn’t, the Club  would have been relegated from the Courage & Combined Counties Football League. Which absolutely no-one in Farnham wants.

Why? Because ‘ Your Waverley’ (We here at the Waverley Web cannot stomach referring to it as Our Waverley – wanted to purloin Farnham’s Memorial Hall for – yes, you guessed,  – an enabling scheme so that the Gostrey Old People’s Centre could be shoved into the Memorial bunker to make way for developers to get their concrete mixers onto  BLIGHTWELLS!

That sharp thorn in Waverley’s side – Councillor Jerry Hyman (Farnham Castle Ward) dared – yes dared – to say within those hallowed halls – that although he would not vote against the “temporary buildings adjacent to a Conservation area – as long as temporary meant temporary which it seldom does, and  for a council  enabling scheme elsewhere in the town,” he would not be voting against it.

It is well know locally Waverley Council  has dumped Farnham’s, well-loved and supported football club between a ball and a goal post – due to its  own cunning plans!

If he did –  Out came the claws – Gone to Jumped out of her Pot and cried!  My instruction is – that this is NOT AN ENABLING SCHEME!

The buildings were “Temporary” she said and ‘WILL after three years – return to grass.’ 

Chairman ‘Wisher -would  he- disappear’ – demanded Farnham’s Jerry apologise for daring to claim the application under consideration was anything to do with enabling the re-development  of East Street! Perish the thought that anybody would!!

Shouldn’t someone tell him?

A grinning F’s Jerry – ignored the request saying surely the officers could do better than  describe a prefabricated temporary building as “preserving  the character of the Farnham Conservation Area” and comment on  how it would, “relate well with its surroundings.”

A Touch of Frost couldn’t wait to leap into the fray saying how “surprised” she was to hear Councillor Jerry claims that  the council’s actions were  not legal and waxed lyrical about the merits of Farnham Football Club, adding she didn’t want to know – ‘what’s what’ in three years time!

And there were we, here at the Waverley Web, still smarting from the rebuke given to F’s J when he was instructed by Wisher – would – never to question or criticise officers or councillors! But presumably, going by a Touch of Frost’s little outbursts, that rule  only applies to Farnham Residents councillors and not Tory councillors  – silly old us!

Resident Mark Westcott said he had watched “with sadness” the gradual decline of the Memorial Hall and referred to other temporary buildings in Farnham   still remaining   after many years.

Councillor Andy McLeod said he was unhappy about a great many things – and what as going on at the Memorial Hall went against the spirit of the covenants set up by United Breweries! He warned: “Nothing must ever be built on the Memorial  Sports Ground!” He added: I am very unhappy that Farnham FC was thrown out of the Memorial Hall, so that this council can use it as offices!”

The meeting Can be viewed here : Starting at  1.52.11  https://youtu.be/_PC7i3AaYsg?t=2h9m57s unfortunately we cannot embed the video any longer – because this facility has been turned off by ‘Your Waverley” in the interest of openness and transparency no doubt!

What are they afraid of After all they could always invoke Rule 20 of The Local Government Act and go behind closed doors – again!