26/3/2008

Local News

Letters from March 20 2008

Schools:  no choice for us

EDITOR — We live in Chobham and have not been given any of the schools that we identified as our  choices on the correct school admissions form.

I have since found out that most of Chobham children did not get a school of their choice.

We are told by the schools that our council that we pay our taxes to should provide us with a school for our children. We live in Surrey Heath and we have been given a school in Woking borough not of our choice and my child will not know any of the children going there.

My son started school at Valley End, Chobham, which led him to go to Connaught Junior School with his peers. This school should lead children on to Collingwood College which was our first choice of school. He has now been told that he cannot go to the school of his choice (Collingwood College) along with his peers/friends and he is now to go to Bishop David Brown School, Woking, where he will not know anyone. This has already affected him at school because he is worried.

Since this happened last week I have realised that Chobham does not seem to have a specific secondary school that you know your child will get in to. Collingwood is our nearest school in Surrey Heath, Winston Churchill is our nearest Woking borough school and Charters is our nearest Royal Berkshire school. So why are we given a school that is further away than all of these and there is no transport to this school?

How am I personally going to get my daughter to Connaught Junior School, Bagshot, and my son to Bishop David Brown in Sheerwater? I now have three appeals forms to fill out and I have made at least 10 phone calls to different departments within school admissions.

My family is not the only one  from Chobham with this problem. I know at least 10 other families with the same predicament.
Donna Green
Bowling Green Road, Chobham

Not deceived by propaganda

EDITOR — I picked out, from among the rest of my pile of junk mail, the Woking Journal which for some reason is described as “The voice of Woking”.

Oddly,  all the stories seemed party political until I realised it was actually a Lib Dem propaganda tool. It is not until you look on the back page that this is made clear.

I would point out that I have no specific party affiliation but I strongly object to having this cheap rubbish jammed in my letterbox.

It is not what I would expect from an otherwise respectable mainstream political party and my immediate reaction is not to consider giving it my vote at any future election. I am certain that I am not the only person in this neighbourhood who feels the same way.

If a party wants to present its agenda it should make it plain that that is what it is, rather than disguising a list of attacks on other party policies, etc, as a local newspaper.
Chris Gratwick
Carmel Close
Woking

Good news on tax

EDITOR — How refreshing to note that the Woking Conservative councillors have managed to halt the ever-rising tide of council tax increases that have for so long been imposed on the hard pressed citizens of Woking by the profligate Liberal Democrats.
Michael J Naylor
Wych Hill Lane
Woking

Meat-free and green

EDITOR — With climate change making headlines and many people unsure of what they can do to help, giving up meat is a positive choice.

Your readers may be interested to know that farmed animals produce more greenhouse gas emmissions (18%) than the world’s entire transport system (13.5%). It makes you think, doesn’t it?

To find out the facts about how diet impacts on the environment, The Vegetarian Society has produced a report ‘Why it’s Green to Go Vegetarian’. It’s available at www.vegsoc.org/environment, or you can call 0161 925 2000 for a free copy of the booklet which explains why vegetarians’ meat and fish-free lifestyle reduces their impact on the environment.

Vegetarianism is not only a healthy and ethically sound diet. It is a major step to help reduce greenhouse gases, conserve water and conserve land.
David Rainford
Candlerush Close
Maybury

First printed in: Woking News and Mail