News on WeyBetterWeybridge

On Friday 20 May, Surrey County Council, North West Surrey Alliance, NHS Surrey Heartlands Clinical Commissioning Group and Elmbridge Borough Council hosted a public event about the WeyBetter Weybridge programme in St James Church.

During the five-hour event, over 250 residents visited and spent time reading the display boards, talking to key decision makers from across the organisations involved and leaving feedback about the programme. The event allowed for rich, in-depth conversations between local residents and stakeholders, enabling them to gain a deeper understanding and awareness of the situation.

Attending the event to speak to residents were Dr Ben Spencer, MP for Runnymede and Weybridge, Cllr Tim Oliver, County Councillor for Weybridge and Leader of Surrey County Council, Jack Wagstaff, Place Leader, North West Surrey Alliance, Ian Smith, Designate Chair for the Surrey Heartlands Integrated Care Board and Marie Snelling, Executive Director for Customer and Communities, Surrey County Council as well as officers involved in the programme.

Tim Oliver, Weybridge County Councillor said, “This is an extremely important project for the residents of Weybridge and I was delighted to be able to attend and speak to so many people who are passionate about the services in their local area. Our full focus now will be on delivering the project and providing modern services for everyone.”

The WeyBetter Weybridge programme was created following the fire that destroyed the health centre in 2017. Realising the opportunity this presented, the programme aims renew the health campus and library, improve nearby road junctions and create a new public realm space at the heart of the town, for use by the community.

Jack Wagstaff, Place Leader, North West Surrey Health and Care Alliance said: “It was wonderful to see so many local Weybridge residents at this event.

“We had so much interesting and insightful discussion and, working together, have the opportunity to develop a facility in Weybridge that will be an asset to the local community for years to come. I would like to thank everyone who gave up their time to come along and help shape the future of local health services.”

The public event provided an opportunity for residents to see progress so far and speak with key decision makers. Display boards around the venue showed a range of information including a summary of all the research and feedback from residents to date, plans for the road improvements, proposals for the library redevelopment and information about the services that will be available in the new health campus.

Also on display were artist’s impressions of what the site could look like, with improvements designed to connect the north and south sides of Church Street and create a more pedestrian-friendly environment for residents. A video showed a fly through of the proposed site layout, enabling people to see how both sites, either side of Church Street, would work together.

Importantly for residents, the event also provided a timeline for the construction of the health campus. Detailed designs and the planning application are expected later this year, with a decision expected next year, along with the tendering and contracts process. The building should be complete by the end of 2025, with the facility expected to open to residents in the first half of 2026.

Local resident of 44 years, R.W. from Oatlands, said “I attended the public event at St James Church to understand the progress made on the WeyBetter Weybridge programme. At the event there was ample opportunity to view the plans for our town and, importantly, the progress towards the rebuilding of the Weybridge health campus site after the fire in 2017.

“Commitment to the complex project was apparent by the welcome attendances, allowing time for open and individual exchanges with Dr Ben Spencer MP and Cllr Tim Oliver, as well as senior officials from across the healthcare organisations planning the new health campus and its services.

“Plans for the library, traffic management and the environment could also be viewed and discussed with officials from Elmbridge Borough Council and Surrey County Council.

“I hope the stakeholders in this project continue to share the plans in this worthwhile way with the community into the future.”

As well as providing information, the event also gave residents the chance to give feedback on the proposals and what their priorities are for the facilities and services. Feedback ranged from a suggestion of a footpath to access the new health campus to requests for services that should be provided and ideas on how to better integrate the different spaces and buildings, such as opening the library from the back onto the proposed public realm space.

For anyone who missed the event in person, the display boards will be available to view in the library for a few weeks. The information from the event has also been placed on this website and there is also the chance to provide feedback here.

A further event has been proposed for later in the year, when it is hoped that more detailed plans for the site will be available.