Author: Directors

You will already have received an advice from Tim Townsend regarding the commencement of groundworks to remedy some of the drainage issues that have come to light. These were detailed in the Minutes of the last directors’ meeting which were posted on this website on 25th August. The relevant part is under item 4 on the agenda (Drainage survey findings) paragraphs 7 & 8.

The works have started today and they are inevitably going to make a mess; however, this will all be cleared quickly and any damage will be repaired once the contractors have gone. Most of the digging work will be finished today, 22nd September and the debris is to be cleared on Wednesday 24th September.

UPDATE 1: More photos and video below.

As of today, Wednesday 24th September the works are almost finished although there is still some clearing up to do, including hosing down the grass area where the debris was stored before collection this morning and also jet-washing any mud on the road. There are some shallow tracks left in the grass behind the play area and these will be dealt with by our landscaping contractors in the next few weeks assuming a good shower of rain doesn’t do the trick before then.

UPDATE 2: A final photo below.

The groundworks are complete and everything has been done neatly with all the debris now cleared away. The grass is already starting to recover.

The next stage, which is currently being arranged, is the return of the first contractor with a 10,000psi jetting unit to clear weed roots and some concrete deposits which are impeding the flow; and to repair a broken pipe. They will also deal with a detached chain in the hydro-break near Alfold Road.

Berkeley Homes are to be be asked to clear the swale/ditch (their land) leading to the stream in order to allow water to drain away better and Bellway are being approached to reimburse all costs which have been incurred due to shortcomings in the original construction.

The Minutes can be viewed by using the following link:

Minutes of Meeting of Directors on 17th August 2025

May we particularly draw your attention to item 4, which details the surface water drainage survey findings and our plans for remediation.

Regarding the 2025-26 budget, this will be circulated shortly by Tim Townsend together with invoices to owners for payment of the service charges for the first half-year.

UPDATE: This work will start on Monday 4th August and will take two days.

LMC was originally told by Bellway that all of the drainage at Little Meadow was to be adopted by Thames Water so it was a surprise when we were informed only last year that just the foul drainage was adoptable, leaving the surface water drainage system as part of LMC’s responsibilities. Because of this, we have been seeking from Bellway a drainage survey to confirm the satisfactory condition of the system before we would accept the transfer to LMC of the land comprising the common areas. To cut a very long story short, the final answer from Bellway is: “We will take no further action and deem this the responsibility of LMC.”

In order to establish the condition of the surface water drainage system that we have unexpectedly inherited, we recently met on site with a specialist drainage company. Their representative lifted in turn all the surface water drainage manhole covers at Little Meadow and it was immediately apparent that there is a build-up of silt in much of the system and particularly in the so-called “hydro-breaks” one of which is shown below. We understand that these are “passive devices used for managing water flow in drainage systems, particularly for flood prevention. They are engineered to control the rate of water discharge, preventing upstream flooding and optimising water management. A hydro-brake uses a vortex flow to regulate the discharge rate, even at low head pressures”.

In addition to the build-up of silt, the specialist told us that from his past experience on new estates there may well be builder’s rubble in the pipes which would impede the flow, causing the silt deposits, and which could easily cause more serious blockages in the future. For this reason he recommended that the pipes should be cleared and that we should commission a CCTV survey to check their condition.

We believe it is wise to get the clearance and survey work done now since otherwise there might be much greater expense putting right a future problem. The drainage specialists consider this to be a long-term solution, maybe ten years; our landscape maintenance contractors will continue to keep the culvert guards clear of vegetation and, in accordance with the independent Health & Safety recommendations we received quite recently, a routine inspection and lubrication of the culverts by the drainage specialists will be carried out, probably every two or three years.

The quoted cost of the work to be done now is around £3,800 and of course this is both unexpected and unwelcome. When drawing up our budget for the current year it could not have been foreseen that the work might be needed; however, we do have sufficient in our reserves to cover the cost – the reserves are there to meet just this sort of unexpected expense without having to impose a mid-year levy upon owners.

It is worth noting that should any defects in the drainage construction be identified such as cracked pipes and displaced joints; or if significant builder’s rubble is found that could only have got there during Bellway’s tenure, we will most certainly be making a claim upon them for reimbursement. We will have photo and video evidence to support our claim.

You will know from our 4th April 2025 post on this website that Summary Judgment was obtained against Firstport Property Services No.10 Limited (“Firstport”) at the Guildford County Court Hearing on 31st March 2025. The sealed Court Order was received shortly afterwards and it specified in detail what information Firstport was required to provide to LMC by various fixed deadlines. It also mentioned a target date in July for a further Hearing at which this information would be assessed by the Court.

Firstport produced to LMC, just before the first deadline, most of the information required. The bundle included the accounts as at the termination date of their contract and on the same day they sent an “Offer to Settle” – an official Court document detailing their offer and giving us 21 days to decide whether it was acceptable to LMC.

In broad terms, the offer was to pay over to us the final balance due (as shown in the accounts), an additional sum as an incentive to bring the case to a close, plus our costs for the period between the Summary Judgment Hearing and our acceptance of the offer (the Court had already ordered them to pay our costs up to the date of the Court Hearing and this sum was promptly settled by Firstport in early April).

The directors of LMC examined Firstport’s “Offer to Settle” closely and after due consideration it was decided unanimously that it should be accepted. Firstport and the Court were advised.

Yesterday, we received from Firstport directly to LMC’s bank account the full amount of the settlement, plus the further costs we had claimed. We should say again that all of LMC’s costs have been paid by Firstport and so there has only been a positive impact on our finances resulting from the action we have taken.

So we are very happy finally to be able to draw a line under this sorry affair and to close our file on Firstport. It has been a very long and complex process requiring many hours of work, but it was worth it in the end!

A Member/owner has suggested that LMC might consider publishing the Minutes of future directors’ meetings for information and transparency. We are happy to do this.

At times it may be necessary to redact some content, where there could be personal, confidential, sensitive or commercial information.

Use the following link to view or download:

Minutes of the meeting held on Sunday 11th May 2025

When going in and out of Little Meadow you may have noticed that the two lamp posts to the left and to the right along the front of the development were placed by Bellway in the roadway, rather than in the grass verge. This made them vulnerable to damage and indeed it was drawn to our attention some time ago that one had been pushed from vertical.

This morning, Bellway’s contractors attended and moved them to the correct location. Please see the before and after photos below.

Not a huge step forward, but it may give us all some hope that if we continue to put pressure upon Bellway to finish some of the things they ought to have done a long time ago, then they should eventually get done…

Before:

After:

You may recall that the Firstport group acquired DJC Property Management Ltd in late 2022, at which point they inherited the contract to act as managing agent for Little Meadow. DJC Property Management Ltd’s name was changed to Firstport Property Services No.10 Ltd (“Firstport”) on 11th July 2023.

Being wholly dissatisfied with the standard of service received from Firstport, the contract was terminated by LMC’s directors on 7th January 2024, the earliest contractual opportunity to do so. Since then we have been trying to obtain service charge accounts to show what happened to our money during the period they were acting for LMC and to get them to pay over the balance of whatever surplus money they were holding at the termination date.

Despite our continuing efforts, including commencing legal action against them, Firstport remained unresponsive for an incredible fourteen months.

We are pleased to tell you that on Monday 31st March 2025, Little Meadow Cranleigh Ltd obtained Summary Judgment, plus costs, against Firstport Property Services No.10 Ltd at Guildford County Court. A sealed Court Order is being issued setting out a legally-enforceable timetable for accounting information to be produced to establish what Firstport owes to LMC; what sums, if any, they may have paid out without LMC’s authorisation; and what unauthorised commissions they may have received from placing contracts with any third parties.

Severe penalties may be imposed by the Court should they fail to obey the Order.

The Order will be formally served upon them at their Registered Office address shortly, although they will already be aware of the Order’s existence because, much to our surprise, they sent a representative to the Court Hearing.

We will report any further significant developments.

It has been reported that the wooden bridge near the playground gets very slippery when wet.

Our managing agent Tim Townsend is being asked to deal with this and we are looking at the options.

There will be a short delay while the arrangements are being made so in the meantime please TAKE CARE!

You may have noticed that this work was carried out yesterday by our landscape maintenance contractors.

It is intended that these areas will be cleared annually in future to keep the swale clear for drainage purposes and to stop the boundary area becoming overwhelmed by weeds and brambles. There are a few logs and branches lying near the boundary which should also have been moved and we will be asking the contractors to deal with these shortly.

For now, the area of brambles near to the play area is to be trimmed so that it forms part of the boundary hedge to keep it neat, but later we intend to clear that too and to do some new planting.

Some photos follow:

Contractors will be attending on 12th February to clear this untidy area of overgrown weeds and brambles and once it is under control our regular landscape maintenance company will be able to keep it in good shape.

There are quite a few established trees in the area and these will be marked so they can be protected during the work. Also, the clearance is taking place before the main bird nesting season starts to avoid any disturbance, which is in accordance with RSPB guidelines and the law.

Please be aware that there will be movement of vehicles in the area and quite a bit of noise disturbance, but it will only be for a day or two.

Later, depending on cost, we will consider completing the fencing run along the Primrose Close/Amber Parkside boundary and any new planting that may be desirable.

UPDATE:

The completion of the clearance was achieved on schedule and the area looks much tidier than before.

All the fencing quotes that were obtained for the seventy-eight metre stretch came out a lot higher than expected and so the directors, in consultation with residents, have decided to do some planting along the boundary.

The planting will take a while to become properly established but we believe that it will greatly enhance the attractiveness of this area with only modest ongoing maintenance required.

UPDATE: Everything appears to have gone quiet so we think it would be reasonable to assume that the issue was sorted by Thames Water before any digging was needed.

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You may have noticed that Thames Water have been working at the sewage pumping station in Primrose Close since Christmas Eve and they are likely to be there into next week too, with heavy trucks and other traffic moving in and out through the Little Meadow estate.

There isn’t a problem with the pumping station itself; however, the main outlet pipe down to the Alfold Road (which we understand services both Little Meadow and Amber Parkside) is apparently blocked. So far, Thames Water have been unable to clear the blockage and it’s a possibility that when they have located where the issue lies they will have to excavate to deal with it.

We understand that Thames Water’s experts will be attending on Monday 30th December to decide upon a plan of action and we will try to find out what they’re going to do so that we can let you know here.

Just for information, the pumping station is on a rectangle of land that is owned by Thames Water so that area is definitely their responsibility to maintain. We believe that the blocked underground sewage pipe in Marjoram Avenue is either still Bellway’s responsibility or, if it has already been officially adopted by Thames Water, it is their responsibility. We have been seeking from Bellway evidence of adoption, or otherwise, for some time without success.

The pipes and surface water drainage in areas which are not to be adopted are for LMC to look after, so before the transfer of ownership of these “common areas” takes place – from Bellway to LMC – we are asking for evidence of condition, probably by way of a video survey.

The latest company AGM took place on Tuesday 26th November 2024 and it was followed by an open forum for all residents of the Little Meadow estate.

You can read here the Minutes of the meeting. Please note that for privacy reasons the details of the thirty-one attendees are not included in the downloaded version although the whole package of papers has been circulated to all owners by email.

Following the meeting, the directors have a list of action points which will be dealt with in conjunction with Tim Townsend our Managing Agent.

Amongst these action points is the filing of various documents at Companies House including the latest accounts, details of newly appointed directors and also the change of name from Little Meadows (Cranleigh) Management Company Ltd to Little Meadow Cranleigh Ltd.

At a more practical level, the directors are now concentrating on the clearance and replanting of the boundary between Primrose Close and Amber Parkside; and the establishment of a small team to help with monitoring the landscape maintenance work.

Please contact us if you have any questions or comments.

You will probably have seen (or heard!) that there is more tree work being carried out at the moment, this time in Knowle Wood, adjacent to Yarrow Close.

This is being done by contractors working on behalf of Berkeley Homes who own Knowle Wood, a protected area of ancient woodland.

Please see this previous post for more details and a link to the planning documents.

As you’ll no doubt be aware, Bellway are finally dealing with some long-outstanding work which we have been pressing them to finish.

For nearby residents’ information, this is an extract from their latest email which was received on 22nd November:

Works to Betony Close – Whilst I have not received a confirmed delivery date for the hedge plants, they are expected next week with planting the week following. In the meantime the contractor will be attending next week to ensure the area is grubbed out and clean ready for planting.

With the recent frost, we may be past the season now for seeding the [Yarrow Close] swale area, I have re-proposed the change to grass seed and will respond next week.

No further update either on the lamp columns at the front of site, I will chase on Tuesday and get back to you.

From our previous posts on this website you will be aware of the past (and continuing) issues we have had in our dealings with FirstPort who were our contracted managing agents before we sent them a formal Notice of Termination, effective 7th January 2024.

We already knew that LMC was far from alone in this experience and you may be interested to see the following two letters which have been sent, respectively, from a group of thirty-four Labour MPs and a group of twelve Liberal Democrat MPs to FirstPort’s Managing Director, Martin King.

Click on each thumbnail image below to see each letter in full, they will open in a new tab or window.

UPDATE: Below the two letters is the Liberal Democrat MP’s report following the meeting with Martin King.

Tim Townsend circulated the official Notice by email today as follows. The links in the text will lead you to the documents:

Dear All,

As per my email to all Friday 4th October 2024, the Annual Residents Meeting/AGM is being held at 19.00 hours on Tuesday 26th November. Please find attached the following:

• Notice of the Annual General Meeting.
• Details of Special Resolution including a proxy form.
• The year-end accounts to 30th September 2024.

It is hoped that as many as possible will attend the meeting, as this is the best opportunity to express your views on the management of Little Meadow.

Best regards,

Tim Townsend MRICS MTPI
Director – A Lambert Flat Management Ltd

It has taken incredible persistence on LMC’s part, but we have finally made progress in getting Bellway to honour some of its commitments to complete Little Meadow to a proper standard. One of the steps just agreed is that Bellway’s contractors will start working on the boundary between Betony Close and the Amber Parkside development commencing Monday 11th November 2024.

They will be removing all the brambles and weeds which currently make the area look rather untidy and they will then grub up all the roots, just leaving the trees. After that’s done they will plant a mixed species hedge in accordance with the landscaping plans which were agreed years ago with Waverley Borough Council Planning Department.

There will be quite a bit of noise and disruption so please stay clear of the area while the work is being carried out.

Needless to say, we continue to pursue all the other outstanding matters.

Tree work will start on 24th October 2024 and will go on for a couple of days.

The proposed work is to remove or make safe some dead and/or diseased trees within Little Meadow, adjacent to the stream as shown on the following plan:

There are two very tall ash trees suffering from ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) the tallest of which has the potential to fall into the children’s playground on the Leighwood Fields estate. The other ash leans over the side of the swale and could fall causing damage or injury. There is also a sycamore tree nearby which is diseased and which will also be removed.

The work has been discussed with a tree officer at Waverley Borough Council. The trees in question are outside the Knowle Woods ancient woodland, they are not in a conservation area and they are not subject to Tree Preservation Orders.

There are pink crosses on the affected trees and it is important not to go near the area until the work has been completed.

A meeting is being arranged for Members of Little Meadows (Cranleigh) Management Company Ltd and for all residents of Little Meadow. The first part of the meeting will cover official company business and the second part will be an open forum.

The initial details are as follows and the final arrangements will be communicated directly to Members by email in due course.

In the meantime please save the date!

• Date: Tuesday 26th November 2024
• Time: 19:00
• Place: Cranleigh Methodist Church, 188 High Street, Cranleigh GU6 8RL

Tim Townsend (A Lambert Flat Management Ltd) sent out the invoices for the first half-year’s service charges, 1st October 2024 to 31st March 2025, earlier this week.

Please settle the amount due as soon as possible.

The final deadline for settlement is 7th October 2024 after which additional costs may be incurred.

As always, please contact Tim directly at tim@alfm.co.uk if there are any queries or alternatively use the contact form on this website.