Blackheath Village Society Minutes 12th May 2026

Minutes of the Meeting held at Theobalds on Tuesday, 12th May 2026 at 7:30 pm:
Present: David, Paul, Anne, Simon, Andy, Ralph, and Max. Apologies: Laura and Ranald.

1. The minutes of the last meeting on 24 February 2026, were agreed with the following
points arising:
a) The clock at the Village Hall is now working correctly, and Simon was thanked for
carrying this out.
b) David will ask Jane Barlow to reinstate all of the archive photographs on the BVS
website.

2. BBQ and Blackheath Walk:
It was proposed that this be held on Monday, 25 May 2026, but we will not hold this
event and concentrate on the Summer BBQ to be held on Monday, 31 August 2026.
Arrangements will be made in due course, and in the meantime, Paul will arrange a
Punch and Judy entertainer and children’s slide.
This will also provide us with the opportunity to recruit volunteers for the May Day Fair in
2027 and enable residents to raise any issues they would like to discuss at the following
week's Annual General Meeting.

3. Annual General Meeting (AGM):
It was agreed that this would be held at the Cricket Club on Tuesday, 15 September
2026 and that the secretary would provide due notice to the residents of Blackheath
Village.
An email has been sent to the village confirming the resignations of the Chairman,
Secretary, and Treasurer. We have received some interest for new Committee members
who would like to join the BVS, including a proposal for Andy to become the BVS
Treasurer.
To make the evening more interesting, we propose holding an event that could include
the history of Blackheath Village, with videos and upbeat music. David will ask Jane
Barlow if she would assist in setting up this event.
We would also like to encourage younger residents of Blackheath to be involved in the
evening and we will make the formal element as short as possible.

4. The Villagers (Volunteer) Public House:
Paul confirmed that we received an email from one of the owners (Laura Marinoni)
confirming that The Villagers is now being sold pursuant to a court order sale. The
content of her email is detailed below:
This is to confirm that the property known as The Villagers is now being sold pursuant to
a court‐ordered sale.
For clarity, the building has not operated as a public house since its renovation and subsequent
sale to us. It has no community facilities, has never been used as a pub in our ownership, and is
a shell at first‐fix stage that has only been used for storage for several years. In its current
condition it is not capable of community use, and there is no realistic prospect of it being brought
back into community use.
Accordingly, the property falls within Regulation 2(2) of the Assets of Community Value
(England) Regulations 2012, as land which “is not of community value” because it is not
presently used for a qualifying community purpose and there is no realistic prospect of such use
in the future.

For completeness, under section 95(5)(f) of the Localism Act 2011, the ACV moratorium
provisions do not apply to disposals made in accordance with a court order.
This notification is provided for information only.
Clarke Gammon Estate Agents in Guildford have been officially instructed to sell both
Queen Victoria Cottage and the Villagers (Volunteer) Public House for an asking price of
£1,150,000 (+ £60,250 CIL) subject to contract. The properties were purchased for
£875,000 and £243,300 respectively on the 31August 2021.
Paul will also contact Jane Austin and enquire whether the democratic reporter for
Waverley Borough Council is made aware of this latest development in order to publicise
the history as a result of the latest planning consent.

5. Coffee Van at the Blackheath Car Park:
Paul has spoken to Sophie about the future of the coffee van, and James Herbert (who
owns the land) has no objection to Sophie providing a more regular arrangement.
We will therefore discuss providing a larger facility with more seating and utilising the
woodland to the rear of the car park, enabling Sophie to operate on more days per week
for the benefit of the local residents and wider community. This will require a degree of
finance and the possibility of the BVS being involved with the benefit of Gift Aid
contributions from HMRC.
An update will be provided in due course.

6. May Day Fair:
It was agreed that this would be held on the 3 May 2027, with a re-energised Committee
of volunteers to run the event.
The Summer BBQ will be a good vehicle to recruit volunteers and the BVS will publish a
brochure to advertise the fair in the early part of next year.
The idea of the brochure is to advise everyone what the BVS has done over the years
and why the net funds from the fair will continue to finance these activities. The fair is
special and unique to Blackheath Village and it is the Committee's intention to continue
with this tradition.

7. Wonersh Parish Council:
Max confirmed that the Annual Assembly (not the AGM) will be held in Wonersh
Memorial Hall on 14 May 2026. Max will update the council on the recent fires on
Blackheath Common and at the Villagers Public House, if required. David Olliver at
Waverley Borough Council will soon release the Waverley Woodland Management Plan
for distribution to residents of Blackheath Village.
8. Blackheath Village Hall:
Simon confirmed that the "lean-to" will be redesigned and rebuilt by local residents of the
village. This will take place in the near future.
9. Blackheath Cricket Club:
Simon confirmed that the Cricket Club Ball will be held on Saturday, 13 June 2026. He
confirmed that there is great interest in this event, which is raising money for new
practice nets.

10. Any Other Business:
a) Max and Simon confirmed that a new resident to Blackheath Village will be setting up
a WhatsApp group for the residents of the village. Her name is Nicola Duffey and she is
suggesting that this group will allow the community to raise awareness of suspicious
vehicles or activity, lost dogs and cats, and possible fires on Blackheath Common,
amongst other things.
Nicola has set up WhatsApp groups in the past and will be responsible for their
administration to ensure they run smoothly. A link will be sent to all residents in
Blackheath in due course.
This will also provide an opportunity for the BVS to post important information through
the WhatsApp site when applicable.
b) It was sad to report that Brian Monk passed away recently, who was a great asset to
the Village Hall. It was suggested that the BVS will contribute towards a tree with a
plaque to be located on the land next to the Village Hall. Simon will speak to the Village
Hall Committee to see whether they would approve such an idea.
c) Ranald has confirmed that he would like to resign from the Committee, but will still be
involved with running next year's May Day Fair.

11. Next Meeting to be held at Theobalds on Monday 3 August 2026 at 07:30 pm.

____________________________________________________________
Blackheath Village Society
http://www.blackheathsurrey.co.uk
Mobile: 07768850003 Email: paul@bil.uk.com