Councillor Derek McCrum

 The traditional image of an English village would have to include a village pond beside a village green surrounded by woodland. There would be a Cricket square and a pavilion, a Pub, a Church and a group of local shops. There would be a road sign saying “Welcome to our Village”, a sleepy, winding stream, shallow enough to see the bottom, a Primary School and a Children’s Playground.Westfield Village ticks all those boxes and more! We have Westfield Common with a large pond, not forgetting the Ducks, Geese, Swans, Moorhens and even a Crane on occasions. In fact we have 3 ponds, one with Newts. There is plenty of woodland associated with the Common and some evidence that it is in fact an ancient woodland once part of Windsor Great Park. The Common is well used with a new £50,000 Play Area and a 5 a side football pitch. Not far away there is a further Play Area on Bonsey Lane Rec. with a Teenage sized pitch. I must not forget the Westfield Saint’s Cricket Club and a Bowls Club on Westfield Road, and Meadow Sports Football Club, off Loop Road, with our third play area. Kingfield Village might claim it as theirs as they often include Westfield Football Club or even Woking Football club. St Mark’s Church Was built in 1849 and it is reputed as being the first National School in Woking. It is now an Anglican Church and serves the community as a meeting place for many local groups including Brownies, Adult Language Classes, a Diving Club and a Wind Band. Westfield actually has two Primary Schools, Westfield, which was once a Secondary school and Barnsbury. I must explain that there are two Housing Estates, Westfield, sometimes referred to as the Balfour Estate and Barnsbury Farm Estate. Neither exclusive to either school. The Hoe Stream meanders through the Hoe Valley, both of which dissect parts of Westfield and offer recreational opportunities to all. There is a plan to develop the linear park which will both improve opportunities for recreation and deal with the risk from flooding.  Part of the Westfield Village infrastructure includes a Newsagent, a Bakery, and a Restaurant. There is a Recreation Club, (formerly a working men’s club), the Cricketers Pub, Woking Borough Council’s Moorcroft Day Centre and St. Peter’s Centre for the Disabled. There is also a Dentist’s Surgery and a Doctor’s Surgery and The David Lloyd Leisure Club with its Tennis Courts and Swimming Pool. The youth facilities, Scouts, Guides etc. on Westfield Avenue will be relocated in the foreseeable future to allow for the Hoe Valley Scheme to be developed. Before sitting down to write this I would not have believed that a little village in South Woking would be so vibrant, and we still have the Moor Lane development to come. I continue to encourage the Westfield (Hoe Valley) and the Moor Lane Area Resident’s Associations to play an active part and I am proud to represent both Kingfield and Westfield villages on Woking Borough Council.