The Village Association, The Village, Caterham-On-The Hill
Supporting and enhancing our special neighbourhood
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BACKGROUND
Background
The Village at Caterham on the Hill was developed by Linden Homes between 1999 and 2003. Linden is the house building subsidiary of a publically quoted construction company, Galliford Try plc.
The Development
The estate comprises 300 privately owned houses and flats, 90 homes owned by 2 housing associations, a number of commercial properties including Tesco, Linden’s South East region offices, plus the surgery, pharmacy and vets hospital. There is a residential home for the elderly (Elizabeth Court), a respite care home (Diana Francis House) and 3 independently owned commercial premises facing The Green.
Service Charge
There is a quarterly service charge, on all the homes and commercial property on the estate (except the buildings owned by CBCT), which recovers the costs incurred in the landscaping and gardening work (including maintaining the residents’ front gardens), maintaining all the roadways, footpaths and the green areas that are the responsibility of the Village Association. The costs of the warden service is also met from the service charges. The service charges are calculated according to the number of bedrooms in private homes, and by reference to the size of the commercial buildings. The social housing homes enjoy a fixed amount, discounted charge contribution, which rises every year by indexation. The VA accumulates funds to cover irregular significant capital expenditure, so ensure as far as possible that the service changes remain at a consistent level.
The Village Association
At the time of the development, Linden Homes created the Village Association (VA) as a management company and all the property owners on the estate are ‘members’ or shareholders in the company and pay service charges for the works done by the VA on everyone’s behalf. The VA has the responsibility and the right to maintain all the front gardens on the estate, and is responsible for maintaining the common areas of the estate, some of the smaller green spaces, roads not adopted by Surrey County Council, the commonly held boundaries footpaths, most of the benches etc.
The VA has appointed a management company, Hazelvine Limited, to manage the estate on behalf of the VA and to handle the various contracts (for example the landscaping and the wardens) and for the preparation and collection of the service charges and other finances.
The VA is managed by a group of unpaid volunteer directors, comprising resident and commercial property representatives, who are elected from time to time by its members; the members of the VA are the owners of the various properties on the estate and as a home is bought, the new owner automatically becomes a member. The VA holds its AGM, usually in October, to which all residents are invited, whether they are members or not.
Communication to all residents is by regular quarterly newsletters and occasional email bulletins.
Past newsletters can be found HERE.
Roadways and Street Lighting
The main roadways throughout the estate are ‘adopted’ by Surrey County Council, and some smaller shared roads and access areas are owned by the Village Association Limited. Nichols Close, the short access road into the Tesco car park and adjoining commercial and residential buildings, is owned by Tesco.
The street lighting on the principle roads is the responsibility of Surrey County Council; The Village Association is responsible for some lighting covering some of its owned green spaces.
Public Assets
There are a number of public assets integral to the estate comprising The Arc building, The Green and Cricket Pavilion, The Naafi building and extensive land lying to the south west known as the rifle ranges. These properties were gifted to a charity known as Caterham Barracks Community Trust (CBCT). Their condition, upkeep and safety are the responsibility of CBCT.
The VA collects a contribution from members to pay to CBCT in respect of their maintenance obligations for the assets they are responsible for, and this contribution is now in excess of £28,000 pa. CBCT is not a member of the Village Association Limited and does not contribute to the running costs of the estate in any way.
The children’s’ playground was transferred to Tandridge District Council in 2018 and is now their responsibility.
The aim of The Village Association is to maintain a high quality home environment for all residents, and to keep the service charge as economical as possible, consistent with providing quality, value for money services.