We are lucky in Send to live in a rural environment which most people who replied to the Parish Plan questionnaire in 2006 thought it was important to keep rural.
The River Wey provides opportunities for many activities including boating, walking and cycling along the towpath.
Environmental News
There is fishing in the Wey and also in the ponds where the old sandpits used to be, and sailing on nearby Papercourt Lake. (See Clubs, Groups and Societies for details of Send Angling Society and Papercourt Sailing Club).
The most visible wildlife is probably the rabbits, followed by foxes which are often seen crossing the main roads in Send at night. Deer can also be seen from the towpath when walking towards Triggs Lock from the direction of the New Inn. There is plentiful bird life including the occasional kingfisher near the Cartbridge, woodpeckers and grebes on the ponds. Parakeets are now naturalised in this area. You can hear their parrot like screeching then spot their bright green plummage!
West Surrey Natural History Society meets monthly in Ripley Village Hall at 8.00 pm on the fourth Thursday of the month. Contact Jean Croucher on 01483 223630 for the programme of indoor and field meetings covering all aspects of wildlife and the natural world.
Surrey Wildlife Trust, with headquarters in Pirbright near Woking, is a registered charity and the only organisation concerned solely with the conservation of all forms of wildlife in Surrey. They are responsible for over 600 sites in Surrey, covering 4000 hectares of the county's countryside. These sites include Papercourt Meadows and Papercourt Marshes (part of the Papercourt Site of Special Scientific Interest) just outside Send. SWT has also run working parties in the woods outside St Bede's School and given advice on the management of that area.
SWT offers an extensive programme of walks, talks and events, open to members and non-members alike. For more information visit their website at www.surreywildlifetrust.org
Bush Lane woods - SWT have organised working groups in the area outside St Bede's School, and provided advice on management to the Parish Council. The guiding groups have been involved working here during BEST weeks in 2010 and 2011.
Heath Field - the area off Sanger Drive with its boardwalk around the pond needs regular work to keep it looking good. Working parties are organised with the support of GBC, and local Scouts have sometimes given a hand.
In 2010, fencing went up to keep in the cows that now periodically graze on the area in order to manage it better. The area also has new information boards on display. The photo on this page shows local scouts helping with willow clearance, which is of mutual benefit as it helps them towards earning badges.
Send Gardening Society holds bi-monthly meetings in the Church Rooms. Contact Catherine Davey 01483 773452 for details.
Allotments are available in Send for a modest fee. Please contact Debbie Hurdle for details.
Planning applications are available for viewing at Guildford Online Planning Applications. Here you search for Send/Ripley or select Send Parish for local planning applications.
Recycling
There is a collection box for shoes outside McColls in the parade of shops in Send, and another outside the Post Office. No other recycling bins are located in the village itself. The nearest recycling facilities are at Sainsbury's in Burpham or at the local tip site in Woking. There are also extensive recycling facilities at Slyfield on the edge of Guildford.
GBC collects materials for recycling from the kerbside each week. Please put your green and purple boxes out by 7 am on your collection day. The green box is for plastic, cans, foil etc. From autumn 2013 the boxes will be replaced by a wheelie bin, to be collected fortnightly.
The food waste caddies are also collected weekly. Please line them with compostible lining bags or newspaper. DO NOT put the small caddy into the large caddy on collection day: move the contents across if you run out of space. Otherwise, it can be very messy and unpleasant for the refuse collectors to retrieve your small caddies that have fallen into the waste lorry!
GBC also collects garden waste. From April 2013 the green bags will be replaced by a wheelie bin (ordered from the council). These require an annual renewable fee. They also have subsidised composters, green cones and wormeries for sale.
Guildford Borough Council's recycling team can be contacted on 01483 445084, or visit www.guildford.gov.uk
