Share your views on Royal Borough’s proposed 2024/25 budget

Residents, community groups and businesses are invited to take part in a public consultation on our draft budget proposals, which runs from today (Friday 15 December) until Monday 22 January 2024.

The draft budget was discussed at Cabinet on Wednesday, and at this stage, the budget proposals provisionally set out a balanced position for 2024/25. The final funding position from government will not be known until later this month, and work will continue ahead of the final budget being presented to Full Council in February.

We've taken swift and decisive action to address the serious financial challenges we face, and presenting a balanced budget marks an important step forwards. However, we remain in a weak and serious financial position which will take time to turn around, and achieving financial stability will need to be our overarching priority for some time to come.

Some tough decisions are needed to bring costs down and increase income. However, the draft budget provides for investment and increased spending in a number of priority areas.

To take part in the consultation, visit RBWM Together. Paper copies of the consultation documents are also available in all borough libraries upon request. Read more in our press release.

Final phase of Windsor footbridge refurbishment will start in the new year

Works to complete the extensive refurbishment of a footbridge in Windsor, which aims to enhance the sense of welcome into the town centre, will start on Tuesday 2 January 2024.

The investment in this important gateway into Windsor, which connects the Coach Park to the town centre for pedestrians, is required to maintain the bridge and is part of our wider improvements to enhance the sense of arrival into Windsor. 

The final phase will involve the full closure of the bridge for about 17 weeks, with signposted alternative routes and lift access in place from the Coach Park to the town centre and castle. Access to all businesses will be maintained throughout.

The final phase will comprise the complete cleaning and repainting of the steel bridge structure, preventative maintenance and anti-corrosion works, installation of new bridge lighting, cleaning the Perspex canopy and applying a mirror film to the underside of the canopy. Phase one is complete and saw the bridge lift refurbished. Read more in our press release.

Grant funding available to create community orchards in the Royal Borough

Community groups, schools, landowners and residents are invited to apply for funding available to create their very own community orchards and give a boost to nature in the Royal Borough.

Our Sustainability Team has successfully secured £27,000 from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affair’s Coronation Living Heritage Fund.

The fund celebrates the Coronation of King Charles III and was specifically established to support local tree planting initiatives. Applications are open until Wednesday 24 January. Grants of up to £6,000 are available. To apply, please visit RBWM Together.

Pictured is Councillor Simon Werner, the leader of the council, and Councillor Karen Davies, Cabinet member for climate change and biodiversity, at one of our existing orchards at Ockwells Park, near Maidenhead. Read more in our press release.

Planning document to give greater control over future tall buildings proposed in Royal Borough

Cabinet has agreed a planning document giving greater control over the number, location, height and design of any future tall buildings in the area – helping us resist inappropriate plans that don’t meet high standards.

Adoption of the Building Height and Tall Buildings Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) follows a public consultation. In light of feedback, the document has been strengthened to improve clarity, tighten controls and reduce the maximum recommended heights in some locations.

The SPD does not allocate sites for development, grant planning permission or encourage tall buildings. Rather it identifies a limited number of locations where taller buildings could be suitable, together with site-specific recommendations on height and design principles to achieve high architectural quality.

Read more in our press release.

Reminder: Have your say on proposed routes for subsidised bus services in the Royal Borough from 2024

There's still time to give your feedback on proposed routes for subsidised bus services in the Royal Borough from 2024 to ensure buses will call at the key destinations you travel to.

A consultation runs until Wednesday 20 December and you can give your views by taking part in the surveys on our website. Thank you to everyone who has taken part and given their feedback so far.

In the borough, around half of the bus routes are currently subsidised and we invest £1.1 million a year to support these. Every few years, bus companies are asked to compete for the contracts to run these services, as a way to ensure we get best value for the funding we provide.

The current contracts come to an end next summer, and we're seeking feedback on the proposed locations and streets where buses will call within the new package of routes that we will ask bus companies to compete for. Following the closing date, all feedback will be carefully considered before the final packages go out to tender in the new year. Read more in our press release.

Reminder: Have your say on taxi licensing proposals in the Royal Borough

You still have time to have your say on taxi licensing proposals in the Royal Borough.

A consultation covers possible changes to the livery of taxis, including reducing or removing this, or if any changes should be linked to a move to electric or hybrid vehicles as and when this happens, so that they can be identified.

Taxis licensed by us are currently required to be white with a purple bonnet and boot and a large council coat of arms on the side.

Alongside this, we're also seeking people’s views on DBS requirements for all licensed taxi and private hire drivers.

Residents have until Friday 22 December to respond and can take part by visiting our website. Read more in our press release.

Apply for funding to improve health and wellbeing in your community

Applications close at midnight on Friday 22 December for residents and local groups, with great ideas to improve health and wellbeing in their communities, to apply for funding to make their plans a reality.

Our Innovation Funding scheme, run in partnership with NHS Frimley, offers one-off funding per successful application up to £2,500 to get projects up and running. 

Read more in our press release. For more details on the application process, plus how to apply, please visit the Innovation Fund section on the RBWM Together website.

The Windsor Club - new gym at Windsor Leisure Centre

The gym at Windsor Leisure Centre in Stovell Road is undergoing a £500,000 refurbishment so will be closed from Monday 18 December until Wednesday 27 December for this work to be done.

If you’re a member of Windsor Leisure Centre, you can use the gyms at Braywick, Furze Platt, Cox Green, and at Charters leisure centres during this time.

The refurbished gym, which will be called The Windsor Club, will boast the very latest in cardio and resistance equipment in training zones, and also have dedicated recovery and rehabilitation areas. The gym is also getting new flooring, ceiling, and lighting, along with upgraded changing rooms and lockers.

For more information visit The Windsor Club website.

Sign up to the Frimley Health and Care Community Panel

NHS Frimley Health and Care is looking for additional members to join its online community panel.

The panel is a way to ensure that people and communities across the Frimley footprint are at the heart of healthcare decision making. To help the NHS better understand what’s important to local people.

A recent flu vaccination survey of panel members attracted 190 responses and gave healthcare bosses valuable intelligence about public perceptions of the vaccine.

Panel members receive regular newsletters, quick polls and surveys, and the chance to join focus groups. Although survey results are shared publicly with local health and care teams, they’re always anonymised. The panel is entirely online so you’ll only ever be contacted by email. And you can unsubscribe at any time.

To become a panel member you must be aged 16 plus and live in the area covered by Frimley Health and Care. Learn more about the community panel and/or sign up.

Royal Borough Community Spotlight

Here are just some of the upcoming community events and volunteering opportunities in the Royal Borough:

• Voices Anon Christmas concert (Friday 15 December, 7.30pm) - Maidenhead Methodist Church, High Street, SL6 1EF. Admission free. A collection will be taken in aid of the Baby Bank.

• A Jazz Christmas - Aid for Ukraine (Friday 15 December, 8pm) - Maidenhead United Reformed Church, West Street. Come and listen to Christmas jazz, and sing along as well. Tickets £10 on the door, with all profits going to Aid for Ukraine. All welcome. Free refreshments.

• Santa & his elves (Saturday 16 December, 11am to 3pm) – The Square in the Nicholsons Centre, Maidenhead. Children can meet Santa and take a selfie with him and receive presents.

• The Snow Queen by Mary Portalska (Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 December, midday to 4pm) – Holyport Memorial Hall, Tickets available here or call 07375 111174.

• Signature A Cappella Singers (Saturday 16 December, 1.30pm to 3pm) - Windsor Royal Station. The group will also be fundraising for the Alexander Devine Children's Hospice Service.

• Carol singing at Sainsbury’s (Saturday 16 December, 10am to midday, Sunday 17 December, 11am to 1pm and Saturday 23 December, 10am to midday) - Providence Place, Maidenhead. Adults and children can join in to sing carols accompanied by Waltham St Lawrence Silver Band. Carol books will be available.

• Christmas joy concert - Renaissance Voices (Saturday 16 December, 6.30pm) - All Saints Church, Maidenhead. Conducted by Paul Eddington-Wright, this is an evening of seasonal choral music, audience participation carols and poetry followed by a delicious cold supper and a glass of wine. Visit the website for more information or call 01628 624429.

• Carols by Candlelight (Sunday 17 December and Friday 22 December, 6pm) - Garrison Church of Holy Trinity Windsor. The Scots Guards band will accompany many of the carols. Do come along early for this traditional service.

• River Church Maidenhead's Christmas Nativity (Sunday 17 December, doors open at 11.30am, starts at midday) - Altwood School, Maidenhead. Prepare yourself for a classic retelling of the Christmas story - with a twist. Grab a mulled wine and mince pie (other drinks and snacks available). All are invited to dress up as your favourite nativity character (optional) and there will be opportunities to participate throughout the story. There will be a spread of food for lunch available following the nativity, which is free to attend. Any questions, please email maidenhead@riverchurch.org.uk

• Visit Maidenhead Heritage Centre over Christmas (Tuesdays to Saturdays, 10am to 4pm, only closed on Sundays and Mondays, as well as Saturday 23 December and Tuesday 26 December) - Park Street, Maidenhead. The centre offers something for everyone - from dressing up and playing with Duplo to a 102-year-old car hand built in Maidenhead, to the ever-popular Spitfire Simulator Experience. Full details can be found on the centre's website.

• Christmas stories and crafts (Monday 18 and Thursday 21 December, 10.30am) – all borough libraries. Visit our website for more information.

• The Twelve Days of Christmas (Wednesday 20 December, 1.30pm) - Old Windsor Memorial Hall, SL4 2RN. The Arts Society Windsor lecture/recital will be presented by Peter Medhurst. Visitors and new members welcome. For further details, visit the website.

• Christmas fair (Friday 22 December, 2pm to 4pm) - Eton Wick Village Hall. Entertain the kids in the elves’ workshop and get some last-minute shopping done at the fair's beautiful stalls, while enjoying festive refreshments. There will be live music, stalls, food and drink, games and a Santa's grotto. Entry to the fair is free and children can meet Santa, receive a small gift and have a photo taken with Santa (with a digital copy sent to the booker's email address) for £6 per child (£3 per additional sibling). Residents can purchase a Santa's grotto ticket here. 

• Carols by Candlelight (Sunday 24 December, 4.30pm) - Parkside Christian Fellowship, 16 St Luke's Road, Maidenhead, SL6 7AN. Join to sing carols and hear about the first Christmas, as described in the Bible. For more information, visit the website.

• Holyport C of E Primary School have a vacancy for a foundation governor. All governors play an important role in the school, working on strategic direction, overseeing finances and both supporting and challenging school leaders, through meetings and visits to the school. Foundation governors have an additional focus on maintaining the Christian ethos of the school, however the school welcomes applications from all faiths. Although useful, there is no requirement to have experience in either education or leadership, and the school welcomes governors from all backgrounds and aims to have those who represent the diversity of its local community. For more information, email clerk@holyportprimaryschool.co.uk.

• Lions Club of Windsor will be collecting used real Christmas trees from around the streets of SL1, SL4, SL5, Datchet, Wraysbury and Horton in exchange for a donation to Thames Hospice Care. The trees are chipped and used by a number of local charities and businesses in parks or for animal welfare. Booking closes on 2 January 2024 at 12pm. For more details, please visit the website.

• Mum and Baby Gentle Movement and Exercise for Mental Wellbeing (Tuesdays 11am to midday - runs within Maidenhead term-time dates) - Maidenhead URC Church, West St, Maidenhead, SL61RL. Light movement and exercise for mums and babies. These sessions are for mums and babies (under one) experiencing low mood, isolation or loneliness or difficulties with their mental health. This group is provided free by mental health charity Sport In Mind for the benefit of local people. Booking required. For more information, visit the website.

If you have an upcoming not-for-profit community event or appeal for volunteers you’d like to promote in this newsletter, simply send basic information about your event to communications@rbwm.gov.uk and it could be shared with more than 21,000 local residents.

You just need to include a brief description, when and where it takes place, and a link to a website/social media page/contact where people can find out more.

To see further volunteering opportunities in the borough, or for another way for community organisations to promote volunteering opportunities, please visit RBWM Together.

Local Travel Updates

Rail - engineering work

• Planned engineering works are taking place on the South Western Railway network on Sunday 17 December. The lines between Staines and Windsor will be closed all day due to maintenance work. London Waterloo to Windsor services will be diverted after Staines and will terminate at Ascot. Buses will run between Staines and Windsor. For more information, visit the SWR website.

• Work on a new HS2 station will affect train services into London Paddington this winter. The construction of Old Oak Common Station will involve engineering work on the existing railway. The impact of these works mean that on 24 and 27 December there will be no train services into or out of London Paddington station. More information on the GWR website.

Council highways works

For details of further council works on highways, visit our website. For full local roadwork details, including work by utility firms, please visit the One Network website.

Keep in touch

Keep up to date with news and information from the council by signing up to Nextdoor and following us on X and Facebook.

Other accounts you may be interested in:

• Royal Borough official tourism web page.  
• Libraries on Facebook and X.
• Royal Borough Registrars on Facebook and Instagram.
• Communities Team on Facebook and X.
• Windsor & Royal Borough Museum web page.
• MyRoyalBorough on X, Facebook and Instagram.
• Make Maidenhead on Facebook and Instagram.