Enjoying summer need not be costly. In Reigate & Banstead we are lucky to have lots of free and low cost events: films, music, fetes, walks and exhibitions.

Surrey Fire and Rescue Service open day
Saturday 18 July, 10am-4pm
Want to be a firefighter when you grow up? Check out the new state-of-the-art fire fighting vehicles and equipment, find out how to use a defibrillator and provide CPR. Lots for children to do, including fire engine rides. Plus, hog roast and ice creams or you can use the designated picnic area for your own picnic.
Surrey Fire & Rescue Service Headquarters, Croydon Road, Reigate, RH2 0EJ. For more information, visit Surrey County Council’s website.
Free entry.
For safety reasons there will not be any parking available on site. Find out about local car parks on the Reigate & Banstead Borough Council website.

Meadvale Fete
Saturday 18 July, 12-3pm
Village fete organised by the 34th Reigate (Meadvale) Scout Group.
Fun for all the family including fabulous food and stalls, fantastic games, raffle, live music and much more.
Swing Common, Somerset Road, Meadvale.

Chipstead Village Fair and Flower Show
Saturday 18 July, 12.30-5pm
Flower show marquee, side shows, craft stalls and lots of children’s activities.   
Entrance: adults £4, children over five £2, free for under fives.
Elmore, High Road, Chipstead, CR5 3SB.

Music in Nork Park
Sunday 19 July, from 12.15pm
Enjoy a day of music and entertainment at this year’s event. Plus food stalls, children’s activities and a fabulous fundraising raffle.
Entrance is free.
Nork Park, The Drive, Banstead.
Find out more from the Music in Nork Park website.

Coulsdson wildlife and history walk
Sunday 19 July, 2-4pm
A gentle ramble (approximately two miles) over Coulsdon Common looking out for wildlife, with a bit of history added into the bargain.
Adults £3, children £1.
Meet at the car park behind the Fox Pub, Fox Lane, Coulsdon, CR3 5QS.

EAT! food fest
Saturday 25 July, 11am-6pm
Eat, drink, taste, learn, chill and play at what promises to be a great day of enjoying all things foodie (and drinky).
Sunken gardens in Priory Park, Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7RL
Entrance is free
Find out more from the Eat! food fest website.

Prioryfields: children's summer festival
Monday 27-Thursday 30 July, 11.30-3.30pm
Free fun for your little ones in Priory Park: theatre, music, crafts, storytelling, face painting, animals, puppet shows
Priory Park, Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7RL
Find out more from organisers MoveRevolutions' Facebook page

Family fun day
Saturday 1 August, 10am-4pm
Autism All Stars welcome all to their fun day packed with activities: outdoor games such as giant Connect Four, skittles, parachute games, one mile fun run (11am) around the park with prizes for the best fancy dress costumes, refreshments and cool-down area.
Priory Park, Bell Street, Regiate, RH2 7RL
Free entrance.
Find out more from Autism All Stars

Record Breaking Bug Crafts
Monday 3 August, 10.30am-2pm
Crafty fund for accompanied children aged three and over. Find out some record breaking bug facts and make your own bug to take home.
Redhill Library, Warwick Quadrant, Redhill, RH1 1NN.
£1 contribution for materials

Butterfly walk, Chipstead
Thursday 6 August, 10am-12pm
Join local conservationist Andy Kaye for a walk on the spectacular Stagbury Down to learn more about the butterflies and other wildlife found on this Site of Special Scientific Interest. No dogs please.
Meet at Holly Lane car park, Chipstead, CR5 3NR.
Free.

Reigate Heath in all its purple glory
Tuesday 1 September, 2.30-3.30pm
Lowland Heath is one of the most threatened habitats in the world. Come and admire the heather at its best and find out why lowland heath is so important to the wildlife of this country.
Meet at Flanchford Road car park, Reigate, RH2 8AB.
Free.

Bat walks
From 13 August
Join Reigate & Banstead’s countryside rangers for one of our bat walks. Bat detectors are available to borrow and you will have the chance to listen out for and see different species of bats.
Thursday 13 August, 8.20-9.30pm, Priory Park, Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7RL. Meet at the pavilion.
Thursday 27 August, 8.15-9.15pm, Earlswood Lakes, Woodhatch Road, Woodhatch, RH2 7QB. Meet in the car park.
Tuesday 8 September, 7.30-8.30pm, Priory Park, Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7RL. Meet at the pavilion.
Bat walks are occasionally cancelled if the weather is too cold or wet for bats. No dogs please.
Free.

Furzefield Family Fun Day
Saturday 15 August 10.30am-3.30pm
Mini-beast hunting, den building, traditional games and the chance to explore this stunning meadow and woodland green space. A great opportunity to get children enjoying nature and the outdoors.
Radstock Way Open Space, Radstock Way, Merstham RH1 3NL. Entrance opposite 154 Radstock Way
Free.
Surrey Wildlife Trust is also running a wild play day in Furzefield Woods on 21 August for children aged seven to 11. Contact laura.ashfield@surreywt.org.uk for booking and fees information.
Find out more about both these events from the Surrey Wildlife Trust events webpage.   

WWII film season
Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 September
The Harlequin Theatre and Cinema is commemorating the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II with a weekend of themed films: Goognight Mr Tom, Hope & Glory, The English Patient, Memphis Belle and Saving Private Ryan.
Harlequin Cinema, Warwick Quadrant, Redhill, RH1 1NN.
Free admission.
Tickets must be booked in advance through the Box Office on 01737 276500. Visit the Harlequin Cinema website for times and more information.

Priory Park tree walk
Friday 11 September, 1.30-3pm
Find out about Priory Park’s record breaking and other interesting and noteworthy trees in this leisurely walk led by our tree and woodlands officers.
Meet at the Pavilion, Priory Park, Bell Street, Reigate, RH2 7RL.
Free.

Heritage Open Day
Saturday 12 September, 11am-3pm
The Grade II listed Town Hall building will be open to the public for Heritage Open Day and will feature an exhibition on its history and local residents’ roles in World War I.
Town Hall, Castlefield Road, Reigate, RH2 0SH
Free
For details of more buildings open for Heritage Open Day, visit the Heritage Open Days website.

Horley Lions' Donkey Derby and Companion Charity dog show
Sunday 13 September, gates open at 11.30am
A chance to have a flutter at a fun day out in aid of local Lions' charities. Great food and refreshments, plus pedigree, agility and fun classes in the dog show. Judging of classes starts at 12.30pm.
Admittance is free, small fee applies to enter your dog in the dog show
Visit the Horley Lions website for more information nearer the time.  

Magna Carta exhibition: find out when this exhibition visits your local library
Surrey’s Magna Carta exhibition celebrates the 800^th anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta at Runnymede, Surrey. Find out about the history and the myths that surround this important document, and how it has influenced our laws past and present at this free exhibition touring libraries across the county. Visit Surrey County Council’s Magna Carta – Law and Legacy webpage to find out when it will be at a library near you.

Walks organised by Reigate & Banstead Borough Council: full details of the walks listed are available from our Guided Walks and Events programme.

Publicise your community events for free

Got an event? We’d love to hear about local events, no matter how small, from all over the borough to feature in Borough e-news. Please email communications@reigate-banstead.gov.uk with the subject ‘Borough e-news events.’ We just need to know the name of your event plus the date and time, location, cost, brief description and a website, phone number or email address where people can find out more. 

Publicise on our webpage: Simply visit the Events page of our new website, complete our quick form and we’ll do the rest.

Take control of your health with a free NHS Health check.

If you’re aged 40-74, and have not been diagnosed with heart disease, kidney disease, type 2 diabetes or had a stroke, you’re eligible for a free health check at a nearby pharmacy or GP surgery.

Even if you feel well at the moment it’s still important to have a check. As you get older, your risk of developing these problems increases, but an NHS Health Check will spot early signs. This means you can take action to prevent them happening to you, so you can carry on enjoying your life for longer.

Improving your health

The check only takes 20 to 30 minutes and you’ll be asked a few questions about your family history and lifestyle choices which may put your health at risk. Your health professional will make a note of your weight, age, sex and ethnicity before taking your blood pressure. You’ll also have a simple blood test to check your cholesterol level.

After that, you’ll discuss your results and be given advice and support to help you reduce your risk of developing any illnesses and improve your health.

Think of your health check as a midlife MOT to check your risk of becoming unwell.

Visit the Healthy Surrey website to find out more.

• Best Transport Project
• Technology, Making a Difference Award
• Bringing the Community Together Award
• Best Healthy Living Project
• Help at Home Award
• Information and Advice
• Carers’ Support
• Dementia Support
• People’s Choice - Outstanding Individual (volunteer) and Outstanding Individual (paid staff member).

Entry forms and more information

For more information on each category, visit Living and Ageing Well in Surrey Awards. Download an entry form from the same website or collect a printed copy from your local library, information hub, volunteer centre or from Age UK Surrey.

The Award categories are based on things identified by older people in Surrey as being important to them as they age. They are also the basis of pledges we have made as part of Surrey’s Commitment to Ageing Well.  

Nominate now

So if you know somebody who makes your local community a better place to live, nominate them today. Use the entry form to explain, in 400 words, why they deserve an award or send a film clip instead. You can also nominate yourself.

Our Joint Enforcement Team has joined forces with Tandridge and Mole Valley District Councils to crack down on flytipping across all three areas.

With many rural lanes, the borough can seem an ideal place to dump waste. We want to make sure that it’s not and we are doing all we can to tackle the blight of flytipping and to track down and prosecute those who flytip.

All three councils are pooling their experience, resources and knowledge to take a more proactive approach to this increasing problem. This includes using new technology and legislation, as well as stop and search days when motorists and vehicles will be checked by officers from Surrey Police, Department for Work and Pensions, DVLA, DVSA (formerly VOSA) and the UK Visas and Immigrations service, as well as council enforcement officers.

In a recent operation on the A23 at Salfords and Merstham, a dozen trade vehicles were stopped and drivers given advice on their waste transfer responsibilities, with a number of also given warnings for vehicle offences.

How you can help

You can help by checking to make sure that anyone who collects waste from your home or business is properly licensed. The Environment Agency has a public register of waste carriers on its website or you can call 03708 506 506.

If a resident’s or business’s waste is found dumped and is traced back to their address, they could end up with a hefty fine.

Report it

You can also help by reporting and providing information on flytipping incidents:

• To report a flytip as it happens, please call Surrey Police on 101
• If a flytip is blocking a road call Surrey County Council on 0300 200 1003
• If it is not in progress, but you have information, please report it to our Joint Enforcement Team online or call the team on 01737 276300.

Did you know you can recycle plastics from practically every room in your home? Your recycled plastic pots, tubs, trays and bottles can be reborn as furniture, children’s toys, football shirts and even other bottles.

Look around your home: empty yoghurt pots, margarine tubs, fruit or veg trays and every type of plastic bottle can be recycled and made into other useful products. Whether your bottles contained beauty products, drinks, shampoo, bleach, cooking oil or ketchup, they can be recycled and turned into great new things.

We can recycle more

At the moment, we only recycle 27% of plastics in Surrey. The rest are thrown away – a move that’s bad for the planet and expensive for the taxpayer. If every Surrey adult recycled one extra plastic bottle a week it would save taxpayers more than £200,000 a year in waste disposal charges.

So set yourself a challenge: can you find more plastic to recycle?  For more information on how to recycle plastics at home or at our recycling centres, visit the our recycling and refuse webpage.

Thank you for rethinking your rubbish, and recycling more.

Looking for activities to keep your children active and busy this summer? Have a look at our Summer 2015 Holiday Fun programme for children aged seven to 15.

The programme offers children the chance to try out a new sport or activity. Sessions take place throughout August and are open to children of all abilities and no experience is required. They take place at our leisure centres and other locations around the borough and are offered at a low cost (£6-10 depending of the activity). Sessions include:

• Basketball
• Golf
• Archery
• Streetdance
• Show in a day (singing, dancing and acting)
• Tennis
• Trampolining
• Mountain boarding
• Squash.

How to book

Download the full programme and booking form from our website or contact Catherine Gibson by email or on 01737 276125 for more information. Places are allocated on a first come, first served basis so book as early as possible.

Even more activities, for just £1

GLL, which runs the BETTER leisure centres in partnership with Reigate & Banstead, is offering low costs sports activities this summer.

Children under 16 can enjoy activities such as swimming, football, athletics, gymnastics, basketball and more at our leisure centres in Banstead, Horley and Redhill – and all for just £1. To find out more and sign up, visit the Better website.

A public exhibition for the first phase of a proposed residential development on land off Meath Green Lane, Horley, will take place on Wednesday 22 July.

The exhibition will be open from 3pm until 8pm at Horley Methodist Church, Victoria Road, Horley, RH6 7AS. It is being organised by a consortium of developers including Crest Nicholson, Fabrica by A2Dominion, Charles Church and Taylor Wimpey.

The consortium wants to keep the local community fully informed of its proposals for the area and is inviting views to help shape its scheme before it submits its application later this summer.

For more information, visit enquiries@northwesthorley.co.uk.