Letter from the editor – May 2026

Alesha - Marie lived in Caterham on the Hill before moving to Oxted recently with her family. 2019 saw 6 year old Alesha - Marie being diagnosed with a non operable brain tumour resulting in her losing control of her ability to move and walk like any other child her year old should be able to do. She has since had a device attached to her brain which is used to drain the excess fluid from the brain when it builds up however this can cause excess pressure to her nerves and brain. She is currently undergoing chemotherapy with the Royal Marsden hospital in The London Borough of Sutton.

The family are investigating private treatments which the NHS cannot offer and The Harley Street Clinic are able to provide treatment which would treat the tumour previously thought to be inoperable. There is also the option of treatment at St Judes Children’s Cancer hospital in Tennessee. Suitability is the key to the treatment which she is able to have together ofcourse with the approval of her consultant.

Funds raised will contribute towards both medical and travel costs.
www.gofundme.com/f/aleshamarie-fight-for-inoperable-brain-tumour

Fundraising during lockdown is not easy, but that hasn’t stopped Caterham School student Josh. After realising that a local family were trying to raise £232,000 to take their son to New York for a potentially life-saving vaccine, 16-year old Josh wanted to help.

Liam Scott, 4, has high-risk neuroblastoma, a rare form of cancer, and has endured major surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, suffering numerous infections and spending most of that time in hospital. He is currently undergoing immunotherapy, the last stage of his treatment. Although Liam has responded well, the likelihood of relapse is high, with a long-term survival rate of just 10%. The vaccine could help prevent this happening, and the family plan to travel to the US in August.

The vaccine must be paid for in advance and they have already raised £144,000, including £31,000 raised by Josh’s own cousin Charlie. Josh decided he would add to their collection by challenging himself to run and cycle 100 miles in 10 days. He started on 23 May, using a treadmill and exercise bike, and livestreaming his efforts on Instagram. His current total stands at just over £2,000.

To donate to Josh’s fundraiser for Liam, please visit www.solvingkidscancer.org.uk/Fundraisers/joshs-100-miles-for-liam

After her grandmother suffered a fall, Jessica Briers (aged 12) and her neighbour Avery Smith (aged 9) set about raising money for East Surrey Hospital. Inspired by Colonel Tom Parker they decided to do a sponsored walk around their road. Their plan was to raise £100. On Saturday 30th May they set off on their 100 laps and were supported with clapping and cheering from friends and neighbours along the way. After walking an estimated 20 miles they have raised a total in excess of £557.

Jessica's grandmother, Mrs Jean Solomons of Langton House, Warlingham suffered a fall whilst clapping for the NHS. She was ta

ken to East Surrey Hospital by ambulance after suffering a broken hip. With the current restrictions in place this meant that no family could visit whilst she remained in hospital.
We spoke to Mrs Solomons, who is now back home and recovering well. She said "I would like to say a huge thank you to the doctors and nurses of Newdigate Ward. They all work so hard and in such difficult circumstances at the moment. Although my family were not able to visit me, the nurses and staff more than compensated with their care and attention. It is all rather ironic that I was actually outside clapping for them only to become one of their patients. I would also like to thank the nurses and staff at Caterham Dene Hospital and the district nursing staff".

The Farningham Road Support Group (the local residents who have come together via a WhatsApp group set up beginning March) organised another community spirited event this bank holiday. Andy Sparks who the residents refer to as their street anchor led the the Mad Hatters Tea Party theme dressed up as the White Rabbit, Trang played Alice in Wonderland while her partner Ashley did an amazing job as the Mad Hatter, with the support of Hilary Hopkins who with her amazing dress making skills designed and made some of the outfits along with organising street cup cake bakery where over 100 cup cakes were made by the residents and distributed to all the children via a social distancing procession. The menus included sandwiches, scones, clotted cream and Pimms!

Both Lisa Fisher and Hilary Hopkins said “This event is one of many that this Road has organised and the residents have rallied together to create this supportive warm and caring community to be there for the vulnerable, to cheer people up and to ensure the children have some excitement and fun in these challenging times. We feel privileged and lucky to be living in this road with such amazing people”

Our April feature on the proposed development of Church Walk Shopping Centre in Caterham Valley provoked a strong response from our readers.
We covered concerns arising from the revised planning application that developer Ropemaker submitted earlier this year. These included parking issues, flooding worries, unease over changes to the overall look of the area and apprehension for the survival of some smaller businesses if in competition with new, larger companies.

Nick Keable, a spokesperson for Ropemaker, responded to the points raised, and we also included comments from The Caterham Business Improvement District and Tandridge Council’s Interim Chief Planning Officer, Charlotte Parker.

Local radio station Ridge Radio broadcasts from Soper Hall in Caterham Valley, with 45 volunteer presenters it broadcasts 24/7 over the internet.
If you don’t already listen, here are a few easy ways to start. Go to the www.ridgeradio.co.uk and click ‘Listen Live’ or download the free App for either Apple or Android Mobile devices, this allows you to hear us anywhere in the country. At home, if you have an Alexa enabled device you can listen to us by asking it to ‘Install Ridge Radio’.
On the website is the Schedule Page with all of our shows and their broadcast time, with the current Covid-19 restrictions this may not be up to date but make a note of our Business, Sports and Chat Show times, or simply pick the type of music you prefer and tune in each week.
If you are a local Charity, have an interesting story to tell, or a Local Band or Artist, then please contact us to come in and share your music and interesting stories.
E-mail: info@ridgeradio.co.uk
This month we would like to introduce you to our May presenter in the spotlight, Lisa Hagger one half of the 80’s Revived Show on Saturdays 1:00pm to 3:00pm, we asked her the following questions.

I am Chantal Baker, Director and founder of Champ Consultants. We are accountants and tax consultants based in Caterham. We are looking forward to providing you with business and finance tips as well as answering your questions.

Question:
Do I need to pay tax on the Self Employment Income Support Scheme Grant?

Makes 20 cookies

110g unsalted butter
160g light soft brown sugar
80g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 medium egg
200g plain flour
¾ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
250g dark chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate)

The Aurora Group is a provider of education, care and support for children, young people and adults with special education needs and disabilities. In September 2017, they opened Redehall School in Smallfield, a day school for children with communication challenges. The popularity of Redehall made it apparent there was a high demand for this type of establishment in Tandridge.
This led to a search for new premises, ending up with the renovation and refit of a former church in Francis Road, Caterham. The Aurora Caterham Education Centre opened in March 2020, providing places for children, aged 11-19, with communication difficulties typically associated with Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism.
When the UK entered lockdown a week later a decision was reluctantly made to close the Caterham site. Students who needed to remain at school were able to move to Redehall, continuing their education alongside the children staying on site there. The teaching staff stay in regular communication with those being home-schooled, and use online resources to set them work.
The school is looking forward to re-opening when it is safe to do so, and being able to strengthen its links with the community, including finding suitable businesses to support work experience placements.
Aurora Performance Director Mark Costello said: “Before we opened in Caterham we held several meetings at the school to show people what we were doing. We talked about work experience, and invited local residents to share their skills and experience with our students. Community links are extremely important to the school.

Care homes have been one of the worst hit communities by COVID-19 in the UK. At least 22,000 residents are reported to have died of the illness. The latest figures show that 45 per cent of deaths took place in care homes.
Meanwhile, in Caterham, at-home care appears to be offering a welcome and seemingly safer alternative to assisted living. Despite reported shortages of PPE and daily visits to societies most vulnerable, local care agency Loving Care has reported no cases of coronavirus in it’s clients or frontline employees.
This is a remarkable victory in the nation’s battle against the pandemic. Weakened by age and underlying illness, the elderly are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19. A staggering one in three deaths from coronavirus in Great Britain have been people aged over 85.
Sandra Jenner, owner said “Our 17 staff members follow strict hygiene rules to keep people in the community safe and well and the agency attributes forward planning to their success in protecting all of it’s 50 clients. While gloves and aprons were easily accessible, masks were harder to get hold of. We had increased supplies delivered by local volunteers, so it’s been a joint effort with the local authority.”
During lockdown, families have been unable to visit their elderly relatives. As such, visits from carers may be the only social interaction pensioners have received in the last ten weeks. “Apart from the fact that they’re wearing masks you wouldn’t know there’s a pandemic,” says Jenny Chinnappa, whose mother receives daily calls from the agency. “Throughout all of this, they’ve never let us down. They’ve been well briefed, and it puts me at ease. They’re caring for our loved ones and keeping them safe at this strange time.”