This is a brief history of our two roads, intended for those residents who have moved in relatively recently, and who may not have much information about the Roads Association and local issues.   

Headley Heath Approach has never been a properly built metalled road, when the first houses were built in the 1930s it was only a farm track and continued to be so until the 1960s.  Ashurst Drive had always been the approach road to the private estate which now houses High Ashurst and Bellasis, with the Lodge houses at the entrance to the road belonging to the estate. 

Ashurst Drive was rebuilt by the Canadian Air Force during the Second World War to give access to military emplacements on the heath, and as a result was always in better condition than Headley Heath Approach.  By the early 1970s both roads had fallen seriously into disrepair, in some places making the roads almost impassable to traffic. (In the 60s a hole big enough for a car to fall into appeared in HHA at one point).

In 1972 Surrey County Council (SCC) notified residents that as a result of serious disrepair both Ashurst Drive & Headley Heath Approach were to be adopted by SCC.  The SCC proposal was that the roads would be rebuilt, with a tarmac surface, pavements, a drainage system and street lights installed. The plans would have involved widening the roads considerably, with the associated loss of all grass verges and a strip of resident’s front gardens.  

At that time the residents did not wish this to happen, and decided to fight the proposal. Residents were unanimous in their wish to retain the character of the two roads as quiet country lanes, not the equivalent of “B” roads.

SCC stated that the roads could only be allowed to remain unadopted if the residents undertook their own maintenance, and kept the road in good repair. It was unanimously decided that this was the best choice, and the Ashurst & Headley Heath Roads Association was formed to do this. It was decided that every resident would contribute an agreed amount to the Roads Fund every year and that an elected committee would administer the scheme. 

The Committee, consisting of Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Committee members from both roads, was elected by vote from the residents. The Association was properly constituted with the objective to retain the country character of the two roads, maintaining them as quiet lanes.

The Association successfully carried out this remit, with collections of funds, an Annual General Meeting and yearly maintenance to the extent of the available funds, audit and presentation of accounts and elections of members to the Committee; from 1973 to 2000.  

During this time, the traffic to and from the High Ashurst Outdoor Education Centre, owned by SCC, increased considerably and residents were concerned at the use of the many coaches and mini-vans using the two roads to access High Ashurst. Requests to SCC for this traffic to be reduced or re-routed were ignored and the only concession made was that SCC gave a small sum to the Roads Association annually as their contribution to maintenance. This was regarded as totally inadequate, taking into account the amount of High Ashurst traffic using the roads by then.