AT THE year draws to a close, The Advertiser takes a look back at the highs and lows of 2012. JANUARY
A PLAN for a new Lidl supermarket in Dorking was approved by councillors. The proposed 1,640 square metre building – work on which has yet to begin – whose construction on an industrial site in Vincent Lane has yet to start, met with mixed reactions from neighbours and the wider community.
A DILAPIDATED community centre reopened after almost two years of fundraising and renovation.
The Sports and Community Environment – known as SPACE – in Dorking Road, Bookham, was officially reopened after a £120,000 revamp. A £75,000 multi-use games area was also built on a nearby playground in September.
MORE than three million people tuned in to Channel Four to watch a documentary about 'obsessive-compulsive hoarder' Richard Wallace. The programme followed Mr Wallace as he struggled with day-to-day activities such as cooking food, using the bathroom and simply getting around his cluttered house in Furlong Road, Westcott. FEBRUARY
ACTIVISTS campaigning for fathers' rights scaled the home of Tory MP Ken Clarke in London. Martin Matthews, of Middlemead Road, Bookham, performed the unplanned stunt while protesting outside the Justice Minister's home in Kennington.
Former army medic Rory Mackenzie, who lost his right leg in Iraq, completed an 8,000-mile row across the Atlantic Ocean. The Mr Mackenzie, from Capel, was part of a six-man team, four of whom lost limbs in Iraq or Afghanistan, who took on the challenge to raise £1 million for wounded soldiers.
MORE than 4,500 people visited Dorking's new library in St Martin's Walk during its first week. The facility was set up in three previously vacant shopping units following the closure of the Pippbrook House library on New Year's Eve, 2011. MARCH
A FAMILY who built a 'hidden' house in the woods promised to pay back all the council tax they owed.
Daniel Brown, his wife Jessica and their three children had lived in the building off Logmore Lane, Westcott, since 2007. The house was built without planning permission, but Councillors granted the house a certificate of lawful use because it had been occupied for more than four years.
ST MARTIN'S Primary School in Dorking was put into special measures after an Ofsted report rated the Ranmore Road school 'inadequate'. Inspectors returned in November and its rating was raised to 'satisfactory'.
KUDOS Productions was given permission to use Dorking's former library as a base while filming a new BBC drama. Crime thriller May Day, a crime thriller from the producers of Spooks and Life On Mars, was filmed in Dorking throughout May and June. APRIL
PLANNING permission was granted for an exclusive golf course and luxury hotel at Cherkley Court, near Leatherhead, was granted planning permission. Members at the private members golf course would have to pay a one-off debenture of about £100,000 to join, plus annual fees.
Campaigners have since launched a judicial review to challenge the council's decision.
A CONTROVERSIAL police policy that lets criminals go unpunished was revealed to have been used more than 10,000 times in the last six years by Surrey Police. Figures obtained by the Advertiser showed 'effective resolution', designed for low-level crimes, was being used for offences such as possessing weapons, sexual offences and serious assaults.
A SEARCH was launched to find a missing man whose car has been discovered in Cornwall. John Barnett, 57, left his home in The Walled Garden, Betchworth, on April 2 and has not been seen since. Mr Barnett's blue Mazda RX8 was found at a car park in Trevaunance Cove, St Agnes. MAY
PLANS to build a care home in Effingham were rejected by councillors.
The Minton Group had submitted an application to build a three-storey 72-bed facility on land bordering Church Street and Lower Road, but it was rejected on the grounds that it breached planning laws on several levels. The developers have since submitted a new application.
THE annual Cowpie Country Show in Betchworth was cancelled due to a waterlogged field. More than 15,000 people were expected to attend the popular show, which was called off after heavy rain left the field flooded, at a cost to organisers of about £20,000.
IN THE local elections, the number of Tory seats fell from 17 to 15 while the Lib Dems became the biggest group with 18 seats. With no overall majority, and the Lib Dems refusing to be part of a three-party executive, the parties entered discussions with independent councillors over how to share power. JUNE
AN ACCOUNTANT who stole £220,000 from a publishing company was jailed for 28 months. Terence Butler, 46, forged cheques and made false money transfers while working in the accounting department of UKIP Media and Events, based in Church Street, Dorking.
TRAGEDY struck when a cricketer died after being hit by a ball during a match. David Wilcockson, 71, was bowling for Old Dorkinians against Grafham, at their ground in Cranleigh, when a ball struck was hit back at him, striking him on the head.
STREET parties, live music, funfairs and a horse and carriage parade were among the highlights of Mole Valley's Jubilee celebrations. Dozens of Events were held across the district as thousands of people made the most of the long weekend to mark 60 years of the Queen's reign. JULY
OLYMPIC fever reached its peak as the Torch relay passed through the district. Hundreds of people lined the streets and many who saw the Torch on its previous visit in 1948 shared their memories.
MOLE Valley District Council finally formed a new cabinet after two months of political wrangling. Ashtead Independent council leader Chris Townsend formed a cabinet consisting of three independents and three Tories.
HOSEPIPE bans which had been in force since April were finally lifted after several weeks of persistent rain, including the second wettest June on record. Some UK suppliers lifted restrictions earlier, but Sutton and East Surrey Water claimed their underground aquifers took longer to replenish than surface reservoirs. AUGUST
MORE than a year's preparation came to fruition as Olympic cyclists raced through the district. Thousands of people flocked to Box Hill for two days of road racing during which Team GB's men failed to live up to their hype. However, British rider Lizzie Armitstead was cheered to a silver medal in the women's event.
THE Friends of Teazle Wood finally raised the £300,000 needed to buy 57 acres of land in north Leatherhead to create a community nature reserve and educational resource after nearly a year of false starts.
ARMY bomb disposal experts descended on Dorking after Second World War explosives were found at the town's museum as they cleared out stores for a refurbishment. The explosives had lain undiscovered for years until an expert from the Imperial War Museum said they might pose a risk. SEPTEMBER
A CONTROVERSIAL application to build a Tesco store in Ashtead was granted permission after a four-year battle by campaigners.
Residents had raised concerns over traffic and parking but many traders welcomed the potential boost to the High Street.
FORMER Advertiser reporter Sam Blackledge travelled to Uganda after nearly six months of fundraising for the paper's Advertiser for Africa campaign, in conjunction with local charity East African Playgrounds. Sam helped with projects benefiting from the £1,600 raised.
THE Advertiser celebrated the longevity of one of its oldest readers when George Aszodi, from Fetcham, reached his 107th birthday. A Hungarian who fled to England to escape the Nazis, Mr Aszodi, who fled to England from Hungary to escape the Nazis, believed he was the oldest man in Surrey and put his longevity down to eating fresh produce, especially his favourite food: lobster. OCTOBER
AN OIL company's plan for exploratory drilling at Bury Hill Wood in Coldharbour was rejected by a planning inspector. Europa Oil and Gas wanted to drill an exploratory borehole in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and went on to appeal the decision at the High Court.
IT WAS announced that dozens of Mole Valley teenagers would have to retake their GCSE English exams amid claims their papers had been graded unfairly. Ashcombe School in Dorking had to hold extra revision sessions for about 30 students ahead of the tests in November.
A SEVEN-YEAR-OLD musical prodigy became an online hit after composing her first opera, The Sweeper Of Dreams. Dorking resident Alma Deutscher, who plays both the piano and violin and wrote a sonata at the age of six, clocked up more than 300,000 views on YouTube. NOVEMBER
VOTERS went to the polls to elect the county's first Police and Crime Commissioner amid concerns that policing would become politicised. The Advertiser held a live debate between candidates prior to the election in which zero-tolerance ex-police chief Kevin Hurley was elected.
THE Advertiser revealed major failings at the district's principal in-patient mental health unit after wards were rated excellent by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Families of several patients, some of whom died shortly after leaving the unit, came forward with stories of inadequate care.
A CHARLWOOD resident made national and international news after constructing a First World War trench in his garden. Historian Andrew Robertshaw, who runs the Royal Logistics Corps Museum in Deepcut, spent a month shifting 200 tonnes of earth to create the feature. DECEMBER
THE future of Dorking town centre was finally decided when councillors unanimously adopted an Area Action Plan. The plan sets out development priorities for the next ten years and controversially paved the way for a new supermarket behind St Martin's Walk.
THE first details of the 2011 census were published, showing Mole Valley had the highest rate of retired residents in Surrey and higher than average rates of employment and self-employment higher than average. Bizarrely the figures also revealed 304 Mole Valley people identified themselves as "Jedi" – an invented religion based on the Star Wars movie series.
OFSTED nearly cancelled Christmas at Oakfield Junior School in Fetcham after announcing a surprise inspection which clashed with the school's Christmas show. Children left the school in tears after the announcement but dedicated staff managed to rearrange the performance for the final week of school.
