FAQS

Welcomes and Uplands Roads are unadopted which means the roads need to be maintained by the residents (frontagers) at their own cost. Upkeep is currently financed via an annual road levy charged to each resident. There is also a charge for HGV usage to and from construction sites typically operated by developers. These
levies mean that residents do not have to maintain and pay for the section of road fronting their property which would lead to the road becoming uneven, patchy, and possibly impassable.

On sale of a property it is necessary to use form TA6 (Law Society Property Information Form) to declare a dispute (under Section 2.1) with the Road Association to the buyers for the arrears of road levy which will require any outstanding amounts to be paid by the seller or the executors of their estate.

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The obligation to pay a road levy in most cases is covenanted in the deeds to the relative frontaging property. Where the obligation is not in the deeds ‘the doctrine of benefit and burden’ originally established in the case of Halsall v Brizell, in 1957 was reaffirmed in Court of Appeal in Goodman v Elwood 2013 supports unequivocably an obligation to pay for the use of the roads concerned. Members are urged to talk to
the Road Secretary if they are having difficulty paying the annual levy so that a payment plan can be agreed.

If you are looking to buy in Welcomes or Uplands Road (or their spur roads) please email us via our contact page and we will happily answer any questions you may have.

Unmaintained roads even if they have been properly constructed will deteriorate quite quickly once frost and water get under the surface. 

Maybe but you can be certain that it would be on the condition that ALL residents pay for bringing the road up to “Adopted Road” standards. A figure of £15,000 per frontager is an indication of the cost of adopting both roads. For the residents to maintain the road themselves is the cheaper option. In addition, 100% of frontagers would need to agree, although the Council can apply to the Courts to enforce the
adoption of roads.

Please note the registration numbers of any suspicious cars or make a description of people who are behaving in a suspicious manner. Help us to help the Police.
 

For up-to-date reports on crime in the area visit:  www.kenleyra.org.uk. Kenley actually has one of the lowest crime rates in the Borough. 

The Committee have investigated installing cameras at the entrances to our roads but in spite of several requests from members and getting quotes to install CCTV systems, have decided once and for all that using high resolution cameras putting everyone including walkers under 24 hour surveillance is unduly onerous in terms of the risk of breaches of General Data Protection Regulations and Privacy legislation. It can also lead to loss of insurance cover as fines are perceived to be potentially extremely high. In addition members of the Public have a right to view any footage taken of them and even if the system and risk was transferred to a security company the surveillance would be deemed to be taking place for use by a Road Association which is not a lawful purpose for what is essentially a road maintenance body. Instead the installation of Police operated cameras will be investigated and members are urged to get their own domestic CCTV installed and managed by a properly accredited firm. Disappointingly more often than not CCTV footage does not lead to criminal convictions and criminals increasingly and brazenly ignore CCTV so installing it may not make us any safer.
 

Residents wishing to install their own CCTV should be aware of the legal requirements: https://surreyfire.co.uk/cctv-legislation/

Please contact WURA by email so that the information can be circulated to members.
 

You can check whether a car is taxed and MOT’d at the government site, but the DVLA no longer make ownership information available.

Fly-tipping should be reported on the Don’t mess with Croydon website. You can telephone the dedicated fly-tipping hotline on 0208 604 7000 or email flytip@croydon.gov.uk.

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There is also a Love Clean Streets app to report issues straight to the relevant team. The Council sometimes can identify and fine culprits by examining the rubbish which has been dumped.

As most properties within the WURA area have suitable gardens, it is perfectly legal to have a bonfire on your land and contrary to popular belief there are no restrictions as what time of the day or day or the week you can have it on. There is, however, firm legislation in place to ensure your bonfire does not contravene the Environmental Protection Act.

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You should also take into consideration the effect on your neighbours. Think about the time and placing of your bonfire and don’t burn anything damp or plastic/rubber which can produce pungent smoke. See here (PDF file) for more advice.

Yes leaves are swept from the edge of the roads each autumn mainly to keep the flow of surface water unimpeded and to make walking easier when the roads are wet. There are arguments for allowing the leaves to rot away naturally over time and this would save about £3,000 a year in hiring sweeper lorries.

Please either inform the secretary using the form below or consult the Croydon Council website (Highways)

WURA will not get involved in disputes about noisy neighbours. Croydon Council are the people with the powers to deal with noise which is considered to be a statutory nuisance. Please see the Croydon Council website for details on what can be done. A useful reference is also available from Citizens Advice.

Phase 1 (Hayes Lane to Uplands Rd) of 3 phases to resurface Welcomes Road was completed in September 2021 at a cost of £60,000, employing a 40mm layer of Stone Mastic Asphalt. The contractor was London Surfacing Ltd. See below for more information on the phasing of the resurfacing works.

The junction with Welcomes and Uplands Road up to Morven House Care Home was relaid with Stone Mastic Asphalt in 2016 by J C Allfrey and Co Ltd and this has held up very well in spite of high loadings from turning traffic. Cost £16,000 inc VAT.

Nos 41 to 58 Welcomes Road was surface dressed in August 2019 at a cost of £13,000 or £11 per sq m inc VAT. The new dressing is holding up well in spite of torrential rain soon after laying it.

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Welcomes Road near near 159 and a bend in the road was rebuilt in September 2019 by Allfreys at a cost of £18,600. Kerbing work (part) was carried out at the Kenley Lane end of Welcomes Road at a cost of £9,800. This work was carried out to try to alleviate some flooding issues but it will also support the edges of the road when Phase 3 of the resurfacing programme is carried out.

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Phase 3 from 12 Welcomes Road to Kenley Lane was duly completed in 2023 whilst Phase 2 from Uplands Road to 58 Welcomes Road was completed in 2021. These works were carried out by London Surfacing to a high standard though a small area near No 12 needs to be redone. The contractors are aware.

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Phase 4 from No 12 Welcomes Road to 42 Welcomes Road will be completed in 2026 as funds become available from members and developers. The latter are no longer proving very helpful unlike earlier developers.

Uplands Road remains in reasonable condition and is repaired on a piecemeal basis. However with the high quality surface employed on Welcomes Road future funding will be concentrated on Uplands Road which will be resealed.

Coast and Counties Contractors Ltd,
​https://www.coastandcounties.co.uk/ recently visited Uplands Road and quoted as follows:-
Surface Dressing Area say 2730m2 (measured from Morven House speed ramp to Abbots Lane)
 

• Mechanically sweep the affected area removing all loose debris.

• Fill in all pot holes with liquid tar and granite chippings compacted with VMT160 JCB Roller.

• Resurface area with a 3 meter wide Ashurst tar tanker which will be spraying K190 liquid tar followed by a coat of 6mm granite surface chippings.

• Power roll in and double coat area with K190 liquid tar and granite chippings leaving a solid even surface free of cracks and potholes.

• Remove any waste to licensed disposal site.

£89,700.00 plus 20% VAT £17.940 (£32.85m2)
TOTAL GBP £107,640 (£39.85m2)

The junction with Welcomes and Uplands Road up to Morven House Care Home was re-laid with Stone Mastic Asphalt in 2016 by J C Allfrey and Co Ltd and this has held up very well in spite of high loadings from turning traffic. Cost £16,000 inc VAT. The cost of resurfacing Uplands Road from Morven House to Abbots Lane is in the order of £90,000 using a double coat of K190 liquid tar with a coating of 6mm granite
chips. This quote dated 1 st October 2025 is from a company called Coast and Counties Contractors Ltd.

Major expenditure of £58,000 on seal and chip surface dressing (which failed) in September 2012. Legal action for redress £40,000) was successfully obtained in January 2016. The failure of the surface dressing has resulted in a policy of only using an overlay of 40mm SMA for Welcomes Road in particular which has drainage
issues and overhanging trees requiring the most robust surfacing material (40mm depth SMA). This policy (use of SMA) has been successfully applied in Phase 1 to 3 of the current resurfacing programme for Welcomes Road and will be used on the final section of Welcomes Road to be upgraded (No 12 to 42). Since 2012 some £300,000 has been spent on road upgrades.

Non residents are not authorised to park on any of the roads. Visitors to properties are requested firstly to park on the property of the address visited, or secondly after requesting permission on a neighbour’s drive. This includes contractors and removal trucks. See note regarding heavy trucks.

Welcomes Road is also a designated footpath, No 157, and as such it is not lawful to park on it except briefly to deliver something for example. Rule 145 of the Highways Act states that it is not permissable to drive on or over a pavement, footpath or bridleway except to gain lawful access to property, or in the case of an emergency. See HA 1835 sect 72 and  RTA 1988 sect 34  of the relevant legislation. Because Welcomes Road is a footpath bicycle riders and horse riders are also only allowed to use it if they are gaining lawful access to a property. Drivers must show proper respect for pedestrians using the footpath/road and drive slowly past them.

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Obstructing the road can impede the passage of emergency vehicles as well as the Refuse Truck. The consequences of slowing down or stopping an ambulance or fire appliance from reaching their destination in good time do not need to be spelt out.

As with the surrounding roads, the speed limit is 20 Mph but please remember Welcomes Road is a public footpath shared with pedestrians, cyclists, animals both wild and domestic and 15mph is a more sensible speed. Slow down particularly in the rain when passing pedestrians.

Please note their registration number, date, time, direction along the road and advise the secretary. The committee will follow up as far as reasonable in making a complaint to the owner or driver.

Not usually, but please consult the Committee before installing kerbing as this can affect the drainage of rainwater down the road. The Road Committee has authorised (August 2019) some kerbing work largely at the Association’s expense where banks and verges are being eroded by traffic and flood water at the Kenley Lane end of Welcomes Road.

This question is asked from time to time usually when parking issues arise or when access is required by HGVs during building works carried out by members or developers. A legal opinion was sought some years ago and in the light of the indicated legal costs and the difficulty of getting consent from each and every member. Members are currently presumed to own their verge and the road along their frontage up to the mid point of the road, although in practice ownership varies in some limited number of cases. The exercise would also entail having a detailed survey carried out and completely remapping the area. A suitable legal entity would then be needed to consolidate ownership, for example a limited company issuing shares to members, or a trust. Given the time, complexity and expense involved and the fact that the existing informal structure is recognised as the legitimate body to deal with road matters, including collecting road levies from members and HGV traffic, the Committee does not intend to pursue such a course of action in the foreseeable future. There are existing laws concerning parking control which can be enforced by the Council if needed.