East Dean and Friston
East Dean Downlands (Roads)Ltd
As Chairman of East Dean Downlands (Roads) Ltd, on behalf of all of us that work on your behalf, we wish you a Happy New Year as we begin 2026.
We are asking each homeowner to contribute £140 for this year so that we can maintain the roads and drainage gullies on the Estate on your behalf. The contribution for 2026 was agreed by our Shareholders at our AGM held in March 2025. We would be grateful if you would please pay the contribution as soon as you can. As I'm sure you will be aware, the Company is run by volunteers, and it is both time-consuming and expensive for us to have to chase up residents who don't pay immediately. The attached request for payment includes details of how you can pay us this year.
We are aware that it is very important that we keep the Estate roads in good order as we all need to use them in one form or another and we all want to keep the Estate roads well maintained. We also need to ensure good access for emergency services and deliveries. We do not receive any payment from the local authority because we are a private estate. It is therefore up to us as a community of residents to ensure that our roads are well maintained and usable.
We have had a busy year, and I am very grateful to those that help us either in an official regular capacity or on an ad hoc basis when necessary.
We were joined this year by Caraline Marchant who has helped with the administrative side of the Company in collecting the annual contributions and also dealing with Solicitors when residents move either into or out of the village. We are very grateful for her help and expertise.
Brian Howe also joined us this year and has taken up the role of Operations Director. He has taken over the role of dealing with our chosen contractors to ensure that the necessary works are carried out in a timely and proficient way.
Stewart Fuller has continued to be invaluable in his capacity as our Finance Director and Company Secretary. Stewart does an excellent job and we are very grateful for all of his expertise and hard work. However, as you may be aware, at the last AGM he informed the Shareholders that he will be stepping down at the next AGM planned for 23 February this year. We therefore need to find a replacement for Stewart as matter of extreme urgency. Therefore, if you have some spare time and would like to help us in the finance and/or company secretarial area please make contact.
During the last year we embarked on an agreed five-year rolling programme of roads maintenance as recommended and agreed with our main contractors, Hailsham Roadways. This began with the installation of new kerbs where deemed necessary and some resurfacing in Peak Dean Lane.
We have also carried out urgent pothole repairs and arranged for the gullies to be cleaned and emptied. This is a regular job that we deal with in the autumn once the leaves have fallen.
If you are not yet a Shareholder of EDDR, I would encourage you to consider it. There is no fee and being a Shareholder enables you to vote at our meetings so please let us know if you would like to become a Shareholder.
Finally, communications. Do we have your email address? If not, please consider letting us have it; it will save time and money in contacting you. The EDDR email address is eastdeanroads@hotmail.co.uk and our website is www.eastdeanroads.co.uk. We ask you to let us know if you spot anything that needs to be looked at concerning the condition of the roads and drainage gullies. Please note however that we do not maintain any of the verges or signage on the estate. We also do not maintain any drainage on residents' private property.
Yours faithfully
Robert Corbett
Chairman EDDR
