Aly Fitch

04/12/2025

Popped down to Halfords today and noticed the new M&S is really coming along!

Looks like they’re gearing up for a spring opening. At 18,000 sq ft, it’s going to be a pretty big store!

04/12/2025

Saved a tiny life today!

This little worm looked like he was drowning (can worms even drown? I have no idea), so I moved him somewhere safe.

03/12/2025

It’s officially Christmas! 🎄
Tree is up, first Christmas market under the belt, mulled wine in hand, and a perfectly crisp winter’s day to top it all off.

Stopped short of having a mince pie… still feels a bit early for that!

Feeling festive already!

02/12/2025

Driving test back-log rant.

At this point, I’m half-hoping Lammy will pop up and announce he’s scrapping those too, just for the sheer admin relief.

First available test was in Kent. That’s a day trip. Luckily managed to get a closer one just over an hour away!

Meanwhile I’m reminiscing about how I took my test five minutes up the road, casually rolled back into the house afterwards, and thought nothing of it. No nationwide pilgrimage. No 6 a.m. drive to an unfamiliar town where the only landmark is a Tesco Express.

What on earth has gone wrong?

01/12/2025

Across the country, and especially in the South East, we’re watching history repeat itself.

In Guildford’s Park Barn estate, 35 council homes now sit empty, cracked and unstable, because they were built quickly and cheaply on shallow foundations over clay. Decades later, the bill has come in, subsidence, evacuations, and families who no longer feel safe in their own homes.

We are seeing masses of new builds going up at breakneck speed, crammed in, built to minimum standards, wrapped in glossy brochures and sold as “the future”. But when a country rushes, when it panics, when targets matter more than craftsmanship, we pay twice.

Guildford should be a warning, not a memory.
Cheap solutions don’t solve big problems, they create bigger ones.

When a country panics, it pays twice.
And right now, we’re building the next bill.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c075kd5lep1o?at_link_type=web_link&at_format=link&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_campaign_type=owned&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_link_id=31B8222E-CE96-11F0-9917-A83829F88A54&at_ptr_name=facebook_page&utm_social_handle_id=272043345411&utm_social_post_id=611674166&at_link_origin=BBC_Surrey&at_medium=social&fbclid=IwY2xjawOaYEtleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETBuU1JwZmltU3UwdFpwdHFSc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHrNIF57vkZQEQsGuqK_hm8vBs1KymbdeoVKxZsmg4eWUUcP433svH5Px9CGS_aem_lNQ6n9z20ogGR8ZkMMX2tQ

The homes are built on ground with soft clay beneath the surface and are supported with scaffolding.

30/11/2025

My life has always been shaped by a deep instinctive dislike of injustice. After more than thirty years working in the justice system. I’ve seen the system from the inside, the good, the bad, and far too much of the unforgivable.

So when I hear Stamer’s Govt talking about reducing or even removing jury trials, I’m alarmed, but sadly not surprised. Jury trial has protected ordinary people in this country for over 800 years. It’s what stands between the public and government overreach.

You can’t just sweep that aside because it’s convenient.

I left the justice system last year, for many reasons but in the main because I simply couldn’t face the daily injustices anymore.

Cutting jury trials won’t save money. It will sadly create more appeals, more wrongful convictions, and more wasted public money locking up people who shouldn’t be there in the first place.

My final case still sits with me. A man kept in custody for six months, forgotten. The case landed on my desk and I pushed for an immediate review. The case was discontinued and release happened on Christmas Eve. A reminder of why fairness matters, and a great ending to my decades of service.

I reject this proposal completely. You don’t fix a broken system by tearing out one of its last remaining safeguards

25/11/2025

Some of bricks to build part of the town have little paw prints in them.

This one is along the alley linking West Street to the Church.

Such a cute addition to the architecture 🐾

24/11/2025

And that’s a wrap.
The last branch standing has just fallen
Castle Street pollarding, 2025.

22/11/2025

35 years ago today, Margaret Thatcher stepped down as Prime Minister.

Her time in office was defined by towering highs and profound lows, reshaping Britain.

I remember that day vividly. Looking around now, it sometimes feels as if we’re navigating the same turbulent waters as back then, with politics as unpredictable, passions as high, and challenges as complex.

Thatcher’s legacy is never simple, but her strength and readiness to make difficult decisions remain a benchmark in British politics today.

20/11/2025

Bit inconsiderate to give them a haircut just as winter sets in!

Tree-shearing work on Castle Street is likely to cause some traffic disturbance, so it’s best to avoid the area if you can.

20/11/2025

Council tax looks set to rise for those living in larger homes in the South. It’s frustrating watching this Government scramble for cash when it’s obvious how much they’re wasting elsewhere.

The South gets targeted again, and money made in the South should stay in the South. Instead, it looks like the extra revenue will end up going to the North and the Midlands

Honestly, this Government is pants.

19/11/2025

* Closing on the 31st December *

It would seem Poundland have a closing down sale on.

Such a shame to lose another vital shop in the town.