Norbury Park Wood Products, at Mickleham, is due to be closed by Surrey Wildlife Trust, unless a buyer can be found by March 31st 2011.

Staff have worked hard to make this woodyard viable, against adversity, and are succeeding. The order books are full, there are plans for expansion and more training opportunities, and further community use. Seven people will become unemployed, and two made homeless, staff would like a management buyout to keep it working as a functional woodyard.

There is a petition requesting Surrey County Council to halt the closure, allowing time to consider its implications and give due and fair consideration to the buyout proposal. 20,000 signatures will ensure a debate, at the time of writing it's less than 500, the deadline is 10th April.

For more on this story, and related news items, see ThisIsSurreyToday, for details of concerns with Surrey Wildlife Trust, and to be kept up-to-date, see SWTAction.