NEW HOMES PLANNED - Q1 2020
Those looking to get on the housing ladder in East Horsley, Surrey have been given a welcome boost in a village where the average house price is in excess of £1,000,000.
Guildford Borough Council followed Planning Officers recommendations for approval and granted outline planning permission for 110 new homes, of which 40% will be affordable housing, along with new public open space.
Catesby Estates has been promoting the 14.2 acre site at Lollesworth Fields, Ockham Road North through the Local Plan process for its removal from the green belt since 2013. The site is in a highly sustainable location, just 250 metres from the railway station and village centre.
Following extensive public consultation with Guildford Borough Council, both East and West Horsley Parish Councils and local residents, an outline application was submitted in April 2019 for determination.
The Local Plan was adopted in April 2019 in controversial circumstances and identified the site as suitable for release from the green belt for approximately 100 new homes. Three High Court challenges were submitted, claiming the Council and Planning Inspector had failed to demonstrate the exceptional circumstances required to remove land from the green belt. These were dismissed in December 2019.
There is strong interest in the site from house builders, with first residents expected to take occupation late 2021.
YOU SPOKE, WE LISTENED:
Following on from our public consultation in December 2018, we have carefully reviewed all the comments received from local residents and councillors and have revised our indicative proposals for the site in response:
- Demolition of both Chicane and Quinton’s to create a new enhanced green frontage off Ockham Road North
- The buffer from the building boundary line to the ancient woodland has been extended from 15m to a minimum of 30m
- 50% of the site is public open space
- A new green corridor has been introduced through the centre of the site, reflecting the former field boundary and utilising the existing natural drainage. This area will provide a green frontage entrance along the main access route into the site
- Higher densities concentrated within southern portion of the site, with lower densities towards development edge
- Additional drainage feature to the east of the site, resulting in increased open space next to the rear gardens of properties located along Ockham Road North
ABOUT THE SITE
Lollesworth Fields is to the north of East Horsley close to its border with West Horsley.
Excellent transport networks make it an ideal location for planned sustainable development. The site is well located with good links to the wider road network (A3, M25) and the Guildford railway line runs alongside the site to the south with regular direct rail connections to London Waterloo, approximately every 15 minutes.
The railway station and the village centre are just a 250m walk away. Facilities and services in the village centre include a local convenience store, butchers, Post Office and café.
The nearest bus route to the site is service number 478 (Reptons Coaches) which links Guildford to Leatherhead and stops on Ockham Road north adjacent to Horsley train station.
The site is enclosed by boundary hedgerows and mature trees, with Lollesworth Wood bordering the western site boundary. The site is also bordered by mature rear gardens of residential properties off Heatherdene (private road) and school playing fields back onto the northern boundary. Mature rear gardens to properties along the B2039 Ockham Road North run along the eastern boundary with Stratford Brook.
The NPPF provides a national framework for Councils to produce their own Local Plans, which reflect the needs and priorities of their communities, with a strong emphasis on the delivery of sustainable development. East Horsley is one of the area's top three most sustainable settlements as identified within the Council’s Settlement Hierarchy Study dated May 2014 with a range of services and public transport connections.
LOOKING FOR A NEW HOME?
The worsening of the UK housing crisis is well publicised, with the Government vowing to deliver 300,000 new homes every year.
The pressure on the housing market is significant with the demand for homes outstripping supply. An increase in life expectancy, immigration, single person occupancy and the demand for second homes being just some of the contributing factors.
For many first time buyers and young people, house prices are out of reach, with ever increasing deposits and monthly payments reducing the number of owner occupiers.
Struggling to get on the housing ladder?
East Horsley is a highly desirable, but expensive place to live, with an average house price of £1,087,900 (Rightmove). Many local people are struggling for the opportunity to get on the housing ladder and find a place they can call home.
What is affordable housing?
Affordable housing is a combination of social rented, affordable rent and shared ownership housing, provided to eligible households whose needs are not met by the market.
