Affordable houses - who needs them?
Housing estates in Merrow and Burpham
Gosden Hill Farm - some history
Extending
the Borough boundary
Houses on
Gosden Hill Farm - Surrey County Council backs down
In the face of huge public opposition,
County officials have recommended that the proposals for 4000 houses in
Guildford's Green Belt should be scrapped. 2000 of the houses were designated
for the farmland shown above. Now they have withdrawn plans for 1500 houses,
and the remaining 2500 must be built in the urban areas of the town on
land to be identified by the Borough Council.
It is not clear, however, whether Guildford's urban area has room for thousands more houses. What is clear is that large numbers of affordable houses are NEEDED NOW.
Surrey County Council has said that Green Belt land will only be used as a last resort, but has not identified where that land would be. If Guildford has to take its share of Surrey's housing requirements, then some building outside the urban area will be inevitable. Now is the time to develop a proper land use strategy and to decide if there must be new housing on the outskirts, just which land should be protected.
If Green Belt land is regarded as being available, even as a last resort, then there is no longer a Green Belt policy. That seems to open the door to widespread development which would be much appreciated only by the building trade.
Below we argue the case for protecting Guildford's northern boundary at Gosden Hill Farm.
New housing estates have proliferated in Merrow and Burpham in recent years. 500 house estates were built at Weylea Farm, Bowers Farm and Weybrook Park, preceded by a 1000 house estate at Merrow Park built on Great Goodwin Farm. One of the developers at Merrow Park was Martin Grant Homes, a still active house-building company. Martin Grant apparently liked the area so much he bought Gosden Hill Farm and lived there himself. His family still own that and the adjacent farm to the Northeast.
Gosden Hill Farm is in the Green Belt. Nevertheless, Martin Grant Homes applied for planning permission for a 900 house estate, in a proposal that included a few industrial units and a new railway station. That was turned down on appeal in 1981, but with the proviso that it could be reconsidered in 20 years time - NOW! The company applied again within the prohibited period for a 600 house estate with no industrial units or station, but with an improved road connection to the A3. That plan was also turned down.
It is not surprising, therefore, that Surrey County Council see it as an easy option for new houses.
Extending
the Borough boundary
We never believed that there
was room for Surrey County Council's plan for the 2000 house estate complete
with its infrastructure of roads, local shops, a school, surgery and open
spaces etc. within the boundaries of Gosden Hill Farm. It seems inevitable
that it would require all the land shown in grey above, taking the boundary
of the built-up area to West Clandon. Burnt Common, at the northern corner
of the site, is at the end of the built-up area of Ripley.
As you drive along the A3 from London to Guildford you realise that the continuous development extends as far as Cobham. The first encounter with the countryside is at Pains Hill and Wisley. Merrow and Burpham Labour Party strenuously opposed the previous development plans on the grounds that extending the Guildford boundary to the outskirts of Ripley was a major step towards joining Guildford to London.
It is worth bearing in mind that places like Tooting, Merton and Raynes Park were once distinct communities separated by green fields. The Guildford Borough planners at the time of the previous proposals were also opposed to extending the northern boundary of the town.
We must be clear that there is a desperate need for more affordable housing all over Surrey, not just in Guildford. There is no need for more 4- and 5-bedroom executive homes, although these are the houses likely to make up the larger part of any development on green field sites around Guildford. Tory-LibDem coalition plans to leave housing allocations to local government will result in even fewer affordable homes being built.
You may believe that affordable houses are not suitable for 'posh' areas like Merrow & Burpham. But remember, these houses are for YOUR sons and daughters and are necessary for them to get on to the housing ladder. They are also needed for all those people that are low paid but keep the essential infrastructure running.
