68 Homes Approved Near the New Chester Bridge In Ash

Published on: 25 Apr, 2025
Updated on: 29 Apr, 2025

Outline of land at the Foreman Road development. Guildford Borough Council

By Emily Dalton

local democracy reporter

Plans for 68 new homes along the railway line at Ash have been approved after fears were allayed about the location of a proposed children’s playground.

The plans by developer Persimmon Homes for the four-hectare site at Foreman Road were agreed this week by members of Guildford Borough Council’s planning committee.

The new project is mapped out just south of the new Chester Bridge. The area is currently used as a construction site.

The developers said 40 per cent of the houses will be affordable. Most will be one, two and three-bedroom, with just six four-bedroom houses. According to the planning document, 142 parking spaces will be provided.

As well as the new homes, the plans also feature a small play area at the top of the development site. Around 0.7 hectares of public open space will also be carved out.

The scheme was initially presented to the planning committee last month, but councillors were worried about putting a play area near a railway line and road, so opted to defer the decision until after another site visit.

There were concerns about siting a playground for young children next to a railway line with trains “hurtling down the track at 120 miles an hour”.

Cllr Sue Wyeth-Price

Ward councillor Sue Wyeth-Price (R4GV, Ash South) said the playground would be very unsafe as it was next to an open public area served by both buses and trains.

Cllr Jo Shaw

Reconvening after the site visit, Cllr Joanne Shaw (Lib Dem, Merrow) said she was “totally satisfied” with what she saw on the development site trip and her “mind has been put at rest”. She said: “There are plenty of homes with gardens back onto railway lines.”

No concerns have been raised by Network Rail, Environmental Health or any of the legal consultees, council documents state.

Councillors discussed conditions on putting hedgerows up and extending fencing around the play area to make a gap between the railway and the rest of the area. Officers added that guidelines exist on what woodland species should be used in development and what is best for managing pollution.

Cllr Joss Bigmore

Cllr Joss Bigmore (R4GV, Merrow) said the development could harm the historical setting of Ash Manor, a Grade II-listed building. But officers claimed the public benefits of the new homes would outweigh any harm.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands the council no longer has clear evidence it will have the number of homes it needs in the next five years. Planning decisions will now be tilted towards approval unless there are impacts which significantly outweigh the benefits putting the council in a similar position to Waverley.