Another Surrey Greenfield Site Approved for Housing Development

Published on: 19 Jul, 2025
Updated on: 20 Jul, 2025

Aerial view of the development site. People can say goodbye to greenfield sites, says a Reigate residents’ association chairperson. RBBC

By Chris Caulfield

local democracy reporter

People can “say goodbye” to acres of Surrey green fields after 300 homes next to an ancient single-lane road were approved.

In the latest example of greenfield development, a major housing scheme in Reigate was given the go ahead by 10 votes to one by Reigate and Banstead Borough Council’s planning committee on July 16.

Residents had fought against the application for years, arguing it was an unsuitable use of the former greenbelt site and offered “woefully inadequate” healthcare provision.

The Savills’ plan for the new development. RBBC

The plans include up to 300 homes, a 65 bed extra care facility, three traveller pitches and a scout hut, as well as re-landscaped open spaces.

Developer Savills said it would provide “much-needed” family housing.

Simon Buckingham, Park Lane Residents’ Association chairperson, said his group represented about 60 households in the area and had objected to the plans for more than five years.

He said: “I would just like to say those green fields really look attractive didn’t they? Say goodbye to them.”

He called out the plans as being an unsuitable use of former greenbelt land that it suffered from a “woeful inadequacy of local healthcare provision after the developers dropped the medical centre – but happily included 65-bed care home”.

The new homes, he said, would also increase congestion on the A217 with rat-running drivers pushed on the “ancient single lane roads”.

Details of layout across the 14.9 hectare site will be determined later but it is expected the tallest buildings could reach up to four stories in height.

Savills said the homes would go a considerable way to helping the council meet its housing targets. This has become a growing concern with the borough no longer able to demonstrate it has the required land available to meet its five year housing targets from April 2026.

Councils that are in this position, including Guildford and Waverley, struggle to defend any refusals of sustainable plans when challenged in the courts.

Lucy Beckett, on behalf of the agent, Savills, said the development would “provide a vibrant and inclusive development”.

She added they wanted to create homes that people wanted to live in and the proposal would provide “much needed family housing” that the community “could view as a benchmark”.

Cllr Paul Chandler

Cllr Paul Chandler (Green Party; South Park and Woodhatch) said: “I have a number of concerns about the development but understand the position we are in.

“This is the biggest of these allocated (sites for development).”

He said the project offered the opportunity to build for the future but lacked environmental options such as air source heat pumps or electric charging.