Approval of More Houses for Ockham Will ‘Change the Little Hamlet Beyond Recognition’

Published on: 11 Oct, 2024
Updated on: 11 Oct, 2024

The approved plan for an additional 70 homes at Ockham.

By Emily Dalton

local democracy reporter

A further 70 homes have been approved near the site of the former Wisley Airfield despite fears that it will change the Surrey hamlet of Ockham “beyond recognition”.

The former airfield already has planning permission approved for 1,730 new homes, after a government inspector overruled Guildford Borough Council’s refusal of the proposal. However, Ockham Parish Council is appealing to the High Court to reconsider the decision.

1,730 new homes are destined to be built at the former Wisley Airfield site unless the High Court allows an appeal.

The separate application, submitted by Hallam Land Management, proposes 70 homes and a new access to Ockham Lane to the south of the main airfield site. Officers recommended the development for approval, judging that the public benefit of the housing outweighs the heritage harm.

This is only an outline proposal, and the specific details on the appearance and design of the scheme will be decided at a later date. The scheme includes 28 affordable homes, with 20 at “affordable rent” and 42 at market prices. A mixture of one to four bedrooms are proposed as part of the plans.

Councillors approved the plans by six votes to four after a failed motion to reject the application. Cllr Patrick Oven raised a motion to refuse the development, arguing it would not preserve the conservation area and claimed harm to the heritage asset is not outweighed by the public benefit.

Cllr Catherine Young

‘Beyond recognition’

“This development will permanently change the little hamlet beyond recognition,” said Cllr Catherine Young, the R4GV councillor for Clandon & Horsley. She said the application “fails to recognise the intrinsic beauty of the countryside”.

Historic England raised concerns that the density of the houses would harmfully contrast the rural and historic nature of Ockham village. Conservation officers agreed, commenting that the development would create a “strong and obvious suburban” appearance. They asked the developer to “rearrange the layout of housing to better preserve the sense of rurality around the village” by decreasing houses on the south side of the land.

Cllr Joss Bigmore

Similarly, Cllr Joss Bigmore (R4GV, Merrow) criticised the scheme for not providing “a gentle transition” from the existing rural villages to the proposed mass development on the Taylor Wimpey site.

Cllr David Bilbe

Cllr David Bilbé (Con, Normandy) said he had “a tremendous amount of empathy towards the emotions and feelings of residents”. But he argued that as the land had been allocated for development by GBC and there was a need for housing, there was not much ground to defend a refusal at appeal.

‘Risk to life’

The committee heard that granting a new access road to Ockham Lane to the development would be “risk to life”.

Parish Cllr Imogen Jameson

Cllr Imogen Jameson, from Ockham Parish Council, said the combination of existing road users, tractors, horse riders, cyclists and buses will create a “lethal cocktail”. She said Ockham Lane “lacks essential infrastructure [for lorries] to reach the remote location [and] rely on the inadequate local road network”.

Surrey County Council originally objected and recommended the refusal of the application for a new access road from the development site to Ockham Lane. But the council later agreed to approve a new access road if there were visibility displays for vehicles to access Ockham Lane and pedestrian and cycle routes.

Cllr Jameson claimed SCC had “capitulated” and “prioritised their requirement for sustainable transport provision over safety”. She said pedestrian and bike access is not suitable for the road.

Officers informed the committee that access points to Ockham Lane have been accepted by SCC where they serve a limited number of houses and are not connected to the wider site. Councillors were advised they had no “technical support” to object to the proposal from a highway safety point of view as legal documents enable an access route on Ockham Lane.

The proposed development will start after Wimpey Taylor has delivered the infrastructure which makes the site sustainable. Although no strict timeline as to the construction of the development, no building shall start until the off-site cycle route has been made available for residents.