Letter: We Are Preparing a New Local Plan to Meet Housing Needs and Protect Our Environment

Published on: 21 Aug, 2026
Updated on: 21 Aug, 2026

Green belt? No “grey belt”.

From Fiona White

lead borough councillor for Planning and Lib Dem member for Ash Wharf

In response to: It’s All ‘Grey Belt’ Now, It Seems – We Are On a Trajectory

Guildford Borough Council is preparing a new Local Plan under the Government’s revised planning system introduced earlier this year.

The Local Plan will set out the vision, strategy and planning policies to guide development and land use across the borough up to 2045. It will identify how Guildford can meet future housing, employment and infrastructure needs while protecting and enhancing the borough’s environment, heritage and distinctive character.

The preparation of a new Local Plan involves extensive evidence gathering, assessment and public engagement before any site allocations are proposed. The Council is currently in the preparatory “getting ready” stage, before moving into the formal 30-month plan-making process at the end of in October.

No decisions have been made about where future development may take place. The Government’s introduction of “grey belt” does not mean that the whole of Guildford borough is now available for development. Any future development proposals will continue to be assessed through the planning application process and against relevant planning policies and the Local Plan.

This means that every site and planning application will be considered on its own merits, taking into account a wide range of planning, environmental and infrastructure factors.

Next month, the Council will launch a six-week Local Plan Scoping Consultation – the first of at least three opportunities for local people to get involved in the plan-making process.

The views of those who participate will influence the content of the new Local Plan and how it is developed.  We would encourage everyone to get involved and give their views, and we’ll shortly be sharing more information about how to get involved in the consultation.

We want to hear from as many people as possible. The view of residents, businesses, community groups and stakeholders will help us identify the right priorities and ensure the plan’s vision reflects the needs and aspirations of our communities.

Before it can be adopted, the new Local Plan will be independently examined by a Planning Inspector appointed by the Government. Once adopted, it will replace the Council’s existing Local Plan documents, including the Local Plan: Strategy and Sites (2019) and Local Plan: Development Management Policies (2023).

The new Local Plan is an opportunity to shape how Guildford evolves over the coming decades, balancing the need for homes, jobs and infrastructure with the protection of the landscapes, heritage and communities that make the borough unique.

By working closely with local people throughout the process, the Council aims to develop a plan that supports sustainable growth while preserving the qualities that make Guildford such a special place to live, work and visit.

Responses to Letter: We Are Preparing a New Local Plan to Meet Housing Needs and Protect Our Environment

Alan Robertson Reply

August 23, 2026 at 11:57 am

There is little point in consultation, the developers always win; their money sees to that. Guildford has an appalling track record of allowing unsuitable developments on the former green belt, despite there being no local amenities or infrastructure.
- Tony Harrison Reply
  
  August 26, 2026 at 10:22 am
  
  Spot on, and it’s getting worse. And anyone who has had the gross misfortune to attend any GBC planning meeting will rapidly gain a full understanding of the total ineffectiveness on display. No wonder the place looks as it does.
Nick Norton Reply

August 23, 2026 at 5:40 pm

The usual political flimflam. Local people’s opinions hold no weight when the Secretary of State can call in any planning application of 150 or more dwellings and approve over the head of the council. The process isn’t even a fig leaf to cover the authoritarian tendencies of a political class bereft of ideas to manage climate change, land for food production and rewilding.

From the industry-led “black ops” team assembled in 2010 by the Tories to write what became the NPPF, the emphasis has been on destroying London’s green belt in places determined by the private building industry to yield maximum profit. Councillor White is too optimistic.
Anthony Mallard Reply

August 24, 2026 at 11:27 am

Has anyone ever set out a job description, together with the qualities and qualifications to be a Member of Parliament. Were it to be so, I bet most of the current members would not qualify.

An example of self interest is the recent debacle over cuts to the benefit system. Were members from the Labour “red wall” primarily concerned about the effect of any reductions on their constituents? No. their concerns were predicated on whether, if cuts were made, they would be returned to Parliament in the next election. Self interest.

Likewise, we now learn that transparency and openness only apply to others – the last Prime Minister was allegedly taking gifts, spectacles, suits etc, the leader of Reform is mired in an inquiry about a significant donation and now the current Prime Minister is being invited to justify some lavish celebration when, clearly, he was thinking seriously about returning to Parliament.

In many respects the UK is a third world country and now we have a number of MP who emulate leaders of those countries. What has happened to Great Britain?
Fiona White Reply

August 24, 2026 at 3:28 pm

One of the reasons why we have difficulties with planning applications at the present time is that the 2019 Local Plan has been recognised as out of date and, in addition, there is the increase in the housing delivery target set by central government.

I can sense residents’ frustration and concern with all the announcements coming out of central government. However, I do need to point out that anyone making decisions on future planning applications will have to assess them against planning policy. That is local planning policy, set out in an updated local plan, as well as national policies. That will apply to everyone including planning inspectors on behalf of the government or elected mayors.

The best way to make sure that development in our borough is carried out in the right places and that it is right for our needs is for everyone in our communities across the borough to take part in the local plan consultations.

Your views will be listened to and taken into account when the Scoping Document, which will take us into the next phase of the new Plan, is drawn up. The scoping consultation is an opportunity to get involved right at the beginning. Please don’t miss out.

Fiona White is the lead councillor for planning at GBC and a Lib Dem ward councillor for Ash Wharf.
David Roberts Reply

August 24, 2026 at 7:29 pm

“No decisions have been made”. We heard exactly the same empty assurances from council deputy leader Monika Juneja (later convicted at the Old Bailey) in 2013.

GBC have already lost the initiative by letting consultants earmark most of the borough as “grey belt”. If the Lib Dems had only set out clear political guidelines for local development, planning officers and consultants would be constrained and bound by them.

As things stand, the field is the developers to make up the evidence as they wish. History is repeating itself, and councillors (let alone the public) can only play catch-up.