‘Would You Put Up With Someone Else’s Poo in Your Kitchen Sink?’

Published on: 20 Feb, 2026
Updated on: 20 Feb, 2026

The plan for 70 homes in Alford Waverley Council planning portal

By Chris Caulfield

local democracy reporter

The lived reality of strangers’ poo filling people’s kitchen basins was enough to sink plans for 70 new homes in a Surrey village suffering from serious sewage issues.

Developers Waites had hoped to build new houses in Alford, saying they would help ease the housing crisis in a borough with more than 750 people waiting for affordable homes.

The application was rejected by Waverley Borough Council’s Planning Committee on Wednesday, February 18 after hearing how Alford’s sewage system had collapsed with large parts of the village, which regularly experiences electricity black outs, having problems with untreated waste.

A public speaker said: “Alfold’s waste water network has not just reached capacity, it has failed. Collapsed pipes now allow surface water to flood both Thames Water and Southern systems and raw sewage is in our roads and fields.

“This week alone the Alford and Dunsfold pumping stations failed, along with Southern Water”s Loxswood Road station. For the first time in 34 years waste is being tankered, daily, from the old school playground by Southern right at the entrance that you’ve just seen to this site.

“Would any of you put up with someone else’s poo in your kitchen sink because that is the lived reality for our residents today.” He said both water firms had warned upgrades to the system were not possible during the current price period.

He finished: “Adding load to an already failed system is a conscious choice to create an unacceptable pollution risk.”

Alford has been identified as an area suitable for development within Waverley, and has recently had around 500 homes approved in the area.

Infrastructure, including schools, doctors and shops have yet to keep pace and residents have to travel to neighbouring areas to access everyday facilities.

Cllr Chris Britton, Alford parish councillor, said there were deep concerns within the village over the proposals and that 78 people had written in to object.

He said: ‘It’s no exaggeration to say that the decision you take tonight is existential in terms of its impact on the village of Alfold.”

The village’s population had more than doubled in the past five years, he said, with the approvals on appeal of more than 500 homes compared to the local plan target of 125.

He added: “Alongside this, the basic infrastructure in the village, including foul drainage water, electricity supply, has not improved, despite promises.

“The village is now literally submerging in a sea of escaping wastewater. Our village shop has closed, we still have no school, no doctor’s surgery and the road network can’t cope.”

Merril Baker, speaking on behalf of Waites Developments argued the homes, including 30 that would have been made affordable, would make a significant contribution to to housing in the borough. The project would also bring in £3 million in developer contributions that could be used to offset the impact.

She added: “The reality of the housing crisis is families living in overcrowded homes, children growing up in temporary accommodation, young people unable to remain in the communities they were raised, and of course key workers priced out of the area they serve.”

Waites argued the homes would be downstream from the affected pumping stations and would not increase flows or place additional burdens on the village. The application was rejected by eight votes to two.

Clr Jacquie Keen (Liberal Democrat: Haslemere West) said: “This application does concern me very greatly because once again we are asked to provide more houses, no infrastructure, and we’ve seen it before. No infrastructure, no doctors surgery, no shops that’s very evident from what has been said.

“School places, another one is transport, it goes on and on, then you add to that the water situation. Southern Water advises that additional foul and sewage flows may lead to increased risk of foul flooding from the sewer network and network reinforcement deemed necessary would be provided by Southern but they can’t say when.

“What are we doing here? We know we need housing, that is very important but why are we heaping more misery on the residents of Alfold to get that housing because they are the ones who will suffer.”