ET Planning is thrilled to achieve the permission for a new village centre site which will include 4 new houses (2x 3 bed and 2x 2 bed) with garages and an office building as well as the refurbishment of a public house. This permission follows an extensive local public consultation and negotiation with planning officers at Guildford Borough Council.
The site, situated in a Green Belt conservation area, is currently home to a coach house and derelict public house. The coach house will be demolished to make way for the new residential properties.
Due to the site being located within a protected area, there were a number of aspects to the planning proposals that needed to be considered including protecting listed buildings and creating a landscaping plan around protected trees located within the site’s boundary.
ET Planning worked positively throughout the application process, with officers at the council, to overcome initial consultee concerns and gain local support.
As part of the application process, it was noted how the public house is deemed as an asset of community value. Whilst the public house is not currently in commercial use and is in fact boarded up, the site still maintains a very positive relationship with the local community which includes a local school, a village hall and other residential properties.
Due to this critical community link, an extended public consultation was undertaken and learning from this was used in the design evolution of the development plans.
The council accepted the principle of development but required very detailed drawings and reports to confirm proposals would meet relevant development plan policies.
Architectural plans were drawn up by Fletcher Crane Architects to show how the site development would look and what the impact on the street scene would be.
After an extensive consultation and detailed discussions with the council the approval was given by delegated authority. This approval will allow for the regeneration and reinvestment into the local area; providing employment, a much-loved community venue and new housing.