Relief Road Across The Surrey Hills – Proposal Is Scrapped

Following efforts by the parish council and several Hambledon residents an assurance has been given that the proposal for a new relief road to be built across the Surrey Hills Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty will not be pursued.

An organisation called the Guildford Society had put forward the idea as a means of relieving traffic on the A281 when Dunsfold Aerodrome is developed into a large housing estate. It proposed a new road should be built linking the development with an enlarged Milford station and the A3, routed through the Surrey Hills at Burgate Farm, Feathercombe and Hydestile. See earlier news story here:

The idea was presented to a meeting of the Surrey County Council Waverley Local Committee and Colin Kemp, deputy leader of SCC, said he would ask his officers to consider whether to conduct a feasibility study into the proposal.

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Parish Council Challenges Dunsfold Relief Road Proposal Across Surrey Hills AONB

A proposal to drive a new road through the heart of the Surrey Hills at Hambledon to relieve anticipated traffic congestion and HGV issues when Dunsfold Aerodrome is developed into housing is being fiercely opposed by Hambledon Parish Council.

The suggestion from the Guildford Society was presented at a recent meeting at Waverley council and despite Surrey Highways officers rejecting the idea, county councillors agreed to give the matter further consideration.

It envisages a new highway from Loxhill on the outskirts of Dunsfold at Hook House Lane, across the hills and fields of Burgate Farm and round the flanks of Hydon’s Ball to emerge on to the Hambledon Road at Feathercombe. It would then use Hambledon Road and Station Lane to reach a new “Milford Parkway” station and the A3

The Guildford Society, a registered charity with the stated aim of preserving and enhancing the environment of Guildford, submitted a written question to the Waverley Local Committee, which comprises members of both Surrey and Waverley councils.

In a covering letter, Alistair Smith, chairman of the society, wrote: “The link scheme we propose, some 12 kms long, is likely to be complex, expensive and controversial, as part of it would necessarily pass through some sensitive countryside and would need to be treated appropriately”.

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Proposal to Replace Fire-Damaged Hambledon House

A planning application to demolish Hambledon House and replace it with a new building has been received by Waverley Borough Council, the local planning authority.

This follows the fire that devastated the large Vann Lane property in January of last year, leaving it uninhabitable and beyond repair.

The proposal is for a house of similar size but of different proportion. The new property, if approved, would be set back further from the road and with a lower profile.

Full details of the application can be found on the planning section of the Waverley Borough Council website where there is an opportunity to comment until a deadline of June 27. The application number is WA/2019/0671. All comment must be on planning grounds.

Hambledon Parish Council has been consulted on the proposed application and a site visit has been held. It will consider the application at its June meeting. The application will be determined by Waverley Borough Council.

Details can be found here.

 

Parish Council Gives Conditional Support to Orchard Farm Housing Proposal

Hambledon Parish Council has given its conditional support to a planning application to build nine houses, seven of them affordable, at Orchard Farm, Wormley Lane.

At its monthly meeting on Tuesday (April 2) councillors were unanimous in agreeing its response to Waverley Borough Council which, as the local planning authority, will determine the application.

Full details can be found on the Parish Council section on this website, under the heading Legislation and Planning. http://www.hambledonsurrey.co.uk/?page_id=166

English Rural Housing Association is seeking approval for a scheme to build seven 1, 2 and 3-bedroom properties for affordable rent or shared ownership and two open-market bungalows. Priority will be given to local people with a connection to Hambledon.

This application follows the rejection of a previous proposal to build 17 homes – 12 affordable and 5 market – on the site, which occupies land between Wormley Lane and Petworth Road.

In its response, Hambledon Parish Council stated that it continued to support the provision of affordable housing in the village and noted the reduction in the size of the proposed development, which is on land within the Green Belt and the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Waverley would need to determine whether the proposal satisfies the requirements for it to be considered a rural exception site.

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Parish Council To Consider Orchard Farm Planning Proposal

Hambledon Parish Council will consider its response to the new application by the English Rural Housing Association to build seven affordable and two market-price homes at Orchard Farm, Wormley Lane, at its monthly meeting tomorrow evening (Tuesday April 2nd, 2019).

The meeting starts at 8pm at Hambledon Village Hall. The application will be discussed at the planning section of the meeting. Anyone who wishes to raise issues about the application, or any other matter, is invited to do so at the start of the meeting when 15 minutes are set aside for questions from members of the public. The response will be sent to Waverley Borough Council, which will determine the outcome of the application.

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Parish Council Statement

Hambledon Parish Council has been approached by a concerned resident wanting to know if it is responsible for an anonymous document that has been delivered to some households in the village expressing opinions about the new planning application for affordable homes at Orchard Farm.

The parish council is NOT responsible for this document, which is headed “Briefing Note to Local Residents”.

The resident contacted the parish clerk to express anger that the document appears to be biased, is not on headed notepaper, and is unsigned and unsolicited. The resident added that whoever is behind the document should have the courtesy to sign it.

In response the clerk has reassured the resident that the document has nothing to do with the parish council. The council is currently considering the application and has informed Waverley Borough Council that it will comment on it once it has the opportunity to discuss it at its next monthly meeting in early April.

Details of the application have already been posted on this website and can be found here

http://www.hambledonsurrey.co.uk/?p=10886

NEW APPLICATION TO BUILD AFFORDABLE HOMES AT ORCHARD FARM

A revised planning application to build affordable and market price homes at Orchard Farm has been submitted to Waverley Borough Council by the English Rural Housing Association.

The new application is seeking approval for a scaled-down development of seven affordable homes together with two bungalows to be sold on the open market.

The previous ERHA application, submitted in 2016, was for 17 homes – 12 affordable and five open market. This was rejected by Waverley councillors in May 2017.

The ERHA went to appeal but this was dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate in June 2018.

The new application was made public on the Waverley Borough Council website on Monday (March 4th, 2019). A deadline of March 29th has been set for comments.

The new development, if approved, would occupy the area of previously developed land at Orchard Farm, Wormley Lane, where various outbuildings currently stand. Five of the new properties would be for affordable rent and two for shared ownership.

Under the revised scheme the original farmhouse, which was to have been demolished, will be retained, renovated and sold on the open market. This does not form a part of the new application.

Paddock land, which was to have been gifted to the village as open space under the previous scheme, is now excluded from the application and is not a part of the latest proposal.

Orchard Farm is within the Green Belt and the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the ERHA application will need to demonstrate that the land may be considered as a rural exception site.

The application can be found here:

http://planning360.waverley.gov.uk/planning/search-applications?civica.query.FullTextSearch=Orchard%20Farm%20Hambledon#VIEW?RefType=GFPlanning&KeyNo=332587&KeyText=Subject

Hambledon Parish Council, which held its monthly meeting the day after the application was published, had no opportunity to consider the application in detail. Its next meeting is April 2nd, after the comment deadline.

Therefore, the parish council resolved to request an extension to the comment period in order to examine the proposal in detail and to hear any comments from villagers before responding to Waverley Borough Council.

People with connections to Hambledon and who fulfill ERHA criteria will have the opportunity to apply to be considered for the affordable homes if approval is given to the development. The parish council can comment on the application, but it is for Waverley Borough Council to approve or reject the proposal.

The ERHA website can be found here:https://englishrural.org.uk/

Two More Crashes at Hydestile Shut Salt Lane

For the second day running there has been a crash at the Hydestile Crossroads, and another collision just a few hundred yards away has completely blocked Salt Lane which is now closed to traffic.

Police closed Salt Lane at its junction with the crossroads to all traffic at around 9am today (Wednesday January 30th). It is closed along its entire length to Markwick Lane and beyond to Loxhill.

The crash at the crossroads itself involved two vehicles, and was relatively minor. The crossroads, and its approach down Salt Lane, is covered in ice and road conditions are treacherous.

The second accident was more serious as it has blocked the narrow, rural lane just above New Road. Two cars, traveling in opposite directions, have collided. Injuries appear to be minor. Police are in attendance.

As with the crossroads crash yesterday (see earlier news report), icy conditions are likely to have played a part. But it emphasises the need for Surrey County Council Highways Department to pay heed to the initiatives suggested by Hambledon Parish Council to tackle road safety in the village and its outlying rural lanes.

Salt Lane, on the Hambledon parish boundary is used by many as a cut-through between the A281 and the A3. With the likelihood of a major new housing development at Dunsfold, this narrow lane with passing places will inevitably become even more congested.

As for the crossroads at Hydestile, this has been regarded by locals as an accident black spot for many years and the parish council is in discussions with the highways authority and police to try to implement road safety measures along the length of Hambledon Road, from the Hydestile approach and though the village to Lane End.