Hambledon Parish Council has been informed that English Rural Housing Association, a not-for-profit provider of affordable homes, has acquired Orchard Farm, a property in nine acres of land off Wormley Lane.
At a parish council meeting held on October 29, attended by many residents who live close to Orchard Farm, Nick Hughes, regional development manager of ERHA, outlined a proposal to build 12 affordable homes, four open market units and the replacement or refurbishment of the existing house.
The entire site is within the Green Belt and the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Mr Hughes said that the proposal would be brought forward under Waverley Borough Council Rural Exceptions Site policies and the affordable homes would be available to local people in housing need. He indicated that land not used for housing – approximately four acres – would be gifted to the village to ensure no further development would take place.
There is a planning submission for 120 homes on land adjacent to Milford Hospital. This is a significant development and has implications for existing residents and the surrounding villages.