Green Belt and Housing: Key Issues from Public Meeting
A public meeting at East Horsley Village Hall (EHVH) examined two major issues arising from Guildford Borough Council’s Green Belt Assessment: the designation of grey belt land and the borough’s housing target.
Grey belt designations
Paula Moss, representing Rural Roar, highlighted concerns about the assessment, which classified 96% of Guildford’s Green Belt sites as grey belt. She noted that the same assessment found that two-thirds of these sites continued to perform strongly against Green Belt purposes.
Rural Roar argued that this creates a significant concern for rural communities, as land around and between villages could become more vulnerable to speculative development. The meeting also discussed findings from a Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) study which reported that 88% of homes on approved grey belt sites were on previously undeveloped green fields.
Paula Moss explained that Rural Roar is working with parish councils, including East Horsley, to challenge the impact of these policies on rural areas.
Residents aged 18 and over are encouraged to sign and share the petition calling for a review of the policy’s impact on rural communities:
Concerns over housing numbers
The meeting also considered Guildford Borough’s housing target, which has doubled under the Government’s revised formula.
Rural Roar argued that the formula, which takes account of house prices rather than being based directly on assessed local housing need, places the borough at a disadvantage. It is encouraging residents to ask their councillors to challenge the target.
Residents can also make their views known by responding to the Local Plan consultation and emailing
The meeting highlighted concerns about the scale of proposed development in local villages. Planning applications for 540 homes in Ripley and 600 in Effingham were cited as examples of the potential impact on existing communities.
As Ben Castell, Director at AECOM and architect of the Green Belt Assessment, observed:
“The current policy doesn’t direct development to the best (in terms of access to services and reducing the need to travel) locations. This outcome was built into the definition.”
The meeting concluded with a call for residents and councillors to work together to ensure that the impact of housing and Green Belt policies on rural communities is properly considered.
To find out more about Rural Roar and its campaign, visit www.ruralroar.org.uk.