Our Normandy Village - Glaziers Lane
Our Normandy Village - land near Pusseys Copse with Ancient Woodland
Our Normandy Village - view to the Hogs Back and Surrey Hills AONB
Our Normandy Village - St Marks Church, Wyke, 15th c.
Our Normandy Village - winter sunset
Policy H2: Affordable homes
| As well as providing and managing affordable homes ourselves, the Council will work with registered providers, developers and landowners to increase the number of affordable homes in the borough toward meeting identified needs. These affordable homes will be provided:
The tenure and size of affordable homes provided on each qualifying site must contribute, to the Council’s satisfaction, towards meeting the mix of affordable housing needs identified in the Strategic Housing Market Assessment 2015, or subsequent affordable housing needs evidence. This currently includes a tenure split of at least 70% rented, with the remainder being other forms of affordable housing. Affordable rent must be no more than the maximum level set out in our most recent housing guidance or strategy. Developers will be expected to provide land for affordable homes at nil value. We will not grant planning permission for development that would result in the net loss of any affordable homes that have been built, that were secured by planning obligation or condition. |
Response: Object
“Affordable” homes, under national definitions, means homes which are sold or rented at 80% of market value. Even at 70% rented this means that these homes will not be cheap, and starter homes will not be made available for local people. There is a viability clause (4.2.40) which means that in practice this could be unenforceable. We would be losing countryside for no local benefit.
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Bailes Lane: Temporary Article 4 Direction Made!
On 18 April, following numerous representations from members of the public, Normandy Parish Council, and Normandy's Borough Councillors, Guildford Borough Council (GBC) officers acting under their delegated powers issued an Article 4 Direction regarding the agricultural land lying to the west of Bailes Lane, Normandy, GU3 2BA.
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‘Limited Infilling’ in Normandy and Flexford
‘Limited Infilling’ is increasingly used by planning officers as a justification when approving applications in Normandy/Flexford, even where the site is outside the settlement area identified in the Local Plan and is therefore in the Green Belt. (It is worth recalling in this context that the Local Plan removed Normandy and Flexford, along with several other settlements, from the Green Belt, making then ‘inset’, rather than ‘washed over’; this meant that development within the settlement area would not need to accord with Green Belt policy.) We therefore thought it would be helpful to take a closer look at this concept of ‘limited infilling’ in the Green Belt.
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