Our Vision

Our aim is to deliver distinctive, inclusive neighbourhoods with a strong sense of place, integrated with the surrounding communities and supported by high quality design across all aspects of the development - regardless of tenure or housing type. Our masterplans for both sites create a well-connected, healthy, and sustainable community, supported by nature-led design, and safe, welcoming public spaces.

While scale and massing are matters reserved for future planning applications, we envisage that homes would generally be two storeys in height, with the potential for a small number of three-storey buildings positioned to frame key routes and entrances.

Affordable housing

Woking has an acute need for more affordable housing of all types, sizes and tenures. The demand for affordable housing far exceeds supply because of a number of land constraints. Local house prices and rents create an additional issue of affordability for many people. (Source: Woking Borough Council ‘Affordable Housing Delivery’ Supplementary Planning Document, March 2023).

According to the Government’s UK House Price Index, the average house price in Woking in May 2025 was £460,026, 41% higher than the average UK house price of at £269,000.

There were 1,165 households on Woking Borough Council’s housing register (‘waiting list’) in March 2024, an increase of 96 on the year before, according to Government figures. (Source: Number of households on local authority housing registers [waiting lists], Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).

To help towards tackling this significant affordable housing shortage, we are proposing that half of the new homes across both sites would be affordable.

Our plans will also help contribute towards Woking Borough Council’s overall increasing housing requirement.

Energy efficient and green homes

Our intention is for the homes to include a range of measures to reduce energy demand, improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions in line with current building regulations (and those that are relevant at the time of construction) to address the climate emergency and allow future residents to benefit from lower energy costs.

Access, transport and parking

We will make getting around on foot and by bicycle easier, both from the sites and to existing neighbouring areas. Our proposals will create new formal foot/ cycle paths within the sites which can link to existing public rights of way and nearby green spaces, connecting to local shops, schools and other local services. This will encourage sustainable active travel.

The new homes on each site will include frontages onto Saunders Lane, with new footpaths and cycling links within the sites, connecting to existing public rights of way and supporting access to local facilities.

Cars and other motor vehicles will access each site from two new separate junctions off Saunders Lane. These access points will be simple priority junctions with a two-metre footpath on each side.

Our plans will provide pedestrian crossing points near the new access locations on Saunders Lane, and we are also suggesting other improvements to Saunders Lane, where possible, such as footway widening.

There will be an additional emergency vehicle access from Hook Hill Lane through the eastern site. This access point can also be used as a further dedicated pedestrian and cycle connection.

We will also provide an area of formalised on-street parking along Saunders Lane, next to the site access, to replace existing informal parking arrangements.

Car and cycle parking will be provided on the sites in line with Woking Borough Council’s standards. This will include on-plot parking, visitor parking, electric vehicle charging and cycle parking in covered and secure locations.

Protecting landscape and enriching nature

The sites are currently designated as Grade 4 ‘poor quality’ agricultural land. Our aim is to enrich and boost nature and wildlife, increasing overall biodiversity net gain locally by 10 per cent. This will be achieved off site.

We will conserve the woodland area around the site boundaries. We will seek to retain trees and hedgerows wherever possible and enhance the existing green infrastructure through additional sympathetic planting and species enrichment.

We will ensure our plans are sensitively designed and landscape-led so that there is as little adverse impact on the landscape as possible.

Flooding

The EA Flood Maps for Planning show that the sites lie within fluvial flood zone 1 while surface water mapping shows the majority of the sites to be at very low risk of flooding from surface water.

We will ensure that surface water in storm events can be accommodated by storm water attenuation storage such as ponds. These ponds will also be an attractive water feature that can be a haven for birds and other wildlife.

Community benefits

Our plans will provide new public open green spaces on both sites. Private land will be made publicly, legally and permanently accessible, providing everyone with opportunities to get outside and enjoy the space.

Other open space will include a mix of amenity spaces, formal play facilities and natural and semi-natural greenspaces.

We also intend to provide improvements to Saunders Lane such as footway widening.

Our plans will create jobs and investment during the construction phase, together with generation of investment in the local area.

The development will generate financial contributions via Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 106 contributions, to be agreed with Woking Borough Council, to support local infrastructure needs. These will also provide vital support for Woking Borough Council which is heavily indebted.

Additional council tax revenue from the new homes will boost public sector revenues.