Withybush Farm

Initially we were approached for advice by a couple who had a farm just south of Cranleigh. They were considering retiring and wanted to make the most of their property and had received an offer for their land. When we had provided our analysis of the proposal that had been put to them it became apparent that they were not being offered a fair price. The result being that we were asked to take the project on at an improved offer that satisfied them.

On site was a number of barns of various sizes and repair. We decided to split the site and make two applications. Waverley BC has been beset with difficulty in keeping their planning officers and during the life of this application, we have had no less than 7 different officers, all with different opinions and interpretations of the NPPF. Not unsurprisingly, we were turned down on our first two applications and we went through the appeals process whilst submitting further new applications reducing the 3 houses to 2 bungalows, since bulk and mass were a sticking point with WBC.  Added to this, the Government has been ‘tinkering’ with planning reform and made our progress more difficult than it should have been.

We await the result of an appeal on 2 bungalows and recent policy changes have made the process of a Part Q application much easier. We will be submitting shortly for a terrace of three bed houses.