CALLS for 8,000 houses to be built at Dunsfold Park aerodrome south of Godalming rather than the 2,600 allocated in Waverley’s draft Local Plan have deepened the borough’s east/west divide.

As the deadline for responses to Waverley’s draft document setting out where to build more than 9,000 houses across the borough in the next 16 years passed on Monday, October 3, Godalming Town Council’s stand that a “strategic housing target of 7,000 to 8,000 homes in Dunsfold should be adopted” swiftly became a flashpoint.

The shock announcement was hailed by representatives in the west of the borough who believe more housing at Dunsfold could alleviate the pressure to build on Farnham’s green spaces, but panned by those in the east of Waverley who fear for their area’s ability to accommodate a brand new settlement.

In its formal response to the Local Plan consultation, Godalming described Waverley’s preferred option for 2,600 homes on the borough’s largest greenfield site as the “worst possible scenario” adding it would be more sustainable to build a much larger and more self-sufficient settlement - big enough for its own secondary school.

This was greeted wholeheartedly by the Farnham Society in particular, which has long called for Dunsfold Park’s housing ‘cap’ to be lifted and a settlement of “more than 5,000” built at the aerodrome to avoid Waverley allocating more green field sites in Farnham for housing.

David Howell, chairman of the Farnham Society’s planning committee, told The Herald: “We have always believed that Dunsfold should become a significant development as it is the only major brownfield site remaining in Waverley.

“To develop to the maximum capacity would require a heavy commitment to dramatically improve the local infrastructure and without that commitment from local and central Government it is difficult to imagine how so these proposals is could occur.

“However, with the new Prime Minister’s recent commitment to a massive acceleration in house building, this could happen should the appropriate political blessing be given. It would certainly take pressure off the despoiling of open fields in Waverley.”

But the parish councils surrounding Waverley’s largest brownfield site reacted less favourably to Godalming’s response, reiterating concerns that the local infrastructure is insufficient to take a development of that size.

Chiddingfold Parish Council chairman Richard Hogsflesh said: “My initial reaction to Godalming Town Council’s suggestion that a strategic housing target of 7,000 to 8,000 houses should be set for Dunsfold Park is what on earth do they put in the water at their council meetings?

“On further reflection though I can see it is an understandable attempt, similar to that of The Farnham Society, to get the housing targets for Waverley put as far away from them as possible. Something that I suspect is supported by many borough councillors representing wards that are not located near Dunsfold, especially those in and around Farnham and Haslemere.”

Mr Hogsflesh added the supporters of housing at Dunsfold Park should instead direct their energies to challenging the housing target Waverley Borough Council have put in their draft Local Plan.

“It is based on out-of-date statistics,” he continued. “The numbers should be closer to 372 a year rather than 519 according to independent expert consultant Neil McDonald.

“That’s nearly 3,000 less houses, which would reduce the pressure on all of us considerably and doesn’t even take into account what the further downward impact might be on the numbers once a ‘hard Brexit’ is taken into account. The plan needs to adapt to meet current conditions.”

Charles Orange, chairman of Hascombe Parish Council, also slammed Godalming’s proposal, commenting: “On the one hand Godalming express concerns about the lack of infrastructure surrounding Dunsfold Park and on the other they talk about building 7,000 to 8,000 homes.”

Owners of the former Second World War aerodrome and current home of BBC’s Top Gear, Dunsfold Airport Ltd and Rutland Ltd, currently have an outline planning application pending with Waverley for 1,800 new homes on the 600-acre site.

The deadline for responses to this application passed on October 7), having received 1,943 objections and 333 responses in support - including representations of support from the Farnham Society and Farnham Town Council - prior to the submission of new information supporting the application in September, and 3,175 objections and 10 letters of support afterwards.

Dunsfold Park Ltd declined to comment on responses to Waverley’s draft local plan.

• Those calling for more homes at Dunsfold were given another boost after Jeremy Hunt, MP for South West Surrey and Secretary of State for Health, relaxed his historic opposition to a new settlement at the aerodrome.

In a letter to The Herald, Mr Hunt said: “Although I campaigned against overdevelopment in my early years as an MP, including personally leading the campaign to stop the development, I have changed my views somewhat since then.

“Having been contacted by so many constituents with concerns about getting their children and grandchildren onto the housing ladder, I have come to the view that we need to strike a better balance between their needs and the understandable concerns of many local residents.

“That said, I have enormous sympathy with the concerns many people have raised and I do believe there are many important questions to be answered before any development at Dunsfold proceeds, particularly with respect to the increase in traffic it will generate.”