THE offer of a new 20-acre public open space for the benefit of Haslemere residents in perpetuity has been made by town-based property developer Tony Lawson.

The proposal for a ‘wild park’ next to Longdene House and adjoining the Sturt Farm site, where Mr Lawson has been given consent to build 135 houses in an area of outstanding natural beauty, is part of a composite application submitted to Waverley Borough Council, this week.

In a ‘round-robin’ letter posted to all borough councillors on Tuesday, Mr Lawson criticises Waverley’s draft Local Plan for failing to include the need for Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG) to be provided for housing developments in Haslemere, close to the Wealden Heaths Special Protection Area (SPA).

Mr Lawson said by donating 20 acres of countryside as a public space open to all, he would be resolving the absence of SANG in Haslemere “at no cost to the council”, and it would enable more of the 830 new homes allocated for the town, some of which are dependent on SANGs to be built.

Using delegated powers, planning officers have just refused a scheme for 55 flats in three new apartment blocks in Wey Hill close to the railway bridge, partly on the grounds the application could impact on the Wealden Heaths SPA but had included no SANG mitigation measures.

Urging councillors to support his application, Mr Lawson said it was an “unique opportunity to bring forward new homes, solve the SANG issue and put local people’s minds at rest”.

He added: “There still remains in excess of 400 houses which we believe cannot be delivered in Waverley’s local development plan housing numbers, until such time as SANG provision is put in place.

“The proposed submission encompasses the current application for 10 units here at Longdene House, the formerly withdrawn application for the alternative entrance to Sturt Farm and the change of use for all the remaining land to public open space.”

Waverley’s consultation on its draft Local Plan, which concluded on October 3, triggered representations from around 620 individuals and organisations, along with more than 2,100 Protect Our Waverley postcards.

All the comments will be analysed and a report setting out the key issues will be considered by the council’s joint overview and scrutiny committee, executive and full council.

The plan will then be submitted for examination to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government later this year.

Mr Lawson included his SANG offer in responses by Ecological Planning and Research, which he commissioned to respond on his behalf. The company objected that the draft Local Plan was unsound, due to the absence of SANG making the 830 houses allocated “undeliverable”.

The company also lodged objections to 2,600 houses allocated for Dunsfold airfield, as “not being consistent with the main thrust of the plan itself”, which was to “concentrate new homes around the major settlements in the borough”.

• South West Surrey MP Jeremy Hunt broke a long period of silence on the Dunsfold Park application for 1,800 houses, in a letter to The Herald, this week,

He wrote: “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 we need to strike a better balance between their needs and the understandable concerns of many residents.

“I am personally constrained on this issue as my own house will be directly affected and therefore I have a conflict of interest.

“I am however doing what I can to ensure concerns are addressed, as I recognise how getting it wrong could be a very serious issue for the area.

“With respect to calling-in I have raised the issue with Sajid Javid MP, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, so he is aware of the strength of local feeling.

“I will also raise the issue with Gavin Barwell, Minister for Housing and Planning at a forthcoming meeting.

“However, while I will continue to make the case for better investment in infrastructure and more consideration of traffic issues with both ministers, I must now allow them to make their own judgement about how best to proceed.”

Eleven parish councils in Waverley, Guildford and Chichester boroughs joined forces earlier this year to request the Secretary of State ;call in; the plan. If Mr David agrees, he will inform Waverley if it is minded to approve the application, it cannot be permitted without his consent.

Instead, a planning inspector will be appointed and the scheme will be determined by public inquiry.

Charles Orange, joint parish councils co-ordinator, hoped Guildford MP Anne Milton, whose constituency includes part of the airfield, would now also intervene.

Chiddingfold Parish Council chairman Richard Hogsflesh said while he welcomed the Tory Health Secretary raising the matter with his ministerial colleagues, but claimed there were three important issues with plans to build a new settlement at Dunsfold.

Firstly, should the application be determined before the Local Plan is in place?

Secondly, should WBC’s housing target be reduced and will Dunsfold Park actually address Mr Hunt’s worries over his constituents’ housing fears about getting on the property ladder.

Mr Hogsflesh: “We should be looking to extend our existing settlements, not create a new one. I very much welcome Jeremy raising the issue with both Sajid David and Gavin Barwell.”