FARNHAM Town Council is expected to publish its draft Neighbourhood Plan this week, setting out where residents deem it acceptable to build houses and supporting infrastructure across the town.

A consultation on the plan came to an end in December 2014 and over the past 18 months the council has worked hard to incorporate the public’s comments, as well as those of statutory consultees including Natural England, Surrey Highways, Surrey Education, Thames Water and South East Water, into its final draft document.

Councillors were briefed on the plan last Thursday and it is expected to be published online at www.farn

ham.gov.uk prior to a meeting of the full Farnham Town Council on Thursday, July 21.

Subject to the town council’s approval, the plan will then be subject to a further six-week consultation period managed by Waverley Borough Council with the comments then going to the government inspector appointed to examine the plan prior to its adoption.

North West Farnham Residents’ Association has already raised concerns that the plan does not provide adequate protections for the countryside in the north west of Farnham, however, and plans to raise an objection at the July 21 town council meeting.

Stewart Edge speaking on behalf of the association, said: “Ever since the 2014 consultation on the previous draft Neighbourhood Plan we have been pointing out that the previous ‘Area of Great Landscape’ (AGLV) needed continued protection.

“The assurances we have had from the Neighbourhood Planning group that ‘they are protecting all the green spaces they can’ seem now to be worthless as they have decided not use an objective report (Waverley’s own ‘AMEC’ Landscape report) which classifies the areas (excluding the Hopfields and Coxbridge development sites) as ‘High Sensitivity’.

“This classification means, in the report’s own words, that the landscape cannot accommodate development without ‘extensive degradation of character and value’ – surely a sufficient basis for continued protection.”

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Mr Edge continued: “The NWFRA will be proposing to the town council on July 21 an amendment to the anticipated draft Neighbourhood Plan to add policy protection to most of the existing AGLV and ASVI (Area of Strategic Visual Importance) areas in North West Farnham (by including all areas classified as ‘High Sensitivity’ in the AMEC report)