BUILDING at least 200 affordable homes in Haslemere, Grayswood, Hindhead and Beacon Hill by 2032, was backed by more than 40 per cent of those responding to Localism group Haslemere Vision’s housing consultation.

There was also strong support for Haslemere to form a Community Land Trust to make sure the estimated 200 homes needed for local workers during the Local Plan period are built with sensitivity and enhance the local area.

Community Land Trusts are a non-profit organisations set up by local people, empowered to borrow development funds to build community assets, such as affordable housing.

Their main task is to make sure the homes are genuinely affordable, based on what people actually earn in their area.

More than 900 people responded to the group’s housing consultation and members have now analysed the responses. Haslemere Vision is hoping for a good turnout when it shares its findings in detail at a public meeting in the town’s museum, on Thursday, January 28, starting at 8pm.

Group chairman Stewart Brown said. “One thing remains abundantly clear. Our green spaces are hugely important to us and the respondents to the consultation are prepared to make sacrifices to protect them.

“There was a marked preference for building smaller homes taking less land and 64 per cent chose intensification of housing within town and villages rather than expanding into our green boundaries.

“Respondents do not want to compromise on the area’s attractiveness, however, and steered away from putting the maximum allowable number of homes on key sites. In addition, the low density policy covering properties along Derby Road and Weydown Road enjoyed continued support, with 53 per cent of respondents believing the policy should be retained.

“There is much work to be done in bringing together these results with those of the previous consultation on transport, parking, the economy and community rights.

“Taken together firm directions are emerging, even on such knotty issues as parking, and Haslemere Vision now aims to publish the draft neighbourhood plan by July.”

• A full analysis of the housing consultation findings will be posted online at www.haslemerevision.org.uk on the day of the meeting next week.

nThe Fernhurst Neighbourhood Development Plan inculudes land for 220 homes at the Syngenta site.

The referendum on that plan is programmed to take place on March 2.

If successful, the South Downs National Park planning committee will be asked to consider making it part of the park’s development plan on April 14.