Evidence Studies/Research and Supporting Documents

The role of the SHLAA is to identify potential housing sites as evidence to help us make decisions about the location of housing in the emerging Local Plan..

The SHLAA does not decide where housing should be located or decide what specific housing sites should be allocated.  The fact that a site has been mentioned in the SHLAA does not mean that it will be allocated in the Local Plan or that it will be granted planning permission

The following Assessments have been published:

• SHLAA - Update (base date 1 April 2012)
• SHLAA - Update (base date 1 April 2011)
• SHLAA - Update (base date 1 April 2010)
• SHLAA - Original Report (base date 1 April 2008)

More information on each of the assessments (in order of date) is provided below:

The Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (base date 1 April 2008)

The SHLAA was carried out by Baker Associates in two stages and assesses the suitability, availability, and achievability of potential housing sites.  

Stage 1: Identifying sites within settlements

This stage identified sites that could potentially deliver a net of six or more new dwellings within the four main settlements of Cranleigh, Farnham, Godalming and Haslemere and those settlements that are defined as rural settlements under Policy RD1 of the adopted Waverley Borough Local Plan 2002.

Stage 2: Identifying sites outside settlements

This stage identified potential housing sites within areas adjacent to the four main settlements of Cranleigh, Farnham, Godalming and Haslemere and the five most sustainable rural settlements in terms of a range of services and facilities: Bramley, Chiddingfold, Elstead, Milford and Witley.  The sites came forward as a result of inviting landowners and others if they had potential sites available.  Only sites adjacent to settlement boundaries and larger than 0.25 ha were considered.

This stage also specifically assessed four major brownfield sites outside settlements: Dunsfold Aerodrome, Milford Hospital, Shackleford Mushroom Farm and Weyburn Works/Tanshire Park, Elstead.

The Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (base date 1 April 2010)

This updates the SHLAA to 1st April 2010 by focussing on identifying sites within the four main settlements and the rural settlements, defined under Policy RD1 of the adopted Waverley Borough Local Plan 2002. However, the update of the SHLAA now identifies sites that could potentially deliver a net of five new dwellings (rather than six net new dwellings in the previous SHLAA). The update also specifically assesses the three remaining available major brownfield sites outside settlements that were assessed in the previous SHLAA: Weyburn Works/Tanshire Park, Dunsfold Park and Milford Hospital.

The SHLAA does not assess greenfield sites outside settlements. Any assessment of potential for housing from broad locations outside settlements should be taken from the first SHLAA (base date 1 April 2008).  

The Council sent a copy of the draft methodology to 40 agents, developers, landowners and the Home Builders Federation in July 2010 and the CPRE Surrey in September 2010.

View the Council's response to comments made on the draft methodology

The Waverley Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (base date 1 April 2011)

This is the latest published update of the SHLAA with a base date of 1 April 2011. This uses the same methodology as the previous SHLAA (April 2010), but also includes an assessment of the potential for housing of the existing employment sites originally assessed in the Employment Land Review.

The SHLAA does not assess greenfield sites outside settlements. Any assessment of potential for housing from broad locations outside settlements should be taken from the first SHLAA (base date 1 April 2008).

The Waverley Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (base date 1st April 2012)

This is the latest published update of the SHLAA with a base date of 1 April 2012.

In March/April 2012 we undertook a call for potential housing sites. As part of this study, we have been updating our evidence of land that is potentially available on the edge of the main settlements.  Therefore, we also invited the submission of details of sites that are outside but immediately adjacent to the policy boundaries of the main settlements identified above that are not within the Metropolitan Green Belt, the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and the designated Area of Great Landscape Value (AGLV).

The SHLAA provides a list of greenfield sites that have been promoted. It also identifies a list of sites which meet the above criteria. Please note that these sites have been listed for information only. It is the intention that specific greenfield allocations will be included in the proposed Development Management and Site Allocations document and the detailed assessment of these sites will form part of the preparation of that document.

Please note that a corrected version of Appendix 6 was added on the 4 September 2012, which differs from the version published on the 16 August 2012.  

Further Information

If you have any queries or wish to find out more about the Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment please contact Matthew Ellis on 01483 523297 or Anna Ludford on 01483 523377.

Page owner: Anna Ludford. Last updated: 20/03/2013 15:31