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Local Plan consultation (coming soon)

Have your say on the Tandridge District Local Plan 2024-2044

We want to hear your views and use them to help shape the future of the district. Whether you’re a resident, key worker, business owner or student - your voice matters.

We are preparing a new Local Plan to guide how the district grows and changes up to 2044. The Local Plan will set the big picture for homes, jobs, services, transport and green spaces.

You can choose to read:

Paper copies are at:

How you can help right now

This is the first stage and no decisions have been made yet. We want your views on:

  • Where growth should go and what matters most when choosing locations.
  • The types of homes the district needs.
  • How to protect nature and heritage while building more homes.
  • Transport and infrastructure priorities (roads, public transport, schools, healthcare, utilities, digital).
  • What makes your place special, what should be protected and where change could help.

Out of scope at this stage: choosing specific sites, detailed policies, or final housing numbers (those will come later).

How to take part

You can share your views by completing our online survey. The survey is based on the content of the consutlation documents.

Start the survey [CTA button]

The consultation is open until 11.59pm on Sunday 1 March 2026.

Other ways to respond

If you cannot complete the survey online, you can:

What happens next

Your comments will help us make the right decisions for the Tandridge District in the context of a very challenging situation.

We will review all responses and publish a consultation summary, explaining how feedback has informed the development of the Plan.

Background

The government requires every council responsible for local planning to prepare a Local Plan. Once adopted the Local Plan will guide all planning decisions.

The plan will shape:

  • Where new homes are built.
  • Protection of countryside and green spaces.
  • Access to schools, GPs and services.
  • Roads, transport and community spaces.
  • Jobs and business opportunities.

The government wants to build 1.5 million new homes nationally by 2029. To assist with this, it has introduced planning reforms including allowing areas of Green Belt to be reclassified as grey belt with a view to releasing them for development.

Find out more about the Local Plan and below.

 

A Local Plan aims to:

  • Put homes, jobs and services in the right places.
  • Protect the countryside and local character.
  • Support nature recovery and cleaner, greener living.
  • Improve transport so more trips can be made by walking, cycling and public transport.
  • Make sure new development brings the right infrastructure (schools, healthcare, utilities, green space).
  • Our current Local Plan needs updating.
  • The government wants more homes built across England and expects every council to have a current LocalPlan.
  • Without a Local Plan, developers can put in planning applications we don’t want and the district could end up with planning by appeal, which gives us less control.
  • Housing need: The government’s housebuilding target for the district is 993 homes a year. This compares with 125 a year under the current Local Plan, so a very large increase.
  • Land is limited: Around 94% of the district is Green Belt and we also have National Landscapes, flood risk areas, historic places and wildlife sites. These are special and need careful protection.
  • Infrastructure: Roads, public transport, schools, health services and utilities already feel stretched in parts of the district.

Consultation runs: Monday 19 January 2026 - Sunday 1 March 2026 at 11:59pm.

Once this consultation closes, the next steps are likely to be:

  • Later in 2026: First public consultation on the Plan’s details
  • Early 2027: Draft Plan published for comments
  • Mid 2027: Publish the plan for formal consultation and submit it for examination.
  • Early 2028: The Plan will be examined by an independent inspector.
  • Mid 2028: Adopt the Local Plan.
  • Population: around 88,000.
  • Around 94% of the district is Green Belt.
  • Main centres: Caterham, Warlingham/Whyteleafe, Oxted/Hurst Green/Limpsfield.

The Plan must meet national tests and be examined independently. We will work with Surrey County Council, neighbouring councils and national bodies so the plan can pass examination and be delivered.

Term Definition
Affordable housing Housing for sale or rent, for those whose needs are not met by the market (including housing that provides a subsidised route to home ownership and/or is for essential local workers).
Area of Great Landscape
Value (AGLV)		 Land designated locally to be of high landscape quality with strong distinctive characteristics which make them particularly sensitive to development.
Community
Infrastructure Levy (CIL)		 CIL is a charge which can be levied by local authorities on new development in their area. It is an important tool for local authorities to help fund and deliver the infrastructure needed to support development in their area.
Design code A set of illustrated design requirements providing specific, detailed parameters for the physical
development of a site or area.
Designated heritage
asset		 A World Heritage Site, Scheduled Monument, Listed Building, Protected Wreck Site, Registered Park and Garden, Registered Battlefield or Conservation Area.
Duty to cooperate A legal requirement that mandates collaboration between local planning authorities and other public bodies on strategic matters that affect more than one area.
Green Belt Land designated to prevent urban sprawl by keeping land permanently open. The five purposes of Green Belt are to (a) check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas, (b) to prevent neighbouring towns merging into one another, (c) to assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment, (d) to preserve the setting and special character of historic towns, and (e) to assist in urban regeneration, by encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land.
Green infrastructure A network of multi-functional green spaces and other natural features, urban and rural, capable of delivering a wide range of environmental, economic, health and wellbeing benefits.
Grey Belt Land in the Green Belt comprising previously developed land and/or any other land that, in either
case, does not strongly contribute to any of purposes (a), (b), or (d). Grey belt excludes land where
the application of the policies relating to the areas or assets in footnote 7 (other than Green Belt) would provide a strong reason for refusing or restricting development.
Historic environment All aspects of the environment resulting from the interaction between people and places through time, including all surviving physical remains of past human activity, whether visible, buried or submerged, and landscaped and planted or managed flora.
Local Housing Need
(LHN)		 The number of homes identified as being needed through the application of the standard method set out in the PPG.
Local Plan A plan for the future development of a local area, drawn up by the local planning authority in consultation with the community. A local plan can consist of either strategic or non-strategic policies, or a combination of the two.
National Landscape Areas legally designated as areas of outstanding natural beauty under the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 and Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.
National Planning Policy
Framework (NPPF)		 NPPF contains national policy guiding the preparation of Local Plans and is a material consideration in planning decisions.
National Planning Policy
Guidance (PPG)		 PPG contains national guidance to aid interpretation and application of national policy contained in the NPPF.
Open space All open space of public value, including not just land, but also areas of water (such as rivers, canals, lakes and reservoirs) which offer important opportunities for sport and recreation and can act as a visual amenity.
Section 106 Agreement A legal agreement between a planning authority and a developer that ensures certain works related to a development are undertaken in order to mitigate the impact of development.
Plan period A plan period refers to the duration during which a local plan is in effect and generally covers a 15-20 year period.
Previously developed
land (Brownfield Land)		 Land which has been lawfully developed and is or was occupied by a permanent structure and any fixed surface infrastructure associated with it, including the curtilage of the developed land.
Renewable and low
carbon energy		 Renewable energy covers those energy flows that occur naturally and repeatedly in the environment – from the wind, the fall of water, the movement of the oceans, from the sun and also from biomass and deep geothermal heat. Low carbon technologies are those that can help reduce emissions (compared to conventional use of fossil fuels).
Self-build and custombuild
housing		 Housing built by an individual, a group of individuals, or persons working with or for them, to be occupied by that individual.
Spatial development
strategy		 plan containing policies to deliver housing and infrastructure across a strategic area (such as a County) prepared by Mayor or the relevant higher tier authority.
Sustainable transport Transport with overall low impact on the environment, including walking and cycling, ultra-low and zero emission vehicles, car sharing and public transport.

 

Because land is limited and need is high, we must make clear choices. The options being explored include:

  1. Build more within towns and larger villages (using brownfield land and higher densities where suitable).
  2. Spread growth across the district (including some carefully chosen Green Belt/grey belt areas where impact is lowest).
  3. Create a new settlement with planned transport and services from the start.
  4. A balanced mix of the above, choosing the most sustainable locations.

We need different kinds of homes: smaller homes for first time buyers and downsizers, family homes, homes for older
or disabled residents and affordable housing.

  • The Plan will set clear rules for how much affordable housing developers must provide.
  • If onsite affordable homes aren’t possible, developers may provide a payment to the Council which is used to deliver affordable homes elsewhere in the district.
  • The Council may deliver and own some affordable homes directly, alongside housing associations, to make sure homes meet local needs.

We also need to provide sites for Gypsies, Travellers and Travelling Showpeople.

  • Support local jobs by protecting good employment sites and creating new space for growing sectors (digital, creative, green industries, farming and rural businesses).
  • Encourage mixed use regeneration so people can live near workspaces and services.
  • Improve digital and transport links to reduce long, car-based commutes.
  • Respect the identity of each town and village, using local design codes so new buildings fit their setting.
  • Natural Environment: New development should improve habitats and help connect green spaces (meeting at least 10% Biodiversity Net Gain and aligning with Surrey’s Nature Recovery Strategy). Protect National Landscapes, ancient woodlands and irreplaceable habitats.
  • Historic environment: Protect Conservation Areas, listed buildings and heritage sites. Good design should add to local character, not erode it.
  • Healthy communities: Plan for safe streets, play areas, parks and easy access to healthcare, schools and daily services.
  • Climate change: Support low carbon homes, renewable energy (like solar panels and heat pumps), electric vehicle charging and layouts that reduce car use.

Developers help pay for schools, health, roads, parks and utilities through Section 106 agreements and the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL). Our Infrastructure Delivery Plan (IDP) sets out what’s needed, when and how it is funded.

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