Surrey council area
Selling Land in Guildford
Guildford passes the government's delivery test with 102%, yet on its own figures it has under three years of housing land. Its 2019 strategy is now judged against a far higher need, and a new Local Plan has just begun, so the borough's Green Belt is being looked at afresh.
- We pay for the planning, at our own cost and risk
- Your price is agreed up front, in writing
- If planning is refused, you keep your land and owe nothing
Twelve Stations, 89% Green Belt and a Strategy From 2019
Guildford Borough Council covers the town of Guildford, the Ash and Tongham area in the west, and parishes that run from Pirbright and Worplesdon across to Send, Ripley, the Horsleys and Effingham, and south to Shalford, Shere and Albury. It spans about 271 square kilometres, with around 151,000 residents in 2024. The plan counts twelve railway stations, led by Guildford itself, the busiest in the county, and names the M25, A3, A31 and A331 as its main roads.
- Green Belt almost everywhere. The adopted plan puts approximately 89% of the borough in the Metropolitan Green Belt.
- A plan in two parts. The Local Plan: Strategy and Sites 2015 to 2034 was adopted in April 2019, and the Development Management Policies followed on 22 March 2023.
- On target, looking back. The Housing Delivery Test 2025 counted 1,901 homes against a requirement of 1,856, a result of 102%.
- Short, looking forward. The council's supply statement at 1 April 2025 finds 2.98 years of deliverable housing land.
- Hills and heaths. The Surrey Hills cover the south of the borough, and the Thames Basin Heaths bring extra rules within 7km of the protected heathland.
The gap between a comfortable delivery score and a thin supply is the story of Guildford land today.
Guildford in Figures
The government's latest figures for the council, and where its local plan stands.
Housing Delivery Test 2025
102%
Meeting its housing requirement.
Homes built against homes needed
1,901
of 1,856 needed, April 2022 to March 2025
Most recent strategic plan adopted
April 2019
More than five years old, so its housing figures are usually replaced by the government's standard method.
New plan progress
Updated
New Local Plan started: scoping from September 2026, adoption aimed for April 2029
Checked source
Sources: Housing Delivery Test: 2025 measurement, MHCLG, published 17 August 2026; Local plans: monitoring progress, Planning Inspectorate, August 2026. Local plans move quickly, so always check the council's own website for the latest position.
From 562 Homes a Year to More Than 1,150
The 2019 strategy planned for at least 10,678 homes between 2015 and 2034, or 562 a year. It reached its fifth anniversary on 25 April 2024, and from then on the council has had to test its supply against the government's standard method instead. The statement with a base date of 1 April 2025, published as an appendix to the council's 2025 land availability assessment, sets out the result:
| Step | Council's figure |
|---|---|
| Local housing need, standard method | 1,168 homes a year |
| Five years of need | 5,840 homes |
| With a 5% buffer | 6,132 homes |
| Deliverable supply, 2025 to 2030 | 3,655 homes |
| Result | 2.98 years |
On these figures the borough is about 2,480 homes short of a five-year supply. Most of the 3,655 comes from sites that already have permission, with 336 allowed for windfall. For scale, the council's monitoring report counts 490 homes completed in 2024/25, including 471 ordinary dwellings, against a need now above 1,100 a year.
Why You May Read 1,151 or 1,168
The supply statement uses 1,168 homes a year. The council's Local Plan questions and answers page gives 1,151. Both come from the standard method, which is recalculated as new affordability and household data appear, so the later page most likely reflects a newer run. The difference is under 2% and changes nothing for a landowner: either figure roughly doubles the adopted plan's 562. The same page admits that without a five-year supply it is much more difficult to resist speculative development.
Where a 2.98-Year Supply Makes a Difference
Under the August 2026 National Planning Policy Framework a supply short of five years counts as evidence that housing need is not being met. It is weighed, not automatic, and its reach depends on where land sits:
- Inside Guildford and the inset villages. Policy S4 covers homes on land within a settlement. It starts from a presumption in favour, and a council may say no only if the harm substantially exceeds what the scheme offers.
- Around Ash and Tongham, outside the Green Belt. The adopted strategy places further growth around Ash and Tongham on land it describes as beyond the Green Belt. Policy S5 can reach land there that lies outside the Green Belt, where it is well related to the settlement and served by roads, schools and drainage that can cope. The council's Policies Map shows exactly where the boundary runs.
- Grey belt. S5 does not reach Green Belt land. There, national policy asks whether the land is grey belt and whether a need for homes is evidenced, and a supply short of five years is the usual way that need is shown. Schemes then have to meet the Golden Rules on affordable housing, infrastructure and green space, which our grey belt guide explains.
- Previously developed land. Green Belt policy treats former yards, depots and plots carrying lawful non-farm buildings on their own terms. The council's monitoring report found 68% of 2024/25 completions on brownfield land.
- Near a station. National policy now backs higher densities close to stations with a good service, so land a short walk from any of the twelve is worth testing.
Our brownfield and yards page explains how old yards are judged.
The Green Belt Assessment 2026
The 2019 strategy removed only 1.5% of the Green Belt for its allocations. The new plan starts from a Green Belt Assessment published this year and revised in August 2026, after national policy changed the definition of grey belt. The council's questions and answers on it are clear about its limits:
- Its main purpose is to identify grey belt land, as evidence for the new Local Plan.
- Land found to be grey belt may still be unsuitable for development for other reasons.
- Identifying land as grey belt does not grant planning permission, and the council describes the assessment as a starting point only when deciding applications on land that may be grey belt.
For a landowner, the assessment shows where the argument can begin. A field in a parcel it identifies as grey belt has an easier case to open; one it rates as strongly contributing may be better put forward through the plan.
Strategic Sites Running Behind the Plan
Much of the 2019 strategy rests on a few very large sites, and the council's questions and answers page acknowledges slower progress towards delivery of several of them than it expected. The 2025 supply statement shows why the five-year figure is so low:
| Site | In the 2019 plan | Where it stands now |
|---|---|---|
| Former Wisley airfield | A new settlement of about 2,000 homes | Outline permission for 1,730 homes approved, as the 2024/25 monitoring report records |
| Gosden Hill Farm, north east of Guildford | About 1,700 homes in the plan period | No homes counted in the five years to March 2030 |
| Blackwell Farm, south west of Guildford | About 1,500 homes in the plan period | No homes counted in the five years to March 2030 |
| Ash and Tongham extension | Growth beyond the Green Belt | No homes counted in the five years to March 2030 |
The monitoring report also records permissions for 405 homes at Guildford railway station and 187 at Weyside Urban Village, part of the Slyfield regeneration. Large sites take years to reach first completions, which is why smaller, deliverable land counts for so much here.
Heaths, the Surrey Hills and the Proposed Extension
Thames Basin Heaths
The council's avoidance strategy, updated in 2024, sets three zones around the protected heaths. Within 400 metres there is a presumption against any net increase in homes. Between 400 metres and 5 kilometres, new homes need mitigation before occupation, through Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG) and a payment towards access management, both charged by bedroom numbers and indexed each year. Between 5 and 7 kilometres, schemes of more than 50 homes are looked at case by case.
SANG is provided at 8 hectares per 1,000 new residents. The council runs its own at Riverside Nature Reserve, Chantry Woods, Effingham Common and Lakeside Nature Reserve, and is considering Tyting Farm and Burpham Court Farm. A scheme can also provide bespoke SANG, which normally passes to the council with funding for 125 years.
The Surrey Hills
The south of the borough lies in the Surrey Hills National Landscape, with Areas of Great Landscape Value around it. A proposal to add 129 square kilometres, 30.5% more than today, went to the Secretary of State in September 2026. Local reporting of the proposals in November 2025 listed the Hog's Back, the Binscombe Hills, the Wey Valley, Hatchlands and East Clandon, and Cranleigh Waters among the areas that reach into Guildford borough. The government says the extension areas gain no new status unless and until the order is confirmed, and there is no set timescale for that decision.
The Land We Look for in Guildford
- Land on the edges of Ash and Tongham that sits beyond the Green Belt.
- Green Belt parcels hemmed in by homes, roads or the railway, which may be grey belt.
- Yards, depots, nurseries and equestrian sites with lawful buildings or hardstanding.
- Land within an easy walk of one of the borough's twelve stations.
- Open land that could serve as SANG for homes nearby.
- Larger holdings to put forward for the new Local Plan.
Land inside the Surrey Hills, or within 400 metres of the heaths, faces a much higher bar, and we will say so plainly. For land that fits, we fund all of the planning work under an option agreed at a fixed price, above today's value, and you keep the land and owe nothing if permission is not granted. Our land value page explains how a price is reached.
A New Plan for Guildford, Under a New Council
The Plan Timetable
The council decided in February 2024 that its 2019 strategy needed updating, and it is now preparing a single new plan to replace both existing parts. The timetable agreed by its Executive on 28 May 2026 runs as follows:
| Stage | Council's date |
|---|---|
| Scoping consultation | 2 September to 14 October 2026 |
| Gateway 1 self-assessment | 30 October 2026 |
| Proposed content consultation | 7 April to 19 May 2027 |
| Gateway 2 review by the Planning Inspectorate | 1 September 2027 |
| Proposed plan consultation | 1 March to 26 April 2028 |
| Examination | From 29 September 2028 |
| Adoption | 30 April 2029 |
The spring 2027 consultation is likely to be the first to show the council's thinking on sites, so evidence for land that belongs in the plan is best prepared this winter. The call for sites stays open all year for housing sites of five or more homes.
West Surrey From April 2027
The new West Surrey unitary council takes over from Guildford Borough Council on 1 April 2027, and the government's review of reorganisation, launched on 7 September 2026, left Surrey untouched. The council expects the new plan to cover the borough's current area, and notes the government's expectation that reorganisation should not delay plan-making.
The Next Supply Statement and Delivery Test
The supply position is refreshed each year with the land availability assessment. The Housing Delivery Test 2025 came out on 17 August 2026, and a new edition follows annually. At 102% no consequence applies; a result below 95% would bring an action plan, below 85% a 20% buffer that would widen the supply gap, and one below 75% would mean unmet need is treated as evidenced under S5.
What This Means for Timing
- Grey belt, brownfield and Ash and Tongham land can be assessed now, while the supply shortfall stands.
- Larger Green Belt holdings are usually better aimed at the proposed content stage in 2027.
Questions About Land in Guildford
Guildford has under three years of supply. Will my Green Belt field near Send get permission?
Not on that alone. The shortfall helps show a need for homes, but the field must also be grey belt and the scheme must meet the Golden Rules, so we test each Green Belt purpose first.
The Green Belt Assessment shows my land as grey belt. Can I apply now?
It is a good start, but the council is clear that the assessment does not grant permission. Access, landscape, the heaths and the Golden Rules still have to be answered, and we look at all of them before recommending an application.
My land is near Ash and outside the Green Belt. Is that different?
Yes. Land beyond the Green Belt is not held back by Green Belt policy, so the supply shortfall can support an application under S5 where the land sits well against the settlement and local services can cope. The heaths still need checking.
Could my land be used as SANG rather than for homes?
It can be, where it is the right size and in the right place for walkers. The council's call for sites asks for land that could provide mitigation, and SANG can allow homes to go ahead on other land nearby.
My fields are on the Hog's Back. Does the Surrey Hills extension affect them?
For now, no. The proposed extension has no status until the government confirms it, and there is no set date for that. If it is confirmed, the land would be judged as part of the National Landscape, so we factor the proposal into our review.
Tell Us About Your Land in Guildford
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More in Surrey
County overview
Selling Land in Surrey
Selling land in Surrey? Most councils are behind on new homes and grey belt is being tested. We agree your price up front and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 102%
Selling Land in Reigate and Banstead
Own land in Reigate and Banstead? The council now counts 4.08 years of housing land, under the five it needs. We agree your price and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 98%
Selling Land in Surrey Heath
Own land in Surrey Heath? Its land supply is 7.17 years on the old housing figure but 3.12 on the new one. We agree your price and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 117%
Selling Land in Waverley
Own land in Waverley? Its latest statement finds 1.28 years of housing land against a need of 1,481 a year. We agree your price and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 97%
Selling Land in Woking
Own land in Woking? The whole borough lies within 5km of protected heath, and a new plan to 2044 has begun. We agree your price and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 59%
Selling Land in Elmbridge
Own land in Elmbridge? Its last plan was found unsound and a new one is due in 2028. See what grey belt means for you. We pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 33%
Selling Land in Epsom and Ewell
Own land in Epsom and Ewell? The council built only 33% of the homes it needed. We agree your price for the land up front and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 72%
Selling Land in Mole Valley
Own land in Mole Valley? A 2024 plan with an early review, the Surrey Hills and Green Belt explained. We agree a price and pay for all the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 33%
Selling Land in Spelthorne
Own land in Spelthorne? The council built only 33% of the homes it needed and is already reviewing its plan. We agree a price and pay for the planning.
Housing Delivery Test: 38%
Selling Land in Tandridge
Own land in Tandridge? The council built only 38% of the homes it needed in a district that is 94% Green Belt. We pay for all the planning work.
Housing Delivery Test: 94%
Selling Land in Runnymede
Own land in Runnymede? The council's September 2025 statement found 2.89 years of housing land, not five. We agree your price and pay for all the planning.
Sources
- Guildford Borough Council: Local Plan: Strategy and Sites 2015 to 2034 (adopted April 2019)
- Guildford Borough Council: Five Year Housing Land Supply, base date 1 April 2025 (Land Availability Assessment 2025, appendix 8)
- Guildford Borough Council: Authority Monitoring Report 2024/2025
- Guildford Borough Council: Local Plan update, frequently asked questions
- Guildford Borough Council: Timetable for our Local Plan (June 2026)
- Guildford Borough Council: Call for Sites
- Guildford Borough Council: Green Belt Assessment FAQs (August 2026)
- Guildford Borough Council: Thames Basin Heaths SPA Avoidance Strategy 2017 (updated 2024)
- GOV.UK: Extension proposal for Surrey Hills National Landscape submitted (September 2026)
- The Guildford Dragon: The Surrey Hills National Landscape boundary set to be expanded (November 2025)
- GOV.UK: Review of local government reorganisation launched (7 September 2026)
- Wikipedia: Borough of Guildford
Figures on this page come from the Housing Delivery Test 2025 (published 17 August 2026) and the Planning Inspectorate's local plan monitoring to August 2026, with newer plan milestones checked on 24 September 2026. We update the page when new results or plan milestones are published. Planning positions change quickly, so always check the council's own website before relying on it.