Borough council calls for “urgent” reforms to national housing target system

The local authority also called for stronger protections for national landscapes and "recognition of the value" of countryside beyond the Green Belt. 

Writing to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, Steve Reed, Waverley's leader, Cllr Paul Fellows, said the current approach places Waverley in an “impossible position”, with the borough’s annual housing target more than doubling from around 710 to over 1,450 homes per year despite extreme land and environmental constraints.

He said: “We want to deliver the homes our communities need, but we need a planning system that recognises local constraints, supports good plan-making, and ties growth to the infrastructure required to make it sustainable."

The Government reintroduced mandatory housing targets in December 2024 alongside a new standard method for calculating housing need which saw targets for most local authority areas rise significantly.

The council claimed that the new targets are now pushing development in Waverley into the small proportion of land that is not protected, and development is taking place in areas that lack adequate infrastructure.

It added that the borough has already unimplemented permissions for around 5,500 homes, which are held up by market conditions "outside local authority control".

Cllr Fellows said: “We are urging the Government to reconsider its approach before lasting damage is done. More than 80% of Waverley is Green Belt or part of the Surrey Hills National Landscape.

"The remaining land simply cannot absorb the level of development the Government is demanding, not without unacceptable harm to our towns, villages and countryside.”

Waverley called for the following five "urgent" changes from Government:

• A review of Waverley’s revised housing target, allowing flexibility for environmentally constrained areas
• Protection from the “tilted balance” during Local Plan preparation
• Stronger safeguards for National Landscapes and other environmental designations
• Recognition of the value of countryside beyond the Green Belt
• Realistic phasing of homes linked to guaranteed infrastructure delivery

Waverley has also requested a meeting with the Secretary of State.

Adam Carey