Our Village Green
Our Village Green is outlined in green on the map. It includes three separate parcels of land: Stokes Field Nature Reserve (owned by Elmbridge Borough Council), 'The Northern Quadrant' (this is the brambly area between the nature reserve and the hill, called The Northern Quadrant at the Public Inquiry), and One Tree Hill.
The proposed development site
Taylor Wimpey's proposed development site includes the wooded area adjacent to the hill. This area was included in our Village Green applications, since it is used daily by locals for recreational use in exactly the same way as the Nature Reserve, brambly areas and One Tree Hill. However, it was refused on the grounds that it was historically cultivated for roses, and we could not prove that it passed the '20 years recreational use' rule.
The development site also includes the area cultivated by Hill Park Roses (who currently rent the space from Taylor Wimpey).
The rest of the Green Belt parcel...
Our Green Belt parcel spans a wider area that includes Long Ditton Allotments, Long Ditton Cricket Club, Squires, Wemms school, Shinnyo En Buddhist Centre, and land stretching alongside the A309 towards the Hook Roundabout in Tolworth.
If Taylor Wimpey's proposed development goes ahead, what precedent might that set for the rest of our Green Belt parcel?