Design process

Tandridge Council designated a large part of the site a conservation area in 1996. They commissioned an urban design brief after which they specified retention of most of the existing buildings with 50% for community and 50% for commercial use, plus 110 homes including 92 converted from existing barracks and 18 new houses.

Locally based Linden Homes bought the site in 1998 believing more development would be acceptable. Local residents opposed redevelopment, fearing more bland suburban housing. To overcome these concerns Linden and John Thompson Partners set out to develop a brief together with the local community and over 1,000 people attended the first community planning weekend.

The steering group formed later in 1998 developed into specialist sub-groups which met over 50 times. These helped residents understand that demands for community facilities and regeneration needed new housing to balance the scheme from the developer's point of view. After the community planning weekend, local authority planners were reportedly shocked by the high density agreed by residents. A Community Development Trust was established in 2000 to manage the community facilities.