Seeking planning consent for a garden village in the southern part of Mole Valley District. The area is relatively economically disadvantaged and this settlement will breathe life into the rural economy and Osbrook will become a regional hub for smaller neighbouring communities.

Government and local authority has been failing to get to grips with planning targets for several years. Mole Valley District Council is about to start the plan process afresh and we are promoting this scheme which will addresses a third of the target. Much of the District is AONB and/or greenbelt where this parcel of land is just beyond the limits of the Surrey Hills and free of limiting designations.

Greenbelt release and road congestion are significant local issues. Our proposals address both by focusing on non-greenbelt land in an under populated rural area with a railway station that gives encouragement to use public transport to access employment in Horsham, Dorking, Leatherhead, Epsom and London.

Our masterplan uses 60% of the 170 hectares used for development and density set at a modest 16.5 dwellings per gross hectare. The scheme provides both primary and secondary schools, the latter creating a surplus of 800 places for the benefit of the wider community.

From an investor perspective, a key aspect is that the land cost to us is less than 15% of the exit value. The slowness of the Council is likely to mean that it takes two and a half to three years to get a consent. Local values are strong in comparison to our larger schemes and investor returns should be good.