PRESSURE on Waverley Borough Council to allocate previously developed land at Secretts Farm, Milford, for 200 new homes – rather than green belt sites – is being applied by Witley Neighbourhood Plan.

Controversially, Waverley has so far decided not to allocate the Secretts site put forward as part of Witley Neighbourhood Plan.

It instead proposed two sites in the village located in the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) to provide up to 130 houses.

Waverley’s housing targets require at least 480 new homes to be built in the large parish of Witley, which extends from Brook to Milford, between 2013 and 2032.

Around 280 homes have already been granted permission, including around 200 at Milford golf course, but sites need to be found for the remaining 200 houses.

Waverley will allocate these sites as part of its Local Plan Part 2.

The first public exhibition of the draft Witley neighbourhood plan was staged on Sunday in Milford Village Hall and attracted a steady stream of visitors.

During a six-week consultation period, which opened on May 3 at the exhibition, residents will be asked for their feedback on details of the plans and policies that the Neighbourhood Plan Group are proposing should guide the future development of the parish until 2032.

Around 200 people dropped in to view the range of issues covered, including key planning principles that should apply when sites are allocated.

The plan calls for all development proposals to be considerate of the local landscape and seek to minimise visual impact on the countryside within Witley parish, particularly in the Surrey Hills AONB and areas of great landscape value.

It also presses for key infrastructure improvements to support the additional housing required, including a community health centre and expanding the number of places offered at nurseries and schools.

Barbara Kinnes, vice-chair of Witley Parish Council and a plan steering group member, said: “ We were very pleased to see so many residents taking a keen interest in the plans. We hope they will fill in the questionnaire so their views can be reflected in the final version of the plan.”