Clayhill Lodge West Hill Epsom KT19 8JP

Click here to see map for location of Clayhill Green on West Hill . Clay Hill Lodge is on the northeast corner of the green.

Current application 21/00167/FUL Demolition of existing single storey outbuilding and erection of five terraced houses and integrated cycle store. Associated landscaping works.

Previous application for Clayhill Lodge & Albony 20/00031/FUL Demolition of two dwellings and one outbuilding. Construction of one four storey flatted development comprising a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bed units totalling 14 flats, and one three to three and a half storey terrace comprising 9 no. 3 bedroom houses. Construction of associated landscaping works.

The Epsom Civic Society wrote objecting to the main scheme application  20/00031/FUL in March 2020 for 14 flats and 9 houses including the demolition of both Clayhill Lodge and Albony, which apparently remains under consideration following several recent revisions.

This new application is for the construction of 5 terraced houses in the east section of the original main site. Many of our previous objections are still relevant but the proposed layouts also show the terraced house plot substantially cutting into the rear garden of Clayhill Lodge, necessitating a retaining wall of 3-4 m height above the reduced ground level and also complex temporary supports to the listed wall at the Pound Lane boundary. It is very difficult to believe that these works are viable or cost effective.

This retaining wall will be very close to the rear of the new homes and be unsightly for the occupants, while the density is greater than the guideline upper limit for Epsom of 40 dwellings per hectare.

The garden of Clayhill Lodge on which these houses would be built represents a large environmental asset in the Conservation Area and maybe is more of a heritage asset than the main house.

It is a greater issue that although this application is not feasible in construction terms it could be used as a ‘Trojan Horse’ to set a precedent for the development of the west part of the main site.

For all these reasons, the Society has requested refusal of this application too. See our letter here.

See our previous letter objecting to the original proposal here.