The steady closure of bank branches has become one of the clearer signs of how differently people now manage their money, with the high street counter increasingly replaced by an app on a phone. Guildford has not been immune to the trend and one of its former branches has sat empty for years as a result. Now, fresh plans have been submitted that could finally settle what becomes of the site, with the hope of some being that it is turned into homes in order to help alleviate the housing crisis in the town.
Remodel Proposals
New proposals have been lodged to remodel the former NatWest branch on Worplesdon Road, which would see two commercial units created alongside six new homes made up of a mix of flats and two semi-detached houses. Planning papers show the site has been empty since NatWest shut the branch back in 2018. This is not the first attempt to redevelop it, with a previous bid for nine residential units having been refused by Guildford Borough Council in 2022 and a later appeal against that refusal also being dismissed.
The new scheme is a scaled-back version of that earlier bid. The planning documents state,
The new proposal will reduce the amount of units from nine to six and remove the building in between, which will reduce the density of the site and ensure no overbearing or impact on adjacent properties in comparison to refused applications.
Whether the Council agrees remains to be seen, though the applicant is clearly hoping the reduced scale will address the concerns that scuppered the previous scheme and allow the old bank to be turned into something else.
Why It Was Turned Down Before
Guildford Borough Council’s planning officers were not persuaded by the original application, writing in their refusal that the scheme ‘would have a materially harmful impact in terms of overbearance on the neighbouring property Wood Court due to scale and mass of the proposed extended building in such close proximity.’ The Planning Inspectorate went on to dismiss the appeal against that decision, citing amongst its reasons doubts over ‘whether there would be sufficient space to park and turn vehicles so they could safely enter and exit the site in a forward gear’.
The applicant now argues that the fresh proposals overcome those objections, saying that the scheme ‘has less impact on its neighbouring properties in terms of overbearing, privacy and right of light’ and would contribute ‘more into the variations of housing supply to meet national and local targets’. Twelve off-street parking spaces are included in the new plans and the applicant points to the site’s access to the town centre and public transport network, along with the availability of cycle and car club options, as evidence that the scheme meets local and national sustainability goals.
It is now up to Guildford Borough Council to decide whether the reworked plans succeed where their predecessor failed.