Residents have said the homes would damage a village that has a “serene, peaceful and beautiful feeling to it”
Sutton Green Golf Club would be demolished if plans are approved(Image: Surrey Advertiser)
Plans to demolish a popular golf club and course and build 650 homes have been submitted to Woking Borough Council (WBC). The plans would double the population of the area and have received a strong response from those responding to the planning application.
Last month, developers Quinn Estates submitted proposals for up to 650 homes in the village of Sutton Green, which lies between Guildford and Woking.
The plans would see Sutton Green golf club demolished to build the homes, half of which are set to be made affordable.
The outline planning application pertains to constructing hundreds of homes, a care home, a publicly accessible country park alongside associated parking, infrastructure and commercial space.
The application on WBC’s planning portal has already received a strong response from those in the area, with 67 comments submitted and all but one being objections to the plans.
One resident who claims to have lived in the village her entire life commented that the development would “highly impact” the area and suggested that plans to demolish the golf club would be “a tragedy and would fundamentally undermine the character of our local area”.
Sutton Green Golf Club would be demolished as part of the proposals to make way for the development(Image: Google)
If the application is approved, it would see Sutton Green Golf Club, its club house, tea house and all other infrastructure demolished. Up to 650 homes and other various amenities would then be built on the site.
Sutton Green Golf Club and its 18-hole, Par 71 parkland course opened in 1994. It is one of only two golf courses of its size in the region and is renowned for its high-quality USGA greens, scenic lakes and mature trees.
The residents set to be most impacted by the proposals, should they go through, would be those of Lee Place, a small estate based on the same land as the golf course.
Developers refer to this in the planning application saying the development would have “major adverse, and therefore significant, effects” on the residents of Lee Place, “due to their close proximity to construction activity”.
One resident of Lee Place echoed this, commenting on the application: “I have lived in Lee Place my entire life. Our house is in the centre of the golf course and so would be highly impacted by the proposed development.
“Our house used to be a farmhouse set in the English countryside, Grade II listed because of its important heritage value and surroundings.
The village is home to many historic buildings, such as the Old Post Office, a Grade II listed building dating from the 16th century(Image: Woking Titles)
“The golf course provides a setting as close as you can get to something that depicts rural England, which has attracted so many people to Sutton Green. To lose that would be a tragedy and would fundamentally undermine the character of our local area.
“My parents have lived in Lee Place for 28 years; they have poured their heart and soul into maintaining its history and setting for future generations.
“Our garden and the golf course supports the space and openness of the local habitat. It is a sanctuary for wildlife. We see deer, badgers, barn owls, buzzards, ducks and geese and great-crested newts in neighbouring Lee Farm. The golf course provides a corridor and open space for the biodiversity in Westfield Common opposite us.”
Concerns have also been raised in the comments with the Grey Belt classification of the site on behalf of Quinn Estates. It was deemed by assessors that the golf course land only ‘moderately’ or ‘weakly’ contributed to Green Belt purposes and is therefore Grey Belt.
Sutton Green is a small village of less that a thousands residents just outside Woking. It neighbours Jacob’s Well in the south and Mayford in the north(Image: Google)
The Government’s 2024 definition of Grey Belt land reads: “Land in the Green Belt comprising previously developed land and/or any other land that, in either case, does not strongly contribute to any of purposes (of Green Belt land).”
Residents have shared strong opposition to the classification of the golf course as Grey Belt. One comment on the application explained: “It is critical for us and for future generations that Sutton Green remains a Green Belt buffer between Woking and Guildford.
“Sutton Green Golf Club is classified as Green Belt because it meets the national criteria set out in planning policy: the land is open, undeveloped, and plays a critical role in preventing urban sprawl, maintaining the separation between neighbouring settlements (Woking and Guildford), and preserving the rural character of the area.”
Another comment claimed: “The change in classification has been adopted by the developer to increase his chances of success following the previous failed application. However, the land is clearly Green Belt in terms of meeting key criteria set out in the National Policy Planning Framework.”
In August 2022, a planning application was submitted to WBC to redevelop the 18-hole course site into a retirement community featuring up to 200 retirement dwellings and a 66-bed care home. This application was unsuccessful, later being withdrawn.
Outline planning documents classify the golf course land as Grey Belt (Image: Google)
The comments under Quinn Estates’ 2026 outline planning application also raise concerns with the impact the development would have on traffic travelling in between Guildford and Woking.
One resident of the nearby neighbourhood Mayford said: “The additional traffic generated by 650 dwellings would place unacceptable strain on already congested local roads. The surrounding network, including routes connecting to Woking and Guildford, regularly experiences peak-time congestion.”
While another comment from a residents of New Lane, the main road for the golf club claimed: “Over the years I have seen the roads of Sutton Green become busier and more dangerous whilst the traffic levels have already reached a point off being too much.
“This development would make it so much worse and this is just one way you would be punishing the long-standing residents of this community.”
Commenters on the outline application also raised concern with the potential impact the development would have on the historic buildings and homes in the area. Alongside the lack of infrastructure which is proposed as part of the Quinn Estates’ plans.
The outline planning application for up to 650 homes, a care home and various other amenities is currently in the consultation stages on Woking Borough Council’s planning portal.
The public can submit comments on the application until March 13, 2026, at which point the planning committee will begin the decision-making process.