The 74 homes are all set to be affordable and are being built on the site formerly of a popular garden centre
The Clifton Surrey Garden Centre is due to be demolished to make way for the 74-home project(Image: Google)
The construction of 74 homes on the site of a former garden centre had begun in Addlestone.
The development company has championed the scheme for providing affordable housing to key workers despite some councillors and residents expressing concerns with the development.
Developers say that work on a “thriving new community” of 74 homes has broken ground on the site of the former Clifton Garden Centre, just off Woburn Hill in Addlestone.
Construction is due to be completed in 2028, with all homes to be made available for affordable rent and shared ownership.
The development, which is to be known as Clifton Gardens is being spearheaded by developers Accent Housing in partnership with Stonebond and is funded, in part, by Homes England.
Bosses at Accent Housing have hailed the Clifton Gardens project as the first land-led scheme in the Runnymede Borough.
Alongside this, due to all homes being build being classified as affordable, it is set to make it possible for “families and key workers to find affordable homes close to their community”, say developers.
Staff at Accent Housing and their partners for the project standing outside what will be the entrance of the development(Image: Accent Housing)
Clifton Gardens was approved by Runnymede Borough Council (RBC) in October last year and sparked concerns among residents and councillors of the region that it may bring further traffic to an area which has already been described as a “congestion hotspot”.
Despite this, RBC claimed at the time that had it refused the plans, the council would have been left open to legal challenges from developers.
Surrey Highways also classified congestion concerns around the site as being a “non-issue”, RBC’s planning committee heard during the October 2024 meeting.
The 74 home project is located barely five minutes drive from both the M25 and M3, with Accent suggesting Clifton Gardens is “ideally placed” between Chertsey, Weybridge and Addlestone.
Of the 74 homes, 46 will be a mix of one, two and three-bedroom properties, for affordable rent while the remaining 28 will be a mix of two and three bedroom homes for shared ownership.
All of them will feature private gardens and parking, and four are set to be made fully wheelchair accessible.
The development also includes a new landscaped public open space, tree and hedgerow planting, and new local transport improvements with the latter comprising of new a bus stop alongside traffic calming measures on Woburn Hill.
Accent Housing also provided a CGI render of what these homes are expecting to look like once they are completed in 2028(Image: Accent Housing)
Speaking about the project, Steve Morris, Executive Director or Development and Sales at Accent, said: “Clifton Gardens is about giving local people the chance to stay in the area they love. We know how important it is for families and key workers to find affordable homes close to their community, and this development will make that possible.”
Matt Whale, Managing Director of Stonebond Guildford, also chimed in, saying: “As a partnerships developer we want to work with housing providers like Accent who share our ambition to build more mixed-tenure homes in the areas they are needed most.
“Surrey faces an acute shortage of affordable homes and pleasingly Clifton Gardens will provide more than 70 of these, making a significant impact on the area’s affordable housing supply.”
To make way for the homes, the Clifton Surrey garden centre will be demolished. The garden centre, which had previously been described by reviewers as “lovely” with a “great range” of food stalls and vendors, closed in Spring 2025 ahead of it’s pending demolition.
The Clifton Gardens development has been part-funded by Homes England, and will go towards supporting the Government’s commitment to deliver more affordable housing across the country, Accent Housing has said.
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