Warren Road, Reigate (21 Homes)

The Appeal – an Informal Hearing – by far the most informal appeal we’ve ever been involved in! Crowds of confrontational locals crammed into the tiny room, haranguing everything we said, interrupting, grandstanding … we weathered the storm and the Appeal was successful. The issues generally centred around the design: the site was a disused dairy on both sides of a residential street just to the edge of Reigate town centre, with some lovely Georgian-style rendered terraces just next door, which allowed us to create a strong townscape corridor in the form of rendered ‘houses’ – actually, mostly flats behind the façade, with some commercial floorspace as well – which respond well to the neighbouring homes, with a parapet ingeniously disguising a third storey of accommodation.

Despite the neighbours’ protests, the Inspector accepted our reasoning and considered that the street was NOT a ‘tunnel’ but actually a well-proportioned environment, the next door gardens would NOT be compromised by the new building 15-odd metres away, the development DID create a positive transition between the next door office blocks and the suburban street, it was NOT ‘cramped overdevelopment’, it DID accord with Surrey Design and the Reigate & Banstead Local Distinctiveness Design Guide … they really did throw everything they could at our design, and none of it stuck. Proud. Very proud.