Sheerwater Regeneration
ThamesWey Developments Limited has been appointed by Woking Borough Council as their ‘preferred developer’ and has been asked to bring forward proposals for the delivery of the Sheerwater Regeneration Project.
ThamesWey Developments Limited (TDL) is part of the ThamesWey Group, which is wholly owned by Woking Borough Council (WBC). We deliver projects on behalf of other parts of the ThamesWey Group or the Council. For example, we developed the flood protection scheme, park and community buildings at Hoe Valley and recently delivered new affordable and open market housing at Rydens Way and Raynes Close. At the moment, we have over 160 apartments being built and more in planning.
Unlike commercial developers, our ownership means we do not need to make a substantial profit and can reinvest any return from our activity into providing more housing and environmentally focused projects. With regards to the Sheerwater Regeneration Project, this means we can invest in substantial community facilities and deliver them early in the development which would not be affordable for a traditional commercial development.
Why is this site to be redeveloped?
Originally the Sheerwater estate was a scheme produced by London County Council and approved by the local Urban District Council. Originally constructed in the 1950s, the development comprised around 1300 homes, which allowed around 5000 people to settle in the area. Whilst the demographics of the area have changed significantly since its design, the estate itself has not, and this has led to a number of issues, whereby the residential housing availability and access to community resources no longer matches what the existing site can provide. A new approach is needed.
What are we going to do?
ThamesWey has been asked to:
• Increase the amount and quality of public open space across the site.
• Increase the total number of homes that this development can offer.
• Revisit the housing mix to increase the ratio of affordable and smaller homes.
The scope of the regeneration is to provide:
• Up to 922 residential units
• 62 units of specialist residential accommodation
• A new community / youth centre
• A nursery
• A leisure centre
• Retail premises
• A heath centre
• Open space
What is happening now?
Following a WBC meeting in April 2018, funding was released to start work on first elements of the Sheerwater project, with a view to break ground in July 2018. WBC and ThamesWey are committed to starting this development in the way it hopes to continue, and our commitment to delivering the leisure centre complex and other community resources underlines that commitment.
The first stages are to create a leisure centre in the grounds of Bishop David Brown School, and this will feature a 25 metre pool and a separate teaching pool. Other elements of the leisure centre include a five-court sports hall, studio space and a gym.
Beyond the main centre, the complex will feature a full size floodlit all-weather (3G) football pitch, designed to FA Step 5 standards, and new grass football and rugby pitches. To support the use of these new facilities, new parking arrangements will be created, and power and heating will be provided in part through the use of ground-source heat pumps and solar panels. A Community Use Agreement will be in place to ensure leisure complex is available to the local school and nearby community, as well as to the wider public.
As the development progresses, information will be available on the Canalside project page.