Welcome to the Guildford Society
The Guildford Society has been an active voice, speaking up for the town and its surrounding countryside and villages, since 1896. As a Civic Society, we act as a focus for all who care about Guildford’s heritage and environment. While mindful of the past, we look firmly to the future.
We recognise that development must, and will, take place. However, we do not believe this should be at the expense of Guildford’s historic character and beauty, nor of the unspoilt countryside that surrounds it.
We pay close attention to Key Sites scheduled in the borough; and the development of the Town Centre Master Plan..
Hot Topics
We have selected our latest or most important news items for you below.
Please see topic areas for other news items.
Civic Trust Awards 2021 View article
The Civic Trust has announced its awards for Conservation & for Universal Design
The Civic Trust Awards state that that its agile nature that has proven to be its greatest asset and it is with great pride that it can claim to be the only ... View article
Eco-homes become hot property in the UK View article
The Guardian has an interesting article on the move to Eco Homes.
Local authorities across the country have been encouraging these developments supported by Developers and Architects. The Article highlights schemes in Exeter, Leeds, Cambridg... View article
Flexible Season tickets for Flexible Working View article
The Daily Telegaph is reporting that commuters are to be offered flexible season tickets by June as part of the Government's plan to support workers returning to offices. The tickets can be used for two or three days a week and wi... View article
The Future of Office Work View article
Boris Speaks
Commuters will return to offices “in a few short months”, Boris Johnson has predicted, dismissing the idea that lockdowns will lead to a permanent shift towards working from home. The prime minister is confident ... View article
Food not consumed occupies nearly 30% of global agricultural land, View article
24,242 tons of waste food redistributed to charities from supermarkets in the UK marks an improvement on four years ago, it pales when compared to France, Spain and Italy, where food surplus donations are four to five times higher. Every 1,... View article
Kingston plans the first sewage-powered domestic heating scheme View article
Thames Water and Kingston Council are planning to use heat recovered from a local waste treatment plan to power more than 2000 homes.
The sewage scheme is the first of its kind in England and is planned to provide clean, green heating to new homes... View article
Guildford Council updates on measures to respond to Climate Change View article
GBC have issued a full report on measures, to the full Council on measures being taken to respond to Climate Change.
Highlights include:
Work to install solar PV panels at Farnham Road multi-storey car park and our Millmead Hous... View article
Guildford and Waverly Councils consider Co-operation View article
Guildford and Waverly Councils have both considered a KPMG report into local government reorganisation and collaboration, published earlier this month. This report identified that neighbouring authorities across Surrey should consider the expan... View article
Progress on Town Centre Masterplan View article
Amongst many items the GBC Budget Council Meeting on the 10th February 2021 discussed and approved; was the budget for the Guildford Economic Regeneration Programme (GERP), which includes the Town Centre Masterplan.
The Programme is to be run as a... View article
Car Parking in Guildford View article
The council have recently changed Car Parking Rates at various car parks across the town centre. The aim appears to have been to adjust charges to make some locations suitable for short term use up to 2-3 Hours approximatley, and allocate other... View article
The Society Comments on Weyside View article
As Weyside is such an important site in Guildford, we are publishing our response to the Hybrid Planning application.
The Society has reviewed, as best we can, the 240 documents related to the Weyside Planning application. This scheme has be... View article
Guildford Society 2020 Design Awards Winner Interviews View article
We have held a small 'virtual' celebration (21-1-2021) for the winners of our 2020 Design Awards. The virtual celebration was also the occasion that we released the short interviews with the Architect, Developer, or Project Manager... View article
Create a Park in the Town Centre View article
Stockton on Tees has suffered a declining Town Centre for many years. The Guardian has an interesting article on the ideas emerging to redevelop the Town Centre.
The Stockton proposals are a reminder that the Guildford Town Centre Master Plan... View article
Topic Areas
Our Posts are categorised by Topic Areas; a post can appear in more than one topic area. Please use the links below to see posts by Topic. Society News on critical issues and events etc. is available here.
Society Working Groups, are aligned with a Topic Area(s) these look at the preservation and evolution of Guildford; details can be found in the Topic Area concerned.
Help us make Guildford better
We want our town to be vibrant, attractive and liveable. We support development that brings a sense of place and enhances the best aspects of our town. If such aims can be embraced, we believe Guildford has the chance to lead the way in enabling sensitive and sustainable development.
Pressures for development are increasing. Planning rules are being eased. The Society’s commitment to standing up for Guildford is needed more than ever.
Other Organisations
The Society engages with a variety of other organisations who share our interests and we share their links for information. We are also include links to Guildford Borough Council and other Government bodies and Developers of key sites. Finally we include other links of interest that are related to the borough.