Delivering change in Horley town centre

The Delivering Change in Horley Town Centre programme is a Council initiative that is supported by Surrey County Council, Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership and Horley Town Council.

The programme will deliver a targeted set of interrelated projects to regenerate the town centre and deliver the aspirations of the Council as set out in Reigate and Banstead 2025: our five-year plan – to invest in our town centres, drive economic prosperity, deliver affordable homes and work with partners to create strong, safe and welcoming communities.

There are four projects that form the programme:

1. Public realm improvements to the High Street
2. Refurbishing the subway between the High Street and Station Approach
3. Improvements to Central Car Park (formerly installation of pay-on-exit car parking in the town centre)
4. Redeveloping the High Street Car Park to provide new homes.

High Street public realm improvements

Building on the public realm improvements delivered in the precinct, this project will be concentrated along the High Street, between the precinct and the pedestrian bridge over the railway. The aim is a coordinated and comprehensive series of improvements to enhance the look, feel and flow of the High Street. 

The project will be delivered in partnership with Surrey County Council.

£600,000 of funding has been made available within Reigate & Banstead Borough Council’s approved capital programme 2020-2025 to deliver the project and further funding has been committed from the Surrey Infrastructure Plan and Strategic Community Infrastructure Levy.

Proposals include new street furniture, planting and signage as well as improving safety, pedestrian connectivity and cycle priority through investment in the pavements, crossings, and measures to promote cycling. 

The enhanced public realm will help the High Street to better serve local people and improve public perception and business confidence, which in turn will help to attract visitors and investment, and contribute to the Council’s aim to regenerate the town centre.

Detailed design is complete and technical design work is now underway. The anticipated timescales for the delivery of the High Street public realm improvements will be available soon.

See the latest plans

Refurbishing the subway

The subway between High Street and Station Approach needs refurbishing.

We want to make the subway easier to use for pedestrians, cyclists and people with disabilities by creating a safe, well-lit and more welcoming space, improve the condition of the structure and address drainage and flooding issues.

Significant funding from developers (known as Section 106 contributions) has been secured through the Horley Master Plan by Surrey County Council towards improvement of the subway and further funding has been committed from the Surrey Infrastructure Plan and Strategic Community Infrastructure Levy.

The first phase of work was to address the flooding through drainage works and the installation of new pumps; the main works were largely completed by Network Rail in August 2024 with some works remaining to be completed. New pumps are installed to continue managing water levels.

The second phase of the work will be to refurbish the subway and will include structural work to the wing walls at the High Street entrance, improved lighting, redecoration, footway improvements and public art. The refurbishment will take place after planned works to the rail track and deck above the subway in late 2024.

Horley subway art scheme proposal

Following local engagement and a workshop with the children at the YMCA, the appointed artist has developed the art designs to be installed in the subway walls.

View the designs on the Horley subway art scheme proposal webpage.

Timescales

Following completion of initial work, the anticipated timescales are:

• Construction phase 1 - complete drainage/flooding works: January 2024
• Construction phase 2 - refurbishment: 2025
• See the latest plans

Improvements to Central Car Park (formerly pay-on-exit car parking)

The landscaping and civil works to Central Car Park are now complete. The first phase of works to improve the look and feel of the car park included line marking, pedestrian routes, resurfacing of the access road, installation of larger parking bays for families, new trees and shrubs. Electric vehicle charging points are installed and will be usable to the public by this summer.

• See the latest plans

High Street Car Park redevelopment

The High Street Car Park presents the Council with an opportunity to secure the delivery of much-needed homes that can be afforded by local people, and which provide a wider choice of tenure, type and size of homes.

The site is allocated in the Development Management Plan for a residential led mixed use development incorporating retail/leisure as part of policy HOR1.

The development of this site will also contribute towards fulfilling a key objective of the Council’s Housing Delivery Strategy: to use Council assets to deliver additional housing via a housing-led scheme by providing well-designed homes that offer a choice of tenures and sizes.

The development of the car park could also enable the delivery of up to 1,500 sqm of flexible use space such as commercial, community, leisure and or employment uses.

The development of the car park is currently paused.

Project costs and funding

The total estimated cost of the programme, excluding the redevelopment of the High Street Car Park post feasibility, is approximately £3 million. The programme is now fully funded through a variety of funding sources. Allocations from the Council’s capital programme and revenue budget and Section 106 developer contributions, together total £1.29 million, external grant funding of £229,600 from the Coast to Capital LEP Local Growth Fund and £23,375 Empty Property Reimbursement from Surrey County Council towards the installation of electric vehicle charge points in Central Car Park.

Additional funding to enable the delivery of the programme has been agreed as part of the Surrey Infrastructure Plan by Surrey County Council. Funding from the Strategic Community Infrastructure Levy is also in place.

Find out more

Please contact regeneration@reigate-banstead.gov.uk for further information.