Farnham’s continued frustration over the derelict Woolmead site has prompted renewed calls for action from civic leaders.

Last week the Herald launched its ‘We Mead Action: Sort out Woolmead’ campaign, following news that government agency Homes England will re-market the East Street site after a deal with a previous developer collapsed.

This means that even if a new buyer is found, construction would be delayed until 2028, a decade after the former retail and office complex was demolished.

The issue was raised at last week’s Farnham Town Council meeting, where members agreed the eyesore harms the town’s appearance at a key gateway.

Council leader Cllr Graham White said he had raised the matter with local MP Gregory Stafford.

Explaining the situation, Cllr White said: “The news is that there was a possible buyer and they were quite advanced but dropped out.

“So we’re looking at least six months, maybe 12, of it looking as it is, so we’re redoubling our efforts to engage with Homes England.

“We can’t expect the community of Farnham to put up with this eyesore.”

While waiting for progress, Cllr White proposed making the hoardings around the site “a little more interesting.”

He said: “One suggestion is that we put screening material with pre-printed advertising around it, and maybe get the UCA involved.”

For now, cosmetic improvements may be the best residents can hope for, as the site’s future remains unclear.

The Woolmead has been problematic since demolition. Planning consent granted in 2018 allows for 138 homes and a small commercial element, but councillors say the scheme no longer suits today’s housing market.

The high land value also means the site is not commercially viable under current conditions.

Cllr George Hesse said: “I think that they have a conundrum on their hands, in that to build the scheme as granted, it may not suit today’s accommodation market and also includes a small ground floor commercial element.”

He said the approved scheme falls under a “rather more benign Section 106 regime” for developers’ financial contributions, rather than the “current punishingly high rate CIL regime Waverley adopted in 2018/19”.

He said if developers changed the Woolmead scheme by removing the commercial units, they would have to go back to Waverley Borough Council and submit a new planning application.

“That would fall under CIL and cost the developer millions,” added Cllr Hesse.

This leaves both the town and developers stuck with a demolition site at a key entry point in urgent need of redevelopment.

Property experts also agreed a rethink was needed.

Alan Dolman, land and new homes manager at Bridges Estate Agents in Farnham, said: “I think it just needs a joined-up approach by Waverley Borough Council in being a bit more flexible with more of the planning changes.

“It’s a cracking site but what it’s currently planned for just doesn’t work.”

Residents have also suggested a Compulsory Purchase Order, which would allow a public body to acquire the land without the owner’s consent, provided it is in the public interest.