Major Woking development wins approval after appeal success

Plans for a major development in Working – which include almost 1,000 apartments and a 37-storey tower – have been approved on the back of a successful appeal.The project – dubbed EcoWorld – was turned away by Woking Borough Council on 12 January 2021.The appeal was made under section 78 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, with the independent planning inquiry – led by the planning inspectorate – subsequently held between 30 November to 3 December and 7 December 2021.The decision has now been overturned.Lined up for the site near Goldsworth Road is a phased mixed-use scheme, comprising 929 residential units, communal residential and operational spaces, commercial uses and a homeless shelter. All of this will be in five blocks of varying heights between nine and 37 storeys.