Stuck in the Middle: Leatherhead’s Identity Crisis Amidst Redevelopment Plans
Redevelopment plans to ‘Breathe a New Life’ into quiet Surrey town, whilst residents remain divided, is it finally Leatherhead’s moment, or is it all just window dressing?
When I was eight years old, I was taken out of school early, waving goodbye to my friends in class and unknowingly goodbye to my life in London. In a post-2008 Financial Crash world, with two young children, craving a house with a garden, my parents wanted to venture further south.
Despite being promised a shiny new life in the countryside, ‘It is just like The Secret Garden!’ my parents repeated, I quickly realised it wasn’t so much the magical world where bunnies hop around your wisteria-filled garden, but instead, it was the suburbs.
I had to say a tearful goodbye to weekends spent visiting the Natural History Museum, picnics on Tooting Common and taking the double-decker bus to school. Even as an eight-year-old, I romanticised the magical life I had in London and cried to the High School Musical 3 soundtrack as my car drove away from our flat and towards the beige landscape of Leatherhead.
Since then, I have continued to live in Surrey and now commute to London for University. My relationship with Leatherhead and the suburbs has developed; it’s a complex mix of love and hate.
When I leave a busy and overstimulating day in London, I crave the peace and quiet but on a lonely grey day in Leatherhead, I envy my friends’ access to Hyde Park and a Blank Street coffee.
Leatherhead though is one of the least exciting of the Surrey suburbs, my family often referring to it as ‘Leather-dead’ due to its boring nature. There are often times I walk into the town centre and it feels like I’m entering a long-forgotten cowboy town, at any point tumbleweed might suddenly roll past my feet.
It isn’t unfair to say the town needs to be regenerated, but I have to wonder when Leatherhead has ever been at its best. Has it ever been in competition with its neighbours, Epsom, Dorking and Reigate?
The ‘Leatherhead Redevelopment Scheme’ has been a hot topic for almost all of Leatherhead’s residents over the last year. As someone who lives only 100 yards from the areas that will be subject to redevelopment and building work, I have taken an interest in the scheme.
In 2002, Leatherhead was named the fifth-worst high street in Britain, with Streatham High Street taking the number one spot. Since then, Leatherhead has seen many shops and restaurants come and go. The increase in online shopping, large chain supermarkets and higher rent prices has meant that the idea of the High Street has become outdated.
Over the last ten years, the idea of the town centre having a regeneration has been regularly brought up and discussed but no real change has been made. The Highstreet, like many around the country, has been on the decline.
According to research by leading accountancy and auditing company PwC’, “The data for the first half of 2024 reveals a total of 6,945 outlets have closed their doors so far. This equates to an average of 38 store closures per day, a slight increase from the 36 closures per day recorded for the same period last year.”
Data from the Inter-Departmental Business Register, Mole Valley, in turn Leatherhead, has seen a 13% reduction in retail business in 2023 and 2024. For residents that are pro the redevelopment scheme, a main factor is how much the town centre needs investment to make sure it does not see more closures like other areas in the UK.
The proposed redevelopment will regenerate the town centre and Bull Hill, “a residential-led development with community space, new parking together with green spaces, improved public realm and pedestrian routes.”
Currently, Bull Hill is a large green space with a park and a car park. Mole Valley Council and Kier Group, who are spearheading the project, believe the redevelopment will encourage existing residents to spend more time in Leatherhead and will also make the town a desirable place to live for others.
Residents of Leatherhead have wondered why the town has never been popular and busy. Much of Surrey is made up of wealthy middle-class families, according to Surrey Live, “In KT11 – which covers Cobham- the average home cost £1.3 million.” Despite Leatherhead neighbouring the affluent areas of Oxshott and Cobham, much of the town is struggling under the weight of budget cuts and a lack of funding.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to really change Leatherhead for the better”
Don Morgan is a resident who has lived in Leatherhead for thirty years, who is desperate for the redevelopment to finally be approved.
“[I think] it is an excellent idea. Leatherhead has been slowly dying, as has the town centre, for the past 10 years. Attempts have been made to try and improve it and they’ve all failed. This is a genuinely transformational program with many elements to it. The funding model also means that local councils do not have to carry most of the burden. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to really change Leatherhead for the better.”
Despite Don’s positive outlook on the scheme, there is a clear divide among residents. On a local Facebook page called ‘I live in Leatherhead’, people often get into heated discussions over the redevelopment. The main issues are with the height of the proposed buildings, lack of green space and overall lack of support from the council on this change.
Leatherhead town sits on the direct train line to London Victoria and London Waterloo, so has always been a popular spot for Londoners moving out for an escape to the countryside, my family included. Leatherhead’s neighbours Dorking and Epsom both place in the top ten of commuting towns, but despite Leatherhead sitting in-between the two it was not ranked.
Surrey became a popular and wealthy county due to its close proximity to London but with its escape from the expensive rent prices, rising crime and lack of green space. However, Leatherhead seems to be a stop-over for many. The average age of the town is 47, showcasing how young people are not the priority.
From my research, it seems that Leatherhead is either a place where older relatives have lived their whole lives or where young families have settled for access to the train line back into the city.
“For this minimal investment, we lose the Bull Hill site into an overdeveloped housing estate and parking garage”
Susan Hood is a young mother who lives close to Bull Hill, where the larger redevelopment will take place and opposes Don’s views on the redevelopment. I asked Susan if she thought the redevelopment would ‘Breathe a new life into Leatherhead?’, a phrase that has been used by representatives for the redevelopment, she disagreed.
She said, “I don’t think that this is going to give the benefits that are being presented by Kier Group and the council. The underlying driver behind this development is for Kier and Mole Valley to make as much money as they can regardless of the impact to Leatherhead.”
Susan strongly disagreed with the Swan Centre Redevelopment scheme which is tied to the Bull Hill Redevelopment, “We can’t have one without the other, so it is blackmail.”
She explained that it is merely “window dressing” and isn’t convinced, “They build on Bull Hill and at the same time will invest some money to ‘redevelop’ the Swan Centre, however, this redevelopment is restricted to [the shopping centre entrance], building a 3-screen cinema and converting some space into 4 restaurants. For this minimal investment, we lose the Bull Hill site into an overdeveloped housing estate and parking garage.”
To hear more from the Kier representatives and the residents, I went to one of the Leatherhead Redevelopment exhibitions held in the town centre. Ironically, the exhibition was held in an empty shop space, previously home to Clinton’s Cards, filled with images of the proposed plans for the redevelopment. Here, the council and Keir group were available to take any questions and queries people had about the redevelopment.
John Murdoch, architect for the project, explained how he believed that they had addressed many of people’s concerns and were positive about the new plans. He gestured to the room and said the redevelopment would bring, “A new generation of people to Leatherhead.”
When I asked how the day had been for feedback, he said that many young people were excited at the prospect of 450 new homes and apartments.
However, when listening to the perspectives of many residents at the exhibition, positivity seemed like the last thing to describe their thoughts. Many people reiterated Susan’s thoughts about it as a ‘money-making scheme’, one woman deeming it, “Pure profit.”
The problem of the 12-story building and large car park was a recurring issue that Kier representatives attempted to explain, but residents weren’t convinced by. The large building had been reduced in size from previous plans, however, it is not in keeping with any of the surrounding area and will tower over everything.
Despite having the exhibition space and many Q&A’s both online and hosted at Leatherhead Theatre, residents feel that they are not being listened to.
“The scheme provides the same amount of green space as there currently is in almost the same location. [We know] it is a really important element for residents.”
Keira Vyvyan-Robinson, a Liberal Democrat councillor for Mole Valley, offered her perspective on the redevelopment. Her role as both a local councillor and cabinet member for property and projects means that the redevelopment is one of her largest focuses.
I asked Keira if she remained positive about the redevelopment, despite the backlash, “I’m a complete advocate of transform Leatherhead. What we have seen over a period of time is the refining of the proposals and we’re still going through the meeting and responses from people. In terms of the vision for Leatherhead, I absolutely agree with it.”
I asked about the recurring problems that people had to understand what the council felt about them. As Susan mentioned, the scheme ties the two developments together, Keira said, “Bull Hill and the development pay for all of the interventions that we want on the Swan Centre. The Swan Centre doesn’t generate any funds for itself, so there is a much greater demand on Bull Hill to make sure that it is completely viable.”
Whilst many have issue with green space Keira reassured that, “The scheme provides the same amount of green space as there currently is in almost the same location. [We know] it is a really important element for residents.”
Something important to me was addressing the idea that Leatherhead could become victim to gentrification. Gentrification has become the buzz word of the moment. As we see areas of London being picked off one by one by property developers with young wealthy couples lining up with their Gail’s subscriptions, I have wondered where the boundaries end.
Much of Leatherhead North is made up of social housing and estates. The streets surrounding my high school, where many of my friends lived, were council houses. These streets are often ignored when the idea of regeneration is discussed and in terms of the Leatherhead Redevelopment Scheme, hasn’t even been mentioned.
I asked what the council would do to support all of Leatherhead and not isolate half the residents, she said, “One of the key reasons for selecting Kier as the development partner on Transform Leatherhead was due to the ‘social value’ element of their proposals. [They will] offer apprenticeships for students from local schools, use of smaller local businesses to provide resources and skills to meet the development needs of the build and of course, the provision of affordable housing to meet the spiralling demand for affordable housing North Leatherhead and Mole Valley generally.”
“We will also receive Community Infrastructure Levy payments for the development on Bull Hill, which can be used to meet infrastructure demands for community buildings – such as the Leatherhead Community Hub in North Leatherhead. Those funds are not limited to the town centre and reflect the fact that the development places demand on the wider area.”
Residents won’t be agreeing anytime soon, but it is a comfort that the council are attempting to put our community first. A regeneration in Leatherhead is long overdue, and financially, it will be a positive for the area.
Despite its quiet nature, Leatherhead is my home. I will always come back to this place, and I hope that the development will preserve Leatherhead’s community spirit and will welcome everyone, whether they are just stopping by or staying forever.
Well done. Have shared locally with credits. Hope this is okay https://newleatherheadliving.wordpress.com/2025/06/23/stuck-in-the-middle-leatherheads-identity-crisis-amidst-redevelopment-plans/
A really good piece Evie. I think the residents of Leatherhead would enjoy and be proud that you wrote such a good piece about their town and their views