Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment in Surrey

Surrey is one of the most wooded and most protected counties in England. Around three-quarters of it is Metropolitan Green Belt, the Surrey Hills National Landscape runs across its centre, and the heaths of the north-west are protected for their birds. Almost every scheme beyond the built-up area needs landscape evidence. We prepare LVIAs, Landscape and Visual Appraisals and Technical Notes across the county.

The landscapes of Surrey

The North Downs (NCA 119) cross the county as a chalk ridge, from the Hog’s Back west of Guildford to Box Hill and the Kent border, with a steep south-facing scarp, chalk grassland and extensive woodland. South of it, the Wealden Greensand (NCA 120) rises to Leith Hill, the highest point in the South East, with heath, pine and sweet chestnut woodland and long views south over the Low Weald (NCA 121).

In the north-west, the Thames Basin Heaths (NCA 129) are a landscape of heath, conifer plantation, military land and settlement around Woking, Camberley and Farnham. The Thames Valley (NCA 115) covers the flat, often urban, floodplain along the northern boundary, with reservoirs, gravel workings and parkland.

Landscape evidence comes from the Surrey Landscape Character Assessment, prepared borough by borough, and from the Surrey Hills Management Plan.

Designated landscapes

The Surrey Hills National Landscape was one of the first to be designated, in 1958, and covers the chalk and greensand hills across the centre of the county. Natural England has proposed extending it by about 130 square kilometres, mostly land currently designated as Area of Great Landscape Value; the proposal is with the Secretary of State, and the land has no new status until it is confirmed. A small part of the High Weald National Landscape lies in the south-east of the county.

Since December 2023, public bodies have been under a statutory duty to “seek to further” the purposes of National Landscapes. In Surrey that duty, and the setting of the Surrey Hills, are relevant to a large share of applications.

Planning policy and constraints

Around three-quarters of Surrey is Metropolitan Green Belt. Since the revised NPPF of August 2026, more Green Belt sites can be put forward as grey belt. Whether a site qualifies depends on how strongly it contributes to the Green Belt purposes, which is as much a landscape and visual question as a planning one: how open the site looks, how it relates to the settlement edge, and whether it reads as countryside. Our Green Belt and grey belt appraisals set out that evidence.

In the north-west, new homes within 400 metres to 5 kilometres of the Thames Basin Heaths Special Protection Area need Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG) and a contribution to access management, and new homes within 400 metres are normally not permitted. Local government reorganisation will bring the existing boroughs into two new councils from April 2027, but the existing local plans apply until replaced.

What this means for your application

• Check views from the hills. From the North Downs, Leith Hill and the greensand ridge, development in the vales can be seen over long distances.
• Look beyond the current boundary. Land in the proposed Surrey Hills extension is not yet designated, but its landscape value is already recognised as Area of Great Landscape Value.
• Make the Green Belt case visually. For grey belt sites, openness and containment by woodland or development need clear evidence.
• Work with the woodland. Surrey’s tree cover often limits visibility, but it also means that loss of trees for access or layout can be the main landscape effect.

Our experience in Surrey

• A landscape and visual assessment for a golf club site in the Green Belt in north-west Surrey.
• Assessments on the Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire borders, within the Thames Basin Heaths.

See also our Hampshire page and our projects.

Our Surrey services

• Landscape Technical Notes: desktop assessment for pre-application or householder schemes, from £750 + VAT
• Landscape and Visual Appraisals for proportionate assessment of less sensitive schemes, from £1,950 + VAT
• Full Landscape and Visual Impact Assessments (LVIAs) to GLVIA3, from £2,950 + VAT
• Assessments in and around the Surrey Hills National Landscape
• Green Belt and grey belt appraisals
• 3D wireframes and photomontages prepared in-house (see visualisations)
• Responses to landscape officer comments and appeal support
• Landscape mitigation and planting plans to accompany our assessments

Frequently asked questions

• Do I need an LVIA for a planning application in Surrey?
  It depends on the scale of the scheme and how visible and sensitive the site is. Councils in Surrey will usually expect landscape evidence for development in the Green Belt, in or near the Surrey Hills National Landscape or its proposed extension, on the heaths and in Areas of Great Landscape Value, and for larger housing, solar and battery storage schemes. For smaller schemes a Landscape and Visual Appraisal or Technical Note is often proportionate. We can advise on the right level once we know your site.
• Is my site in the proposed Surrey Hills extension?
  Natural England has published maps of the proposed extension. The land gains no new status until the Secretary of State confirms the order, but much of it is already Area of Great Landscape Value, and its landscape quality is a material consideration now.
• Can a Green Belt site in Surrey be grey belt?
  It can, depending on how strongly the site contributes to the Green Belt purposes. That turns on openness, containment and the relationship with the settlement edge, which we assess through site visits, photography and visualisations.
• Will local government reorganisation change my application?
  The new East Surrey and West Surrey councils take over on 1 April 2027. Existing local plans apply until they are replaced, so the policies your application is assessed against will not change overnight.
• How much does an LVIA cost in Surrey?
  Our fees start at £750 + VAT for a desktop Landscape Technical Note, £1,950 + VAT for a Landscape and Visual Appraisal and £2,950 + VAT for a full LVIA. Wireframes and photomontages are quoted alongside the assessment. We give a fixed fee after reviewing your site. See our pricing page.

Sources and further reading: Surrey Hills boundary review, Surrey County Council: new councils for Surrey, Surrey Heath Local Plan, Natural England National Character Area profiles. Information checked October 2026.