Waverley Borough Council Launch Discretionary Review for CIL Cases

Tories Ignored Homeowners When CIL Was Introduced

When the Conservative administration at Waverley Borough Council introduced the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) in October 2018, they failed to consider the impact on individual homeowners.

There is no evidence that the then Tory leadership gave any serious thought to how these charges—originally intended to help fund local infrastructure—would affect residents undertaking smaller residential projects. Nor did they properly consider the complexity or rigidity of the government’s CIL regulations, which leave very little room for flexibility or discretion.

The current Liberal Democrat-led Executive took immediate action as soon as concerns were raised at the end of 2024. By January, Cllr Liz Townsend, Lib Dem portfolio holder for Planning, met with one affected resident and agreed on the spot to review his case.

Since then, the Executive has committed to reviewing other cases where errors may have occurred and has launched a broader effort to ensure fairness and transparency in how CIL is administered in Waverley.

What the Lib Dem-led Executive has done:

• Introduced a Discretionary Review Process, led by an independent, professionally qualified expert, to assess historic cases involving individual residential developments.
• Created a cross-party Working Group to examine how national CIL regulations are implemented locally.
• Commissioned an audit of the customer journey to improve communication and support for homeowners.
• Launched a formal review of the Charging Schedule alongside the new Local Plan, which will go through independent examination.
• Initiated a review of the CIL allocation process to ensure more infrastructure bids are made by key partners such as Surrey County Council (for roads and transport), the NHS, and local education providers.

Waverley Borough Council is committed to full transparency. Information on the CIL money collected from developers is publicly available here.

However, while the council collects these funds, it relies on external bodies to submit project proposals. Waverley officers actively encourage bids from service providers, but those organisations must do much more to ensure they access the funding available for schools, GP surgeries, roads, and other vital public services.