Northeast of Woking, tucked westerly of West Byfleet, sits the residential suburb of Sheerwater, Surrey. Known for its large scale housing estate established in the 19th century, Sheerwater has - for the past two centuries - been a major site of redevelopment in the Surrey locale. As such, its design and layout reflects its contemporary roots - built in a linear fashion, with red-brick fronted terraced housing indicative of the mid-century, dotted with grand country manors and estates. Even in the 21st century, Sheerwater has been the focus of development in the Woking locality - with the council’s local plan centring on Sheerwater for the new phase of urban regeneration!

Although Sheerwater’s associations are modern, the name itself probably stems from the 17th century - and most likely refers to the series of ditches and lakes fed by the Rive Ditch in West Byfleet. This ditch is supposedly one of the many sources of freshwater fish that was later transported and sold at wet markets in London across the 17th to 19th centuries. The Old Rive Ditch still cuts through Sheerwater today! This is the main source of why Sheerwater was chosen as a development site, as flood mitigation made it imperative to drain the water from the ditches - providing ample space for housing and infrastructure in the growing Woking of the 19th century. The first full-scale housing project was helmed by E. Thomas in the 1920s, which provided a swathe of detached and semi-detached homes to the area, without compromising on comfort or luxury.

The common association with Sheerwater comes from the 1940s, when the London County Council (LCC) designated the site at Sheerwater be a major site of housing development. Owing to its proximity to London and Woking, Sheerwater was ideal for this development project. However as early as 1928 the North West Surrey Structure Plan detailed significant infrastructural development aimed for Sheerwater, to which the LCC overtook with their own housing project. The project, aimed at out of city overspill, was deemed a success in its early years - but has since fallen into disrepute due to lack of governmental management and drop in infrastructure.

Part of this drop in infrastructure and governmental management has driven the Sheerwater locale to be one of the most deprived areas in the whole of Woking, and even in the top 28% most deprived areas nationally - whilst the majority of Woking benefits from relative affluence. Pockets of privation are rife throughout the estates, and this impoverishment has reduced the influx of new housing infrastructure - as many of the residents of Sheerwater would not be able to afford luxury new builds posited by developers. The Woking Borough Council is aiming to alleviate the privation areas of Sheerwater and is allocating provisions and resources to the Sheerwater locale to boost its infrastructure. The Woking Borough Council’s adopted local plan is aiming to produce 250 new homes to the Sheerwater locale in efforts to redevelop the poor quality housing stock available in the area!