A town named by a king
Guildford is first recorded in the will of King Alfred the Great, and later held the royal mint for a period spanning the late Anglo-Saxon and early Norman era. William the Conqueror had a castle built here not long after 1066, and its remains still stand above the town.
A university town
The University of Surrey received its royal charter in the 1960s, adding a large student population to what had until then been a market and county town, and reshaping parts of the town over the decades that followed.
On the edge of the Surrey Hills
The southern fringes of Guildford, around the Hog's Back and the Chantries, sit within the Surrey Hills National Landscape, though the town centre itself lies just outside the boundary of that protected area.
Council
Guildford Borough Council is the planning authority for the town itself, a separate council from Mole Valley District Council, which covers Dorking to the east.
Frequently asked questions
Is Guildford within the Surrey Hills National Landscape?+
Parts of its southern edge are, but the town centre itself sits just outside the boundary of the protected area.
Which council covers Guildford?+
Guildford Borough Council, a separate authority from Mole Valley District Council, which covers Dorking.
Nearby areas
Services
Useful local links
- Reigate and Banstead Borough Council – Planning — The planning authority covering Reigate and Redhill, a separate borough from Mole Valley.
- Epsom and Ewell Borough Council – Planning permission — The planning authority covering Epsom, a separate borough from Mole Valley.
- Elmbridge Borough Council – Planning permission and applications — The planning authority covering Cobham, a separate borough from Mole Valley.
- GOV.UK – Planning permission: when you need it — Government guidance on when planning permission is required in England and Wales.
- GOV.UK – Party Wall etc. Act 1996 guidance — Government guidance on notifying neighbours and resolving disputes over shared or boundary walls, relevant to attached garage conversions.
- Planning Portal – Garage conversion — National guidance on when planning permission is needed for a garage conversion in England.
- Planning Portal – Outbuildings — National guidance on permitted development rules for garden buildings and outbuildings, including height and coverage limits.