New cycling hub and café on Leith Hill given green light

Plans for a new cycling hub and café on a famous Surrey climb have been approved by local councillors.

Cycling holiday company Just Pedal applied to Mole Valley District Council to set up a new facility that would be welcomed by riders taking on the Surrey Hills.

The plans for cycling café, an office for the cycle events business, and a bike repair workshop were approved by councillors on Wednesday (January 8), despite receiving seven objections from local residents over “noise pollution and litter due to a potential increase in traffic.”

Director and owner of Just Pedal, Robert Hawkins said: “Just Pedal are still growing as a company and plan to move to larger premises on Coast Hill Farm in the heart of the Surrey Hills, the area where the company has been based since it’s creation.

"Here we plan to set-up a much needed ‘hub’ facility that benefits both the local community and visiting cycling community. The ‘hub’ will consist of our current event offices, a bicycle centre and a café. We will also provide much needed parking facilities for visiting cyclists.”

The application is to convert a former poultry farm on Sheephouse Lane – one of the eight ascents included in the ‘Leith Hill Octopus' – into a cycling hub.

Just Pedal, founded in 2012 and based in nearby Albury, organises charity challenges and cycling trips throughout the UK and Europe.

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Despite the objections from some local residents, which include “strongly object on the basis of large groups of cyclists impeding traffic flow on the A25 and Sheephouse Lane”, council officers recommended the planning application be approved, with councillors signing off on the plans with conditions, which include the owners sticking to the planned opening hours.

The other iconic climb in the Surrey Hills also features a café for riders to refuel – the Box Hill Café is a national trust spot serving up drinks, food and cakes.