Storage centre destroyed by fire will be rebuilt

Just 24 items and a small number of photographs were retrieved after the storage unit caught fire

A self storage centre in Surrey destroyed in a fire over two years ago will be rebuilt as a bigger facility with more units, it has been confirmed.

The Access Self Storage in Byfleet burned down in May 2023, destroying almost everything inside its 480 units.

Only 24 items were recovered following the blaze, which a report said was probably caused by a faulty battery. The building was subsequently demolished.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, on Tuesday members of Woking Borough Council's planning committee granted permission for a new facility on the Oyster Lane site.

The larger site, to be open 24 hours a day, will swallow up the old Halford's and Screwfix sites.

The building will be spread across three floors covering approximately 3,500 sq m (37,673 sq ft) and proposed to accommodate about 500 storage units.

Councillor Chris Martin, said: "It's a big old bulk in comparison with how it used to be."

A speaker against the plans cited concerns about the "development size and closeness to residential properties".

"It may increase potential risk in the event of a future possible incident," they said.

The developers' agent told the council the company had lost £3.5m in revenue to date, with this figure expected to rise.

Committee members were told the storage units would be located 25.5m (84ft) to the nearest homes.

Liberal Democrat colleague Louise Morales told the committee that as a long-time industrial estate, people nearby should expect industrial developments to take place.

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