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Companies fear office eviction for housing plans

Craig Buchan
BBC News, South East
Miranda Schunke/BBC A grey-cladded office building with a row of cars parked in front. The building bears the sign 'Terminal House'.Miranda Schunke/BBC
Terminal House in Shepperton is home to about 40 small businesses

Tenants at a commercial property in Surrey say they fear their new landlord will convert the building to studio flats.

Businesses at Terminal House in Shepperton, some of which have been in place for 30 years, found out in March that the building had a new owner, who applied for permission to change the use of the property.

Permits were issued in May as, under existing planning rules, changing the use of many commercial buildings to housing does not require planning permission.

The new owner's planning agent did not respond to a request for comment.

People who work at Terminal House said they had received limited from the new landlord, leaving them unclear about if they would be allowed to remain at the premises.

Max Brown, a recruitment consultant, said the new owner was "a bit vague" about plans for the site, adding he believed turning the property into flats was the landlord's "end goal".

Another person who works at Terminal House, who wanted to remain anonymous, said they had seen "people doing surveys" on the building and furnishings being delivered.

Candle business owner Nicola Males said she had decided to pre-emptively end her lease, adding she "couldn't bear the uncertainty".

She said she could not risk being given three months' notice to leave Terminal House as she had to be "set up ready to go" ahead of the Christmas rush, adding it was "very difficult" to find similar commercial properties in Shepperton.

Miranda Schunke/BBC A handwritten sign in a window. It reads "The new owners of this building want to turn it into cramped, one-person bedsits. THE ONLY PEOPLE IT WILL BENEFIR ARE THE WEALTHY OWNERS NOT Shepperton, NOT the community, NOT the small businesses who rent here, PLEASE OBJETC NOW".Miranda Schunke/BBC
Permits were issued to change the use of the building under existing planning rules

Mr Brown said the new landlord had also "cancelled a bunch of subscriptions" - such as for bin collections and drinking water fountains - since taking over.

Ms Males added that the lack of bin collections had led to "rubbish strewn all over the road" for a time, but that collections had restarted.

Another worker at Terminal House said that the communication had been "shocking" regarding the move and they only learned the building had been sold after the transaction was completed.

Occupants said the property was now managed by P4i, a London-based company that d its involvement in commercial site conversions across England.

P4i did not respond to a request for comment from the BBC.

In addition to the successful bid to change the use of the building, the landlord has also submitted applications for planning consent to extend both blocks of Terminal House, which are located either side of a railway line.

Spelthorne Borough Council is yet to determine the outcomes of these applications.

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