Of 300 homes planed east of the A24, west of Horsham, just six are planned as affordable properties - just 2% of the total. Horsham District Council's target for large-scale schemes is 40%. The council say that cuts to Government grants towards affordable hosuing since 2011 have changed the social housing development landscape "dramatically".

Pointing out the massive discrepancy in the target, CPRE Sussex's Dr Roger Smith calls for alternative sources of finance for affordable housing. "The presumption for local plans is that affordable housing will be funded entirely by developers through the sale of new private homes. Consequently housing targets are grossly inflated, and even though huge tracts of irreplaceable farmland are allocated for development, the need for truly affordable homes, including rented accommodation, is not being met."

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