Mid-Sussex
The battle to protect our countryside has been taken to a new level by Twineham farmer, Robert Worsley who has become something of a national hero after turning down a fortune to thwart plans for a Sussex New Town.
Event: Living in Sussex – Past, Present, Future
Written by CPRE Sussex
Saturday, 28th February at The Clair Hall, Haywards Heath
You are warmly invited to join us for an event we are hosting for our members and all those who love the Sussex countryside on Saturday, 28th February. Hear about issues affecting your local countryside and CPRE’s work. We are delighted to welcome Ian Everest, Sussex Historian, who will reflect on life on a Sussex Farm during the 1950s. Ian will show a cine film from this period and talk about life on the farm and what has happened since. After coffee, Michael Nailard from The Woodland Flora & Fauna Group will talk about the invaluable conservation work of this successful local group.
Opposition to Gatwick's second runway: latest
Written by Justin French-Brooks
10 February 2014
CPRE Sussex has again voiced its opposition to the proposed second runway at Gatwick in it response to the Airports Commission’s consultation. It has also strongly welcomed decisions by many Sussex councils to vote against a second runway at Gatwick and is urging others to “wake up” to the enormous threat is poses to the local countryside.
Beware the urbanisation of Mid Sussex, warns CPRE
Written by Michael Brown
The Campaign to Protect Rural England has warned Mid Sussex District Council that its latest District Plan proposals, ones that will shape our District between now and 2031, fail to protect the District from rapid urbanisation. MSDC has just closed a public consultation exercise on its proposed Plan. “Adoption of a new Plan must not provide our Council with an implicit mandate to abandon Mid Sussex’s essentially rural character” says CPRE Sussex trustee, Michael Brown.
We have been taking stock of the results of our interventions in recent planning applications and planning appeals in Mid Sussex. Of the last 10 cases in which we have intervened, we await the result in 4 cases: the planning wheels can grind exceedingly slow!. Of those that have been determined, we are delighted to say that in 4 cases the planning application has either been withdrawn or turned down (in one case after the developer's appeal was rejected on grounds that we argued for) or granted subject to conditions that CPRE advocated. It would be inappropriate hubris to claim that CPRE is solely responsible for these good results, but we do hope that our arguments at least served to focus minds on the core arguments and to galvanise public opinion.
Documents submitted by Mid-Sussex CPRE Sussex district;
Artists from many local villages including Hurstpierpoint, Henfield, Bolney, Wineham and Steyning have joined forces to create a collection of work depicting the beautiful countryside at risk from proposals for a new town in the area.
Since the last District report in May, there have been a few planning decisions to cheer. These decisions encourage us in our ongoing campaign to ensure that environmental considerations that foster our precious local countryside and its rural heritage are properly weighed in the planning balance against the need (which we fully recognise) for new homes.
For those concerned with the protection of our countryside and rural communities, the planning picture within Mid Sussex remains deeply depressing: as previously reported, the District Council’s draft Local Plan was withdrawn from examination at the request of the Planning Inspector last December by reason of the Council’s failure to meet its duty to co-operate with neighbouring authorities over housing and other matters of mutual concern.
