More housing in Barnham could spell end of villages

Nick Herbert said the government-imposed targets for new homes threatened the character of the rural settlements and the surrounding countryside.

The 11,300 new dwellings expected to be built around the Arun district by 2026 was an unsustainable amount, stated the MP for Arundel and South Downs.

"I think we all have to decide, as a West Sussex community, whether we want to turn our rural villages into a kind of suburban conurbation, because that could happen over the next 20 years if these kinds of decisions are got wrong.

"We will find that our villages lose their individual identities and developments will run into each other, much as they have done around Worthing," he warned.

"I suspect that local people don't want to see that. I think it will irrevocably change the character of this area.

"Additional housing must be sustainable, added without causing the kind of wreckage to our countryside and to our villages that we've all seen elsewhere."

Mr Herbert aired his views at recent public meetings at Aldingbourne and Angmering. They follow the publication of Arun District Council's proposals to accommodate the new homes demanded by the government.

One of the three preferred options would see land around Barnham, Eastergate and Westergate earmarked for 2,500 of the properties.

A further 1,500 would go to Angmering and 1,500 north of Littlehampton. Another 400-900 would be destined for greenfield sites elsewhere in the district.

Another option would be to allow 2,500 homes to be built north of Chalcraft Lane, North Bersted; 2,000 north of Littlehampton, 500 at Angmering and up to 900 elsewhere.

Another alternative would see 5,000 homes at Ford and up to 900 on other sites.

Arun's councillors could choose one of the options as its planning policy or a mixture of options.

Its members have stated an early preference for the Chalcraft Lane choice but could change their minds after public consultation, which begins this month.

Mr Herbert said some new housing was inevitable to help young people enter the property market.

But councillors had been put in a very difficult position because of the government's demands.

He also criticised those behind the 5,000 home Ford eco-town project by saying their attempt to place the major development in one part of the district to stop building anywhere else was wrong.

"This kind of beggar-my-neighbour approach is deeply unfriendly and unfair to neighbouring communities," he added.

"We should all share a common concern to protect the rural character of our villages."

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