Implications for new residents

The issue of lack of suitable infrastructure in and around Little Common including Little Common school was raised several times during the debate on the Spindlewood planning application at the Planning Committee meeting on February 14. Several different councillors raised their concerns.

Mr Hickling (head of planning) dismissed these concerns by pointing out 
that ESCC had advised him that the new two-phase primary school planned for Worsham Farm (1,005 dwellings in North East Bexhill) was due to open by the middle of the 2020s.

This is a shocking state of affairs with major implications for all new residents with children aged 4-11 on Rosewood Park, Ashridge Court and any other proposed new developments around Little Common (such as Spindlewood Drive and Clavering Walk).

Little Common school has a very good reputation and consequently attracts children from a wide area including Eastbourne, Battle, Hastings, etc.

It is always full to capacity (currently circa 99.8 per cent) despite catering for 615 pupils.

The school currently has no plans to restrict its catchment area until the new Worsham Farm school is completed.

As a result, the school will continue to be at capacity until at least 2025 with only locally-based four year olds able to enter.

Since it will take another seven years for existing 
pupils to work through the years until they go to a secondary school, the local new children aged five or more will be excluded from Little Common school until at least 2032.

Consequently, parents of all new developments around Little Common will be forced to take and collect their children aged five or more to and from other primary schools in Bexhill by car, thereby adding yet further car movements and air pollution to the A259 and other local roads around Little Common.

What a disastrous state of affairs especially for the new residents and for the Little Common local community.

No wonder local councillors are, quite rightly, concerned and a prime reason why newly-proposed large housing developments at Spindlewood and Clavering Walk should be refused.