Chance to have your say as public consultation on Southbourne development plan begins

A public consultation on the Southbourne Development Plan, which is used to identify sites where strategic development might be possible and appropriate, launched yesterday (October 31), and is expected to continue until December 12.

The launch follows Southbourne’s identification as a ‘Broad Location for Development’ in the local plan currently under development, Chichester District Council has said, with scope for 1,050 dwellings, local employment opportunities and supporting community uses in the near future.

The consultation means members of the public are formally invited to make representation based on the contents of the consultation documents, which will in turn influence the Development Plan’s later stages.

As part of the consultation, a public exhibition is scheduled to take place at St John’s Church, Main Road, Southbourne, West Sussex, PO10 8LB on Wednesday, 20 November 2024 between 2 pm and 7 pm. To access vital consultation documents and submit comments before the exhibition, visit chichester.oc2.uk.

In a Regulation 18 consultation document associated with the development plan, Chichester District Council officers made clear their plans are to ‘grow Southbourne in a comprehensive manner that sustains a vibrant and sustainable community.

"It will be well supported by services and new and existing developments will be seamlessly integrated while embracing its existing character, landscape and ecological assets,” the document continues.

"Southbourne will connect people with nature, featuring a network of inclusive open space and a safe and inviting Green Ring. Active travel will be promoted through direct and convenient connections. Southbourne will offer a diverse living environment. The project will deliver essential services, diverse housing options, and modern infrastructure, fostering a sustainable, connected, and dynamic community.”

In order to inform the site selection process, district council officers have drawn up three site selection scenarios. Each scenario accounts for 800 dwellings and their requirements, on the basis that some 200 dwellings have already been accounted for by currently proposed plans.

What are the plans? – Scenario 1.

The first scenario concerns land to the west of Southbourne, which, if used, would deliver part of the green wing, provide consolidated education and leisure facilities and address the unsafe ‘church crossing’ footpath over the railway.

Under this plan, a new two-form entry Primary School and community centre could be located adjacent to the existing Bourne Community College: “This could create a hub of activity for the village where facilities can be shared between the existing college and Bourne Leisure Centre with the new primary school and community centre, ensuring the use of the facilities are maximised,” plans say.

The scenario comes with a range of other benefits – like the fact that the land allocation’s northern side could be largely facilitated by a single landowner and integrates well with the local ecology – but developers will need to accommodate for an existing gas pipeline that runs through the northern side of the site. The scenario could also a Brent Geese secondary support area, which would need to be ‘comprehensively mitigated’, according to officers, and the fact that access points will rely on the delivery of a vehicular bridge, which could impact costings and timeframes.

Scenario 2

Scenario 2 concerns land to the East of Southbourne, and officers say it would deliver part of the green ring, improve pedestrian/ cycle and vehicular connectivity and reduce pressure on the use of the rail crossing at Inlands Road, which has been identified as a safety concern.

This scenario envisions the delivery of a new vehicular bridge which would connect the A259 to Priors Leaze Lane through parcels of land east of Inlands Road, easing pressure from the crossing at Inlands Lane and congestion at the Stein Road crossing.

Locating the proposed primary school to the east of the village will help spread education provision throughout Southbourne, making it easier to access and spreading traffic more evenly throughout the community. This eastern location would also benefit from connecting to the Green Ring, benefitting from easy access to nature, walking and cycling routes. It would also retain a large landscape corridor to the wildlife area, and could potentially integrate existing watercourses with with a blue and green infrastructure strategy.

Much like in Scenario 1, a key concern with this strategy, officers say, is the need to accommodate an existing gas pipe which runs through the northern side of the scenario. The pipeline connects to a northern access point, which means this second option might require consultation on an access road near Stein Road.

Unlike the previous strategy, this scenario includes multiple land owners and planning applications, meaning some of the sites may be developed in isolation, making it hard to ensure each development comes forward to cohere with the others.

Scenario 3

This represents a mix of the previous two options, distributing development across the east and west of the village. If approved, this version of the development plan should deliver most of the Green Ring, providing new educational facilities, as well as safe pedestrian and cycle access over the railway line – but not vehicle access.

One of the main benefits of this plan, officers say, is the way in which it minimises the risk around access and delivery, since it does not include plans to build a multi-modal bridge, maximising land that is more readily accessible via the proposed access from Stein Road into land from the East and West.

Like Scenario 2, this version of the plan will spread out education provision across Southbourne, distributing traffic across the village, and proposes a more ‘balanced spatial growth pattern’ that’s better aligned with the shape and form of Southbourne, retaining flexibility for future growth if required.

Officers have nonetheless expressed some concerns with this plan, however; The existing pipeline running through much of the north zone has a consultation area of 120 metres, which runs through the northern access point, connecting the development east to west. As a result, Officers would need to also consult on proposals for an access road.

Scenario 3 is also likely to affect the Brent Geese mitigation area, although not to the same extent as Scenario 1. Like Scenario 2, this plan concerns multiple land owners and a range of distinct planning applications, likely requiring even more coordination.

Finally, the project does not totally alleviate concerns around the capacity of local road networks to cope with the additional demand, in particular the Stein Road and Inlands Road Level Crossing areas.