Decision due on East Sussex housing plans

On Wednesday (January 17), Lewes District Council’s planning committee are set to consider an application to demolish a property in Allington Road, known as Point House, replacing it with six new houses.

The proposals come after a previous version of the plans, which would have seen the existing property retained, were turned down at appeal in 2019.

However, developer Brookworth Homes says these plans come within a different context, as the council can no longer demonstrate a five-year supply of housing land. In such circumstances, national planning rules require a ‘presumption in favour of development’.

In a planning statement submitted as part of the application, a spokesman for the developer said: “The basis upon which the Inspector found the site ‘an unsuitable location’ is no longer applicable to the consideration of the current application.

“Whist outside of the existing development boundary, policy DM1 …should be afforded greatly diminished weight. This policy is no longer a defensible tool with which to restrict housing development to the boundaries that were tightly drawn around settlements in 2020 and designed to meet the outstanding development needs from the Local Plan Part 1 up until 2021.

“In the absence of a five-year housing land supply this policy is out of date and should only be afforded very limited weight. This eliminates half of the harm that in combination led the inspector to dismiss the appeal.”

The spokesman goes on to argue that the development would be a “sensitive and well-designed addition” to the area.

However, the potential demolition has come in for criticism from Newick Parish Council, which describes the proposal as a ‘poor use of resources’.

In its response to the scheme, a spokesman for the parish council said: “This scheme should be refused like the previous scheme.

“[It would have an] unacceptable impact on the character and appearance of the countryside corridor between Newick and North Chailey. Six new houses would still be able to be seen from Allington Road in particular.”

While the ultimate decision will be down to the committee, planning officers are recommending the scheme for approval. They say its benefits outweigh its downsides, particularly given the presumption in favour of development under national planning rules.

For further information see application reference LW/23/0511 on the Lewes District Council website.