'Deep concern' over plans for £350 million Center Parcs holiday village near Crawley

Center Parcs wants to build up to 900 lodges, a range of indoor and outdoor leisure facilities, a ‘subtropical swimming pool’, a variety of restaurants, shops and a spa on 553 acres of privately-owned woodland at Oldhouse Warren off Balcombe Road, Worth.

But Crawley Borough Council is expressing deep concern over the proposals and has sent letters to Center Parcs and to Mid Sussex District Council which is responsible for making any planning decisions.

The letters state: “We believe that such proposals would bring about substantial environmental harm by destroying large swathes of designated ancient woodland. This runs completely contrary to the government’s Climate Change Emergency imperative of protecting our mature ‘green infrastructure’ as part of our shared priority to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions.

“We also believe that the high levels of intensive activity generated by the location of such a proposal would bring about unacceptable adverse impacts on the surrounding Crawley road and rail transport network and that it will be Crawley which will bear the brunt of such impacts in terms of congestion, air quality and intolerable pressures on local services.”

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Council leader Michael Jones said: “Center Parcs’ proposed holiday village at Oldhouse Warren is totally unsustainable and unjustifiable, particularly in these challenging times of climate change.

“A new resort would cause grave and irreparable harm to ecosystems and biodiversity, both above and below ground, for which Oldhouse Warren is protected.

“Plans for the destruction of such a large section of Worth Forest are an affront to our community and the planning system – and should be halted immediately.”

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Concerns have also been raised about the development by the Sussex Planning for Nature Group, which is made up of the Sussex Wildlife Trust, the RSPB, the Woodland Trust, the Sussex branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England Sussex and the Sussex Ornithological Society.

If it goes ahead, the development is expected to cost between £350m and £400m and create around 1,500 permanent local jobs once operational - and a further 1,000 jobs during construction.

If planning permission is granted, the development is likely to take at least five years to complete.