Developers reveal fresh proposals for 94 'executive homes' near Horsham

Berkeley Homes want to build the houses as phase 5 of its 594-house Broadacres development on land west of Worthing Road in Southwater.

Outline planning permission was granted by Horsham District Council in 2015 and phases 1, 2 and 3 have now been completed. The go-ahead was also granted for phase 4 of the development but phase 5 was held up by water restrictions introduced by Natural England.

Now Berkeley Homes want to amend their phase 5 plans and are proposing to build 94 dwellings with associated access, parking and landscaping. The company says the overall number of houses being built would remain the same but with a number of homes moved from phase 4 to phase 5.

In a statement to the council, the company says: “The proposed amendments would allow Berkeley Homes to bring the proposed scheme forward in a timely matter and provide much needed housing within Southwater.”

It is proposing to build seven two-bedroom homes, 17 three-bedroom homes, 51 four-bedroom houses and 19 five-bedroom properties on a 16-acre field bounded by Shaw’s Lane and fields to the west with the eastern edge bordering earlier phases of the development.

Berkeleys says that all the proposed homes would be for sale with 178 ‘affordable homes’ already provided through earlier building phases.

It says that water neutrality would be achieved through water efficient fixtures and fittings, and offsetting water in properties built during both phase 4 of the Broadacres development and phases 8-13 of its Highwood development in Horsham.

However a number of local residents are objecting to the plans. One said: “There has been mass building in Southwater that has had a huge impact on the village in terms of traffic, struggles to access amenities, eg doctors.

"I understand these plans also have limited properties for sale that are affordable by residents of Southwater and consist mostly of executive homes.”

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Another said: “There has been enough building in Southwater. Carbon emissions are never going to come down when areas are flooded with houses. Enough houses – leave us some countryside.”