Goring Gap comment: Farcical housing targets are trashing county and local democracy – when will government act?

The decision to allow outline plans for 475 homes on a treasured green gap is a clear example of how farcical government housebuilding figures are trashing both our county and local democracy, writes West Sussex Gazette editor Oli Poole.
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Opposition to the development of part of Goring Gap, between Worthing and Ferring, has been unequivocal.

More than 1,000 residents, the area’s MP and Worthing Borough Council were united in their insistence that this site, known as Chatsmore Farm, was unsuitable for development.

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Developer wins appeal over plans for 475 homes at Goring Gap
Residents protesting plans for part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek MartinResidents protesting plans for part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek Martin
Residents protesting plans for part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek Martin
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But local decision making counted for nothing. At the end of last week, an inspector from the Planning Inspectorate – headquartered in Bristol – allowed an appeal by Persimmon Homes against the council’s refusal of the developer’s controversial plans.

Worthing’s housing shortage was a key factor.

The numbers are stark. According to standard government calculations, the borough needs 14,160 new homes over a 16-year period– 885 a year.

In contrast, the council’s draft local plan outlines a blueprint for a minimum of about 230 homes a year – 3,672 over the same period.

Chatsmore Farm, part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek MartinChatsmore Farm, part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek Martin
Chatsmore Farm, part of Goring Gap. Picture by Derek Martin

The shortfall is not the result of a dereliction of duty. The inspector said the council had ‘left no stone unturned in identifying sites that can sustainably assist in meeting its housing needs’.

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He was right. The council has identified plans for its key brownfield sites – the type of developments many people can generally support, providing there is suitable infrastructure.

Inroads have been made on affordable housing, too. For example, the partnership with IKEA-backed Boklok is delivering 162 flats – 72 per cent of which based on its ‘left to live’ model, aimed at providing ‘genuinely affordable’ homes.

Historically, the council had many critics when it approved the greenfield West Durrington development – but it supports the notion that the authority has not buried its head in the sand when it comes to delivering new homes.

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All this might seem like sensible, sustainable planning. But in a world influenced heavily by standardised, central government housing calculations, it is not enough.

In fact, the council is effectively penalised for failing to keep up with what the figures say is needed. When councils cannot demonstrate sufficient supply of land for housing, it can be far easier for developers to gain permission for developments like Chatsmore Farm.

Yet the problem with the official figure for Worthing is it is impossible to achieve.

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The inspector conceded the difficulty, writing: “While I acknowledge that this area of the country is one of the most densely developed areas of the UK, and that even if the council was to develop every blade of grass within its administrative area, meeting this need is likely to prove challenging for the foreseeable future.”

Despite this concession, the inspector concluded that the contribution of 475 homes in context of Worthing’s housing shortage should be afforded ‘very significant weight’.

While this might be a reasonable conclusion in planning terms, the truth of the matter is the development of Goring Gap will have a negligible effect in helping to deliver the government’s gargantuan numbers.

Over the period of the local plan, it would still leave Worthing some 10,000 homes short, with precious little options left for development, unless the Channel or the South Downs are now fair game.

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Is this a case of every little helps? We question whether the perceived benefits truly outweigh the objections of those who have devoted years to protecting this site.

This case certainly does not accord with Boris Johnson’s October Conservative Party Conference speech vision to stop ‘jamming’ the South East with housing, or the prioritisation of brownfield building over the desecration of greenfield land.

And, as our Gazette campaign to protect green spaces has consistently warned, these types of decisions should come as little surprise, because since that conference speech, no new policies that we are aware of have come into force to help realise that ambition.

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Instead, we are stuck with the same old, damaging policies which seek to impose unsustainable levels of housebuilding on our county.

Worthing Borough Council leader Kevin Jenkins said recently that the government ‘refuses to see sense on this issue’. His anger is well placed.

Inaction on a national level means – like many greenfield sites before it – it could be too late for Chatsmore Farm.

It is shameful and enough is enough. What will it take for the government sit up and listen – and most crucially, act?