JANUARY 15 2025 – WEST OF IFIELD + CRAWLEY OBSERVER – LETTERS [RICHARD W. SYMONDS – IFIELD SOCIETY]

Dear Editor

Tomorrow [Thursday] would have been Day 9 of the Horsham Local Plan Examination – West of Ifield.
As we already know, the Planning Inspector cancelled the Examination on Day 3 just before Christmas, stating:
“I am writing now because I have significant concerns about the soundness and legal compliance of the Plan in respect of a number of areas. I will set these out in detail in a separate letter as soon as I possibly can”
We await this “separate letter” with considerable interest.
Richard W. Symonds
The Ifield Society

DECEMBER 13 2024 – SAVE WEST OF IFIELD [FENELLA MAITLAND-SMITH]

LOCAL PLAN EXAMINATION UPDATED – we now know the Exam hearings have been cancelled until further notice. But I thought I’d post some of what the Inspector has actually said. And some first thoughts on what any of it could mean for WOI – although it’s much too early to say. Recordings of the hearings are here: https://www.youtube.com/@horshamdistrictcouncil/streams

The Inspector has said “It’s feeling to me as if there’s potential for significant delay while waiting for [further] evidence on significant issues. … I may impose a pause in the hearings.”

At the start his key questions were around the legal issue of Duty to Cooperate, in particular whether HDC had adequately worked with neighbouring councils to solve the issue that its Plan doesn’t deliver enough houses for Govt targets, and doesn’t build any to help Crawley and other councils meet their targets. There was a lot of discussion about whether water neutrality really does impose the constraints on numbers HDC is claiming, and whether any sites that can provide their own water should be considered for allocation. HDC also argue that there is not the market capacity for the numbers of houses required by Govt targets.

The Inspector has asked HDC for a large volume of additional work on these points, and others including why the Plan doesn’t recognise its influence beyond its boundaries –

particularly the influence of WOI on Crawley,

and the implications of the Government’s recent changes to planning policy.

Implications for WOI?

It’s much too early to say what the implications might be for WOI. On the one hand we might think the Inspector’s concerns about too few houses in the Plan would make WOI more likely. But on the other hand there are other large sites who can provide their own water and so could come into the Plan. And he’s only raised specific questions about one site so far – WOI and Crawley – which is a huge question. Plus we have plenty of strong and evidenced arguments for why WOI is unsound, that are scheduled for discussion in January .

Please note though that the Examination process has only just begun, and could take many twists and turns as it proceeds. But we’ll be looking to take advantage of everything we can! Watch this space for updates …