‘Last chance to be heard’ on North Horsham plans warn campaigners

Residents fighting 2,500 homes and a new business park north of the A264 launched a new website ‘Future Horsham’, which urges opponents of the scheme to object to Horsham District Council’s approved housing blueprint.

The Horsham District Planning Framework Proposed Submission was passed by the council on April 30, and a six week period of representation on the plan closes on June 27.

The comments and plan will then be sent to the planning inspector, who will test the framework’s soundness during a series of public examination hearings.

The Future Horsham website urges people to object to the plans on planning grounds and argues ‘this will be your last chance to be heard’.

It reads: “The aim of Future Horsham is to ensure that our district is a place where people and communities come first; A place where character, appeal and viability of our settlements, surrounding countryside and environment are protected and enhanced; and where economic benefit is evenly spread across the whole district. A place fairly, sensibly and openly governed and planned.”

This week the Horsham Society’s John Steele argued that North Horsham was the ‘worst possible place for new housing.’

Mr Steele said: “We must not let the mistaken abandonment of the council’s 2011 proposals, and its subsequent hypocritical hand wringing, to drive yet another major planning disaster. The right answer is to reconsider the whole plan and hopefully this is what the planning inspector will insist is done.”

HDC has organised a three-day public exhibition, where members of the public can find out more about the planning framework at Unit 65 in Swan Walk Shopping Centre, opposite Country Casuals. Today (Saturday June 7) is the final day of the exhibition, which will run from 10am to 4pm.

Meanwhile campaigners against the proposals are inviting anyone concerned about the scale of housebuilding to attend a protest today (Saturday June 7) at 10.30am.

Residents are expected to gather off Wimland Road several hundred yards from the Crawley Road turnoff.

Then North Horsham Parish Council is hosting a public meeting at North Heath Hall on Monday June 9 at 7.30pm to help ‘give voice’ to the electorate who might want to support or oppose the plans.

For more information visit the Future Horsham website.