Permission granted for 22 additional homes on development site

The decision was made on Thursday at a meeting of Mid Sussex District Council’s planning committee in the council chamber in Haywards Heath.

The original plan for 47 homes on land in Parkfield Way, Haywards Heath, was previously approved for the Bolnore village development before a recommendation for 22 extra homes – phase 5B – on the same plot of land was lodged.

The newly approved plan sees a reduction in the number of five and four bed houses and replaces them with three bed homes.

The percentage of affordable accommodation has also been increased to 15 per cent up from the previous proposal which included ten per cent.

Case officer Steve Ashdown said: “This new application is to consider 22 extra homes on the same plot of land in Bolnore as the reserved matters application in which 47 homes were approved.

“The previous application had a large number of four to five bed homes so we have brought them down to three bed homes in line with what the area needs.

“The applicants wish to increase the number of units in this particular part of the phase from the approved 47 homes, to the proposed 69, an increase by 22 homes.

“This is being achieved by removing all of the five bedroom dwellings and significantly increasing the number of three bedroom properties, as well as an increase on four bedroom units.

“As a result, the amount of affordable accommodation on this plot of land is 15 per cent.

“We set a target of 30 per cent affordable homes in each application but sometimes that is not possible to achieve.”

The proposed mix for the 69 homes includes two one-bed apartments, ten two-bed apartments, 34 three-bed houses and 13 four-bed houses.

The affordable accommodation includes one one-bed apartment, five two-bed apartments and four two-bed houses.

Councillor for Crawley Down and Turners Hill Phillip Coote said: “I visited this site a little while ago and had a number of concerns.

“The roads around the development area are too narrow and cars have to pull to avoid each other as it is.

“Our job is too look at this application and fast forward 20 years to see if there will be any problems. I see problems there with this current application.”

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