Final approval given for Slinfold development which has divided the village

The site, at Crosby Farm, on Lyons Road, has been given outline approval twice – once on appeal – and received full approval during a meeting of the planning committee last week.

The application, from Antler Homes, has been the cause of some contention in the village, with some raising concerns about road safety, over-development and  harm to the character of the area.

One resident told the meeting that the application had left some people in the village ‘confused, fatigued, in conflict with neighbours’ and having ‘lost faith in the system’.

Others, though, were more than happy with the plans, especially the idea of a new cricket pavilion.

John Whybrow, president of the cricket club, said the old pavilion was ‘delapidated, unfit for use and an eyesore’.

He added: “This is more than a home for the cricket club – it’s also a centre for children and families in the village. On Friday evenings in the summer it becomes a social centre for the young and older families alike.”

The full application brought a number of changes to the one given outline permission – most notably the layout of the homes on the 1.2 hectare site.

The council’s landscape architect objected to the application, adding: “The density of housing and the more regimented layout does not provide a transition area to the countryside.”

But planning officers felt the benefits of the scheme – including eight affordable homes – out-weighed any harm caused.

Tricia Youtan (Con,  Itchingfield, Slinfold & Warnham) said it was ‘really unfortunate’ that the application had caused division in the village.

She pointed out that it had been included in the neighbourhood plan because of an understanding that it would include a scout hut and allotments as well as the cricket pavilion.

The first two were dropped early in the process.

In the end, the committee agreed to delegate the application for approval once issues with the ridge heights and design of some of the new homes had been addressed.

To view the application, log on to www.horsham.gov.uk/planning and search for DC/21/0109