Adur and Worthing District Update December 2025

Welcome to your 2025 recap for Adur district and Worthing borough!

This year has been one of the toughest for the countryside yet, with government policy and rhetoric turning powerfully against nature and wildlife. Sussex’s landscapes are now under active attack, and sadly Adur district and Worthing borough are no exception. There have been hard-fought battles for our countryside – but some incredible victories too.

2025 has been full of milestones for our community and the landscapes that we cherish. From a major victory at Chatsmore Farm, to an update on Local Plans and the return of our beloved Tree Festival, we’ve worked together to protect and celebrate the places that make Adur and Worthing special.

Chatsmore Farm – victory!

We celebrated in April this year when the planning appeal to build 475 homes at Chatsmore Farm, north of Goring, was rejected by the Planning Inspectorate. This development had had quite a journey – it had already been rejected, appealed, approved and then overturned by the High Court, before going through the process yet again and ending in this fantastic result!

We worked hard on this case with community groups in Goring and Ferring, providing objections to the original application, and comment and evidence to the appeal and Local Plan consultation and examination.

Thankfully, the Inspectorate denied the appeal on the grounds of substantial harm caused to the local landscape, as well as to the South Downs National Park. This was a resounding victory for the residents of Ferring and Goring as well as for the beautiful local Sussex countryside there. A very well done to all involved!

Local Plan updates

Adur District Council has begun developing a new Local Plan, which will set out what development will take place and where – you can read updates from the Council on the Local Plan here. It is likely to fall under the new rules for Plan Making, introduced by the government in November. You can read more about those here.

Worthing’s Local Plan was adopted in 2023 and you can read more about it here.

Tree Festival

Our annual celebration of trees was back in full force across Adur in June! Our Tree Festival had an array of walks and talks in Southwick, Shoreham, Lancing and Worthing, all paying homage to the beautiful trees that call our county home. One of our personal highlights was the Branch Out Symposium, which brought together industry professionals and the community to discuss one of our favourite subjects: trees!

We are now planning our Tree Festival 2026 for next year so make sure to look out for news – we look forward to seeing you there!

Thank you

We are so grateful for all of your support in 2025. It’s been an especially tough year for the countryside, nature, climate and our beautiful landscapes, with a government that has seemingly declared war on the environment in both rhetoric and policy. It’s down to the support of people like you that we can continue to stand up and defend Sussex’s green spaces. Thank you for helping us to stand up for the Sussex countryside. We look forward to defending it, together, in 2026!

PS – don’t forget that you can give the gift of CPRE membership this Christmas!

Do you know somebody who loves the Sussex countryside as much as you do? And do you want to give a gift that lasts all year long?

You can buy individual or household CPRE Sussex membership as a gift. As you know, membership comes with a host of benefits including discounts on events and access to houses and gardens across the county – plus the knowledge that you are helping to shape a greener future for Sussex.

Give the gift of CPRE membership.