CPRE Sussex fights threat to South Downs National Park landscape

The proposed development at The Woodcote, Woodcote Lane, Graffham, West Sussex GU28 0NT would be detrimental to the National Park.

Planning Application SDNP/25/01323/FUL is for the extension and remodelling of the existing pub and guest rooms to provide a bistro, restaurant, and 16 guest bedrooms in detached lodges, with associated works.

The proposal site occupies a dominant position with a rolling landscape of South Downs viewed from Woodcote Lane. The existing layout of the site is very sensitive to its location and is surrounded by an  unspoiled natural landscape. The existing pub would serve as an ‘affordable bistro’ and six substantial buildings (two of them two-storey), four smaller units and a sizeable flat roofed building. The layout of four small units would give a residential feel with kind of front gardens which is entirely inappropriate in this countryside location. Overall, the application would have a detrimental  impact on the National Park landscape.

The proposed development is located outside the local plan settlement boundaries and does not meet the exceptional circumstances criteria for such development. It would also not be sustainable, relying on the use of private cars. It is not suitable for the location within the National Park

The proposed development would not be supported by any of the relevant policies within the Local Plan and therefore should be refused.

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CPRE Sussex Objection to Planning Application in National Park