Wake up Sussex! Have your say in pivotal consultation

Imminent proposed changes to national planning policy will have far-reaching consequences for the future of Sussex and its communities and natural environment. You can have your say now.

You can respond by 2 March to this pivotal consultation: ‘Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill: reforms to national planning policy’ to make the case for reducing excessive house building targets for Sussex.

The consultation offers a hugely important, one-off opportunity for Councils and communities to justify an alternative approach in place of the Standard Method, in order to achieve sustainable house building targets.

The Standard Method has resulted in excessive, unsustainable housing targets being imposed across Sussex – without regard to the damaging consequences for communities and the environment.

The consultation invites views on alternative approaches to the Standard Method for assessing housing needs, where there are exceptional circumstances (Chapter 4).

In responding to the consultation you can offer your views on the sort of demographic and geographic factors which could be used to demonstrate ‘exceptional circumstances in practice’ – circumstances that would justify NOT using the Standard Method.

The exceptional circumstances could include university towns with an above average proportion of students – as in Brighton; or large Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty within a district.

They can also Include areas with a high percentage of elderly residents where deaths exceed births (e.g. Lewes and Rother Districts) where ‘housing need’ is due entirely to government targets and results in commuting to London, which contributes to climate change and pressure on transport infrastructure.

Details of the ‘reforms’, and how to respond to the consultation are explained in the consultation prospectus, together with the related ‘tracked changes NPPF’, which sets out the ‘proposed policy wording for the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) indicating what would be implemented immediately, subject to the results of the consultation’.

The Government will respond to the consultation by Spring 2023, publishing the NPPF revisions ‘as part of this’, so that ‘policy changes can take effect as soon as possible’.

Find the consultation and see how to respond by 2 March:  www.gov.uk/government/consultations/levelling-up-and-regeneration-bill-reforms-to-national-planning-policy/levelling-up-and-regeneration-bill-reforms-to-national-planning-policy

See also: CPRE Sussex press release: www.cpresussex.org.uk/resources/wake-up-sussex-have-your-say-in-pivotal-consultation/