Part of the wider Barnham, Eastergate and Westergate (BEW) strategic site, Arun District Council recently approved the outline planning application for the first parcel for 1,250 new homes and detailed permission for the realignment of part of the A29.
Arranged as a series of linked neighbourhoods integrated within landscape, the masterplan reflects its context of West Sussex villages, linked by active travel and public transport routes to Barnham station which lies next to the site. This first application for development will deliver a diverse mix of homes including affordable housing, self-build plots and a 60-bed senior living accommodation. A new neighbourhood centre will sit at the heart of the community, providing 1,250sqm of shops, cafés and a community hall, alongside land for a new three-form entry primary school.
Shaped by the Sussex landscape, the proposal places a strong emphasis on open space and ecological enhancement. Over 40 hectares of green space will be provided, including the creation of the Lidsey Rife Linear Park – a 20 hectare natural corridor on the western edge of the site. Designed to encourage interaction between people and nature, the park will feature a rich mosaic of habitats, walking and cycling paths, with play areas for local families.
Elsewhere in JTP’s portfolio with CCE, Herefordshire Council’s Planning Committee has approved the application for the Three Elms North East Quarter, which will deliver 350 new homes for Hereford, a care home and green infrastructure – representing the first phase of a wider western urban expansion of over 1,000 homes all with ready access to the city centre.
JTP’s first involvement in the project was in 2010, when we prepared a concept masterplan, intrinsic to which was a green infrastructure strategy setting out detail relating to flood and drainage mitigation, ecological enhancement, and multi-functional landscape. It has been a long journey, but the original vision and design principles have held strong.
