‘Save our village’: Passionate plea goes out from people in Pulborough

The plea is being made over plans to build 170 new houses on land in the north of the village.

Strategic land promotion company Catesby is seeking planning approval from Horsham District Council to build the houses at New Place Farm.

The land - which has a number of public rights of way across it - is currently used as a commercial plant nursery business.

Catesby want to demolish existing structures on the site and build 170 mainly two and three-bed houses, along with a countryside park.

But huge opposition is being put forward by local residents who have submitted scores of letters of objection to the district council.

One hit out at the development as ‘a blight on the life of Pulborough.’

Another said: “It saddens me to see yet another area of Sussex horticultural land disappear under yet another housing development.”

The ‘Save our village’ call followed fears over increased traffic on already-clogged roads, concerns over insufficient school places and medical services, along with concerns over light pollution and loss of wildlife habitats.

One objector summed up: “There is not enough infrastructure to support this development.

“The roads in the immediate vicinity canot cope with the volume of traffic now, let alone during the new development and after with the increase in vehicles.”

Another added: “Local road surfaces are already bad due to the sheer heavy weight of vehicles.

“They can’t take any more.”

As a land promotion business, Catesby Strategic Land is seeking planning permission for the development before marketing the land to housebuilders.