The Local Plan for the Horsham District is written by Horsham District Council in its role as the Local Planning Authority. The Local Plan is revised every 5 years. A new Local Plan has been written but the process to adopt it hasn’t been completed.
The Local Plan identifies sites where new houses will be built. Potential development sites are listed in the plan and then some of these sites are allocated for development to meet the housing targets for the next 5 year period. Muggeridge Field is listed as one of the potential development sites.
In March 2020, Henry Adams submitted a representation, on behalf of West Sussex County Council, against the new Horsham District Local Plan. This made a case for Muggeridge Field to be allocated for development so that 63 dwellings could be built on it. Despite this, Muggeridge Field hasn’t be allocated for development in the new Local Plan, which is great news!
In July 2021, Horsham District Council was going to vote on whether to proceed with the new Local Plan. However, this meeting was postponed due to changes that the government made to the National Planning Policy Framework. In October 2021, the Local Plan was delayed again due to an issue with the water supply in the area. This issue was resolved in November 2022 and council meetings were scheduled for January 2023 to approve the plan. However, in January, Conservative councillors at HDC decided to postpone the plan again, until after the local elections in May. A revised timetable for the new Local Plan hasn’t been issued yet.
After the new Local Plan has been published there will be a period of consultation. This will give West Sussex County Council the opportunity to raise another representation, asking for Muggeridge Field to be allocated for development. Representations made during this consultation will be considered by the Planning Inspectorate as part of their examination of the Local Plan.
Keep Muggeridge Field Green 