Last night’s Parish Council EGM resulted in a unanimous vote against the proposed development with the Parish issuing a Strong Objection. This advice will then be presented to Horsham District Council for its final decision.
A packed hall heard from a number of speakers – both for and against the proposed housing development – including Chris Carey, a local chartered surveyor, representing the opinions of SPANGLE.
It was clear from the discussions and questions from the floor that the development has deeply divided the local community. Interestingly, the Parish Councillors – all but one of whom not only voted against but voiced serious misgivings about the development – were unanimous in their support for the provision of healthcare facilities and praise of the Glebe Surgery in its present form.
However, the key takeouts were:
- Storrington locals have a lot of respect for the work of the Glebe Surgery and recognise the need for expanded healthcare provision;
- The Parish Council has been trying to find a solution to the shortfall of future healthcare provision for many years – in fact, long before the closure of Mill Stream which exacerbated the situation. Such attempts have been thwarted numerous times with (we believe) vested financial interests the key barrier;
- The Planning Application would have had more support from the Councillors (although not from the entire Parish Council) if it had simply been about building a larger, new surgery on the existing (or slightly expanded) footprint of the existing site. Instead, including a 24-home housing development and large onsite pharmacy were contrary to the Green Space designation of the Glebe Field in the emerging Neighbourhood Plan. There are sufficient sites available for new housing within the District and Neighbourhood plans so the proposed ‘Enabling Development’ was not a valid reason for the surgery to go ahead;
- The councillors indicated that vehicle access, road safety, traffic management, air pollution and vehicle access remain key barriers to expansion of the current site;
- The proximity to Listed buildings and the Storrington Village Conservation Area – and a desire to retain our last Green Space in the village – were also key factors against further building on the Glebe Fields.
- Almost everybody (except the doctors) spoke of their bemusement and frustration that the Mill Stream site (owned by Horsham District Council but vacant for over two years) has not been utilised for healthcare provision, or the site seriously considered for a large new surgery;
- One proposal from a member of the public was to relocate the lesser-utilised library into the existing Glebe Surgery and to use the combined library, Mill Stream and related car parks to create space for the required medical practice. This proposal received major applause – and many nods – from the assembled audience.
The vote was 12-0 against the Application.
We wait to see what Horsham District Council decides but it will be unusual – in fact, unheard of – for the District Council to go against the wishes of the elected Parish Council.
UPDATE: In the meantime, SPANGLE will continue to ask the difficult, unanswered questions around the development, the future of healthcare provision, the vested interests in the Glebe Field and related topics. Our next stop is a Freedom of Information Request to NHS Coastal Clinical Commissioning Group to understand why Mill Stream remains closed and for full disclosure of the financial interests that certain members of the CCG may have in the development!
