Legal advice says ‘there are grounds’ to challenge Goring Gap appeal decision

Worthing Borough Council’s leader is confident the local authority will be able to challenge a decision to allow 475 homes on green land before the looming deadline.

Worthing Borough Council says it is ‘very actively’ working to challenge an appeal decision which gave the green light for 475 homes at Chatsmore Farm – but the deadline is in just a few weeks.

In February, planning inspector Rory Cridland ruled in Persimmon’s favour following an appeal over the land ,which forms part of the Goring Gap.

The council turned down the planning application and fought the subsequent appeal as it considers the land an ‘important area of green space’.

The deadline to challenge the decision in the High Court is on April 8.

But council leader Kevin Jenkins says he is confident that WBC will file for a judicial review in time.

He said: “All the advice that we’ve had from the barrister so far is that they believe there are grounds to challenge [the appeal decision].

“They are working towards putting that case together.

“We’re very conscious that the deadline is coming up – we aim to meet that deadline.

“We have made that commitment and we will lodge that with the High Court for judicial review.

“That doesn’t mean that it will automatically succeed and, even if the High Court agrees with our submission, what it does mean is that application will then go back, yet again, to the Planning Inspectorate for another planning inspector to redetermine.

“That then becomes the opportunity for us to yet again appeal to the Secretary of State to recover that application and for the Secretary of State to then determine the outcome.”

The council’s Labour group leader, Dr Beccy Cooper, also led a protest against the development on Saturday (March 26).

She told the crowd: “I’m a doctor, so as well as being involved with Covid, I’m also really involved with keeping our communities well and healthy, and part of that is having access to good, green spaces in the areas where we live.

“If we get rid of those, if we get rid of the things that keep us healthy and well, we’re not only causing problems for us, here and now, we’re causing problems for future generations.”

Mr Cridland said the reasons for his decision included the fact that common ground had been found between WBC and Persimmon over several of the council’s reasons for objection.

The inspector said protecting areas of countryside is ‘important’ but added that an ‘unmet need’ for housing was a valid reason for the development to go ahead.

He also said the impact on roads would ‘not be severe’ and the impact on the landscape, including the South Downs National Park, would not be ‘material’.

Mr Cridland added that, because the Worthing Local Plan had not yet been adopted, the area had ‘no formal protection’.

A spokesperson for Persimmon said they would not be commenting on the appeal decision.

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