Following consultation with members at the 2022 AGM, and with the Charity Commission, we will now be using the working name ‘Lindfield Society’. Members will however notice that our bank account to which payments are made retains the name ‘Lindfield Preservation Society’, which is still the official title according to our constitution.

Planning matters:

The Welkin: We reported earlier in the year that developers were attempting to build on open spaces within the Welkin.The proposals (applications DM/22/1890 and DM/22/1893) failed to recognise that green and open spaces are an integral part of the Welkin’s design. This could have created a precedent for importing urban blight into the heart of the village and we urged residents to object. Mid Sussex District Council has rightly refused permission for both applications. Whilst an appeal is always possible, the council’s decision sends an important message that inappropriate, speculative development in the village centre will be resisted.

Government Planning Legislation: This remains the single greatest threat to villages and countryside across the Southeast. A decade of unrealistic, top-down housing targets and increasing licence for developers has disfigured desirable locations, while a shortage of truly affordable housing stubbornly persists. The housing provisions of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill 2022, as we reported earlier, were to exacerbate this state of affairs.

The wild-west character of the planning landscape has, however,led to resistant i Parliament. A vote on the report stage of the levelling-up bill was pulled in late November, in the face of proposed amendments that would make housing targets advisory rather than mandatory, as well as limit developers’ ability to build up “land banks” rather than deliver housing. At the time of writing, negotiations continue between the government and the rebels. It remains to be seen whether the course of planning legislation will change by returning powers to communities, who know their own areas best. If you have not already done so,we urge members to contact our MP, Mims Davies (mims.davies.mp@parliament.uk), asking for her support in making this change of direction. (our open letter is available for reference on the Lindfield Society website).

Donations to good causes: We agreed at the 2022 AGM that the Society would make donations to local good causes whose work aligns with our aims as a registered charity. Accordingly, we are exploring ways to support the 30+ Ukranian families residing temporarily in our area. We will be making an annual contribution to The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) in Sussex. CPRE is an important national organisation advocating for the quality of life in the countryside. We will be working with the Monday Group, volunteers who clear and maintain public rights of way, to repair the footpath through the Scrase Valley nature reserve. We are also refurbishing the pond bench donated by the Society years ago.

Lindfield Heritage Trail: There has been a high level of interest in the trail, launched in cooperation with the Lindfield History Project Group for the Queen’s Jubilee and the Society’s 60th anniversary. We have reprinted the brochures explaining the route, which are available from High Street retailers and been distributed to local schools. More information on the sites that the trail highlights is available on the Society’s website. Please make use of these resources to learn more about our historic village.

We would like to thank all our members for your continuing support in 2022 and wish you all a very happy New Year!