Green light for affordable homes in South Downs National Park
April 27, 2022
Plans for 32 affordable homes on the site of a former school have been given the go-ahead.
The mixture of houses and flats have been approved for land at the former Pells C of E Primary School, in Landport Road, Lewes.
The school closed permanently in August 2017 and the 0.9 hectare site is now owned by the applicant, Raven Housing Trust, which is a registered provider of social housing.
The plans include a number of highway works, including providing two on-street parking bays on the Arundel Green Spur and a new footway along Arundel Green.
There will also be a new walking and cycling path through the site for public use, as well as community use of the forest school area.
The development achieves Net Zero Carbon through modern construction methods to improve the energy efficiency of buildings and reduce construction waste.
Stella New, Senior Development Management Officer, said: “The applicant has engaged collaboratively with officers to address the design and layout of buildings, open space, access, parking and sustainable drainage features, to ensure the development conserves and enhances landscape character, and achieves multifunctional benefits including biodiversity net gain and wellbeing.
“The loss of the community use can be balanced against the benefits of a 100 per cent affordable housing scheme in a sustainable location.
“There are few opportunities in Lewes to achieve such a level of affordable housing, taking into account the viability challenges of brownfield sites typically coming forward for development in the town.”
