Rother Local Plan 2025-2042 – Development Strategy and Site Allocations

Support

Representation ID: 30535

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

The growth is substantial and requires the necessary infrastructure to be delivered without fail. Although
some development in the northern area takes advantage of the link road, this could be expanded to reduce
the pressure of infill in other parts of the town. There are, without doubt, significant challenges to address
regarding roads and traffic around Little Common..

Object

Representation ID: 30536

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

The width and condition of Rock Lane and Austin Way is concerning. At present, these roads cannot
accommodate the planned developments. Any building sites where surface water drains into Marsham Valley
should be carefully assessed due to existing flooding issues and the harmful effects on SSSI and Ramsar sites

Object

Representation ID: 30537

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

A disproportionate number of housing allocation for Peasmarsh considering its sewage capacity.

Support

Representation ID: 30538

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

The objectives are reasonable. However, as has been seen in the past, farming and arable land outside
development boundaries, when ‘offered up’ by landowners, has later been incorporated within development
boundaries. Provided that such actions are not repeated, as they have been previously, the strategy should be
effective.

Support

Representation ID: 30539

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

As per question 4

Object

Representation ID: 30541

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

This site should be removed from the Local Plan/DASA due to longstanding and unresolvable issues. Numerous planning applications since the 1970s have been refused, primarily for sustainability, spatial, and water-related reasons. The site suffers from groundwater flooding caused by the Fairlight Reverse Fault, with surface water from elevated land forced to the surface, creating serious land stability risks. The southern boundary lies in Flood Zone 3, with a watercourse repeatedly flooding; adding 35 dwellings would exacerbate flood risk. A Combined Sewer Overflow discharges raw sewage up to 20 times per year; additional housing would increase untreated effluent and overwhelm the undersized sewer and treatment plant. The site fails sequential testing, surface water management, and sewer infrastructure criteria, and likely exceeds treatment capacity. Fairlight Cove is unsustainable, with poor transport links, no local services, and unsafe access. Previous refusals demonstrate the site is not viable or safe for development.

Support

Representation ID: 30542

Received: 23/03/2026

Respondent: Fairlight Parish Council

Support to a certain extent as the overall objectives are acceptable. However, in Section 5, the proposed amount of development in
the Bexhill area is excessive. It raises the question of why the Bexhill–Hastings link road is not being
progressed as initially planned and discussed. Developments on the Hastings Fringe must be carefully
evaluated to ensure genuine sustainability, without placing undue strain on existing road networks due to
reliance on private vehicles. In Section 8, the proposed sustainable transport hierarchy is unlikely to be
effective in rural areas. Achieving a truly sustainable transport model in these locations would require
extensive and significant infrastructure upgrades.