News on West of Ifield

Please note that this is a slightly revised version of the same titled document released at the end of September. The revisions include some minor amendments and corrections.

Horsham and Crawley have significant and immediate housing needs. They are required to deliver new homes in sustainable locations that are well located to where the need for housing arises and where new development can also support existing communities.

As the Government’s housing delivery agency, Homes England’s role is to ensure more people have access to better homes in the right places.

West of Ifield is well placed to meet the identified housing needs in the right location and at the right time. As a public agency Homes England act differently to the private development sector, working with both Horsham and Crawley councils for the public good to ensure that housing needs are best met.

Building homes where they are needed

Located on the boundary between Horsham and Crawley, West of Ifield is uniquely placed to help address the future housing needs of the ‘North West Sussex Housing Market Area’ in a location that can provide housing where it is most needed. West of Ifield will meet a range of housing requirements by:

Providing sufficient capacity to meet 3 years of local housing supply - Local authorities are required to provide enough new housing each year to meet the ‘locally identified housing need’ to help growing communities and the associated worsening housing affordability. Further information on the housing needs and the issues faced by both local authorities can be found in their Housing Strategies ( Crawley and Horsham ).

Based on the standard methodology that all local authorities have to follow, Horsham District Council have identified housing needs to be met over the Plan period. Using this calculation of housing need as a starting point, evidence in the Northern West Sussex Strategic Housing Market Assessment , and taking account of land supply constraints, Horsham District Council has identified a target of 1,100 new homes each year to meet future housing needs.

Providing up to 3,250 homes over the next 15 years, the West of Ifield scheme provides the opportunity to accommodate 20% of Horsham’s overall housing target. By locating the new housing as part of a well-connected, mixed-use scheme alongside new infrastructure and employment opportunities, this reduces the need to find additional land in other parts of Horsham.

Creating the opportunity for Horsham and Crawley to work together: locaI authorities are required by law to work together to meet identified housing needs [Find out more about how local planning authorities cooperate with housing numbers here ]. Crawley cannot deliver the housing it needs and is relying on neighbouring boroughs to assist.

Crawley does not have enough land to meet its future housing needs and requires almost 400 homes a year to be met by its neighbouring authorities . Horsham are planning to accommodate 193 of these within the Horsham District.

West of Ifield is well located adjacent to Crawley to meet some of the unmet need for Crawley and would build on the existing successful joint working between the two authorities locally.

The chart below, taken form the draft Horsham Local Plan, shows that housing needs over the next Plan period cannot be met through developing smaller sites alone.

The importance of strategic sites is clear with more than 50% of the total housing need being met through them. While the West of Ifield cannot meet all this additional demand on one site, it is located where the housing needs are, close to existing regional employment centres and locaI services and is of sufficient scale to deliver a significant investment in new infrastructure that will benefit both the new and existing communities.

Increasing the supply of affordable homes

Affordability of housing across Horsham and Crawley is a major challenge. The average cost of a home in Horsham is more than 12 times the average salary, while in Crawley it is more than 8. The affordability ratios are both above the national average and remain too high. The cost of buying a home has risen faster than wages, leaving many people priced out of the market. A whole generation can no longer afford to get on the housing ladder.

As a consequence, fewer people are able to access the housing market and therefore more and different types of affordable housing (that which is available below market rates) is needed. As a Government Agency, Homes England aIways ensures that housing developments meet the locally set policy for affordable housing. This will see at least 1,130 affordable homes created as part of the scheme. Where possible Homes England will actively work with our delivery partners to explore whether or not the number of affordable homes could be increased in the future.

To ensure the development at West of Ifield helps as many people as possible access the housing market, we will provide a range of affordable housing types for local people, including:

Building homes when they are needed

The housing pressures facing both authorities are immediate.

Homes England is uniquely placed to invest early in infrastructure such as schools and work with a range of partners to ensure that the building of new homes is immediate and can make a meaningful difference over the Plan period. There is a commitment within our Strategic Plan to deliver the first homes in 2022/23 and this is being worked towards while ensuring that our infrastructure delivery strategy and delivery plan accelerates over the Plan period.

Ensuring new homes are fit for purpose

To ensure everyone has access to new homes, in addition to providing affordable homes, we will work with our delivery partners to provide different housing across the development. This will include apartments and smaller homes for people beginning their journey on the housing ladder, specialised accommodation for those in later life and those who need additional support, and larger family houses for those who want space for their family to grow.

To do this we will ensure that different housing types with different space and facilities are built — but all will have good access to sustainable transport, employment, and community facilities. As required, we will make sure that the new homes are built to the relevant standards and that they are accessible to those who have mobility or other accessibility issues.

Homes England is committed to creating well-designed places that are beautiful, enduring and successful. We ensure our schemes meet the standards set out in Building for a Healthy Life and alongside the locaI authorities and the local community we will prepare a Design Code that will set the standards for the scheme.

Find out more about a proposed new neighbourhood to the West of Ifield here .