Latest News of Local Interest

Road & rail flooded

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Road closed
As of 5:16am, the Highways Agency is reporting that the A23 is closed in both directions between the M23 (Pease Pottage) and the A272 (Bolney) due to flooding. Diversions are posted. The Argus is reporting (7:42am) that tailbacks coming out of Brighton are stretching back about five miles with delays of at least an hour and a half. In addition, ” rail services between Haywards Heath and Three Bridges are cancelled in both directions due to flooding in the Balcombe tunnel” and “replacement buses are being affected by flooding on local roads”. More here.

Also the West Sussex County Times is reporting that “the A281 Crouch Hill in Henfield is closed between the B2116 Albourne Road junction and the Deer Park junction”.

Update 11:50am: the A23 has reopened (WSCT). More road news here.

“A community impact assessment”

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Nineteen Acres
The Argus reported yesterday that:

Travellers have moved onto national parkland north of 19 Acres in Brighton. About 40 vehicles were reported to have set up an unauthorised encampment on land north of 19 Acres in Dyke Road, Brighton yesterday. The group is believed to be the one evicted from Sheepcote Valley by Brighton and Hove City Council on Tuesday evening. Officials believed the group would move into West Sussex, not onto land it owns in the South Downs National Park.

A council spokesman said that officers will visit the new site to carry out “a community impact assessment”.

Idyllic spot for care home

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Court Farm House in Toads Hole Valley
The Argus reports:

Thornton Properties wants to demolish Court Farm House in Devil’s Dyke Road, Hove, and replace it with a 58-bedroom care home and five detached properties. The land, which is near the junction of the A27 and the South Downs National Park, is part of the Toad’s Hole Valley site. Brighton and Hove City Council’s planning committee threw out the plans in March 2013, as it did not match with the long-term vision for the site. The developers have appealed the decision, which [is now being] scrutinised by a government inspector after an inquiry in Hove Town Hall [which started] at 10:00am today.

Shale: council cut doubled

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Balcombe and the Weald shale map
The Midhurst and Petworth Observer reports:

WEST Sussex County Council and the South Downs National Park Authority could be set to make millions following an announcement made by David Cameron. Councils that give the green-light to ‘fracking’ projects will be allowed to keep millions of pounds more in tax revenue, the Prime Minister has announced. He said local authorities in England would receive 100 per cent of the business rates collected from shale gas schemes — rather than the usual 50 per cent.

You can read the full story here.

Sloe Gin

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Poynings Sloe Gin and Homemade Liqueur Competition
Sheila Marshall writes:

The Poynings Sloe Gin and Homemade Liqueur competition (2013 only) has a new section for our neighbouring villages (Fulking, Edburton, Newtimber, Pyecombe, Saddlescombe, and Woodmancote). Monday (cheap meal night at Royal Oak) 20th January 8pm — £1.50 per entry. This is a community organised event hosted by The Royal Oak.

The history of Saddlescombe

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The history of Saddlescombe
Thanks to the efforts of Janet Kennish and Graham Wellfare, the National Trust webpages for Saddlescombe have recently been enhanced with a lot of interesting new material:

[Note added in December 2018: as is their custom, the inexcusably awful National Trust website has now changed or removed all the URLs linked above. The material is probably still there but you will need to search for it.]