Boxgrove and Selsey neighbourhood plans are made

There was delight for town and parish councillors in Selsey and Boxgrove after their Neighbourhood Development Plans were finally ‘made’ by Chichester District Council.

The plans will now become part of the development plan for the entire district – excluding the South Downs National Park – and will help to protect the communities from unwanted development.

Following a special meeting of the district council on Tuesday (June 22) where the plans were officially ‘made’ , Henry Potter, chairman of Boxgrove Parish Council, heaped praise on the team responsible for getting the work done.

He said: “It has been a long arduous process, not helped by the past 15 months of the Covid-19 interruption – but I must specifically commend the members of the Neighbourhood Plan steering group, all members of the community, who despite the difficulties, persevered and brought the plan to the conclusion we saw today.”

It has certainly not been an easy journey for either plan.

As well as the delays caused by the pandemic, both were set back by a 2018 ruling from the European Court of Justice that required them to show that their policies would not harm key wildlife sites.

On top of that, the Selsey team saw their original plan rejected by inspectors, meaning it has taken seven years to reach the end of the road.

A spokesman for the town council said: “We would like to thank all of our councillors, past and present who worked so hard developing the plan.

“A special mention of thanks goes out to the chair of the Neighbourhood Plan Working Group, Cllr Clive Alden for steering the project.