West of Ifield consultation summary report, accessible version
Updated 3 March 2021
Applies to England
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March 2020
Who are Homes England?
Why are we proposing new neighbourhoods West of Ifield?
Homes England’s mission is to ensure more homes are built in areas of greatest need,to improve affordability and ensure more people in England have access to better homes in the right places.
Homes England has the ability to deliver supporting infrastructure in a timely manner. This will offset the impacts of development and help meet the needs of existing communities.
Homes England owns a large amount of land West of Ifield, originally acquired by the Crawley New Town Development Corporation to provide new homes.
How do we deliver new neighbourhoods?
We are committed to creating new neighbourhoods and great places to live, investing early in infrastructure and have a track record of delivery. We have the capacity to invest in the lives of residents over the space of several decades. Our approach and resources have led to the construction of thousands of houses and new communities elsewhere in the country.
Our Consultation
What we consulted on
- Long-term potential to develop 10,000 homes over the next 30 years.
- 35% affordable homes across a range of tenures responding to significant housing unaffordability.
- 50% open space.
- The creation of new neighbourhoods alongside the necessary infrastructure and facilities.
- Long term potential to support 10,000 jobs and support sustainable economic growth in the Gatwick Diamond and Coast to Capital LEP.
- Early investment in supporting infrastructure including provision of a new Crawley Western Link.
Our Consultation - How we engaged with you
We consulted on our emerging proposals for West of Ifield between 10th January 2020 - 15th February 2020. Our consultation set outour proposals for new neighbourhoods and gave us an opportunity to listen to people’s ideas, concerns and aspirations.
To provide the greatest opportunity for people to understand and comment on our proposals we:
- held a series of nine public consultation events between 10th - 18th January 2020 using accessible venues across Horsham and Crawley
- launched a dedicated consultation website, www.westofifield.co.uk
- undertook a targeted social media campaign
- leafleted 17,634 local residentsand businesses in Bewbush, Glossop Green, Horsham, Ifield, Langley, Rusper and Colgate
- Advertised our consultation across local media channels including Crawley Observer, Horsham District Post, Crawley News 24 and West Sussex County Times
Our Consultation – Who Responded
726 members of the community attended.
We received 556 feedback forms both online and offline.
We held conversations with organisationsand stakeholders in the area.
1,876 people contributed to the discussion online.
4,670 unique visitors to our project website
While the majority of respondents lived locally to the proposed development, responses were received throughout the Gatwick Diamond. Potentially due to our social media campaign, we received responses from further afield such as Brighton and Croydon.
- 53% of respondents were in employment
- 22% of respondents were retired
- 63% of respondents travel around the site by sustainable transport
Note, a map showing respondents by postcode area and whether comments received were more positive (Green), negative (Red) or neutral (Yellow) has been removed as it could not be made accessible. Please see the original feedback report to view the diagram.
- 8% of responses were made by the BAME community
- 68% were White British
- 4% of respondents were under the age of 24
- 26% of respondents were over the age of 65
- 58% of respondents were of working age
The demographics of respondents will help show us who is interested in the proposals and which groups, such as younger and BAME people, we need to better engage in the next round of consultation.
Your views
How you are making a difference
The following pages set out the key issues and opportunities raised through the conversation. Ahead of our next consultation later we will be releasing further information on each of the topics you said were important and how these are contributing to the next stage of our design.
Headline figures from the feedback form
The top three issues in order of importance to respondents.
The Opportunity
What do you think is important in creating new neighbourhoods?
- Open spaces - 26% of respondents
- Easy and safe to get around - 19%
- Healthy, happy places - 15%
Design
Which of the design principles do you think are the most important for the West of Ifield?
- Nature - 27%
- Public spaces - 21%
- Homes and buildings - 12%
Living
What kind of homes should be provided in the new neighbourhoods?
- Affordable housing - 23%
- Homes that are different sizes - 17%
- Low carbon - 16%
Environment
How should the new neighbourhoods protect the environment and respond to climate change?
- Reduce flood risk - 21%
- Provide open spaces - 20%
- Clean energy initiatives - 14%
The top three issues in order of importance to respondents
Healthy communities
What will help people be healthy and happy in the new neighbourhoods?
- Health facilities - 17%
- Primary schools - 13%
- Secondary schools - 12%
Movement & transport
What do you think is important for how people move around the new neighbourhoods and to the surrounding area?
- Walking - 15%
- High-quality public transport - 15%
- Good access to railway stations - 15%
Working
What opportunities for working should be provided in the new neighbourhoods?
- Opportunities for small businesses - 15%
- High-speed broadband/5G - 13%
- Connections to existing employment - 12%
Keeping you informed
The Coronavirus situation is changing our approach to how we engage with you. We will share our modified plans for engagement with you as we finalisethe details.
We will be releasing further information about each of the main consultation topics on a weekly basis.
Please contact the Homes England team directly if you have any queries.
www.westofifield.co.uk 020 8629 7209 westofifield@homesengland.gov.uk