Proposals

What North Barnes will deliver

North Barnes is conceived as a complete and sustainable community - a place, not just housebuilding.

A central high street will form the social heart, as well as distinct neighbourhood centres that help foster local identity.

Crucially, infrastructure will be built early, delivering a coherent place where people want to live right from the start.

    • Up to 3,000 new homes, including genuinely affordable housing

    • Land for a new primary school, nursery, and new healthcare facilities

    • A vibrant high street with a civic square

    • Neighbourhood centres, creating ‘necklaces’ of villages to echo traditional Sussex communities

    • Space for hundreds of high-quality local jobs across light industry, offices, retail, education and healthcare

    • Most of the site retained as green space

    • Bevern Valley Park - new parkland with a sports hub and pavilion, forming a green buffer to the South Downs National Park

    • A network of village greens, parks and corridors linking neighbourhoods to the countryside

    • Key streets arranged to frame views of the South Downs escarpment

    • Designed to deliver a net gain in biodiversity

    • Wet Home Wood restored as a nature reserve of over 15 hectares

    • Ancient woodland, veteran trees, hedgerows and the Bevern Stream corridor retained and restored

    • New wildflower meadows, orchards, and species-rich planting

    • Designed around access to Plumpton Station and walkable neighbourhoods

    • Improved bus services and a focus on prioritising pedestrian and cycle connections

    • A north–south spine route and high street

    • Mobility hubs which can provide access to buses, ride sharing, cycle facilities, and car clubs

    • New active-travel and cycle links connecting Plumpton Green and South Chailey

    • Services at North Barnes will be accessible to nearby communities, reducing the need to travel to other towns by car

    • Masterplanned by ADAM Architecture, the team behind Poundbury and Nansledan

    • Rooted in Sussex vernacular - flint, brick, clay tile and timber - informed by nearby settlements such as Steyning

    • A site-wide design code to ensure quality and coherence as the place grows

    • A legacy trust will be the long-term guardian of community assets, green infrastructure and civic life

    • Long-term stewardship across all three strands of sustainability - social, economic and environmental