Lindfield Primary School building work progresses

By Bob White, Headteacher, Lindfield Primary School

The building work at the Lindfield Primary School started just before the summer holidays. The main update I would like to say is that everything is very much on schedule.

 The car park was finished in time for the start of term, which released the space for the two building parts of the project. The teaching block and hall foundations (groundwork) are very much underway, whilst the new School Office and Community Room extension started in the middle of last month. 

We are still hoping for the project to be completed by June 2014, all in good time for the new school year starting in September 2014. It’s exciting knowing how much our teaching, learning and community facilities will be enhanced. Obviously health and safety requires ongoing monitoring and we liaise closely with Chris Blain the site manager for Sunninghill. Chris spoke to our children at assemblies at the beginning of term, emphasising important safety aspects at all times during the course of the project. We are hoping to arrange some scheduled and supervised site visits for the children over the next few months so they can see different stages of the building project progress until its completion.

Lindfield Primary School expansion

By Claire Cooper

This month sees the start of a new chapter in the life of Lindfield Primary School as work begins on a £4million seven classroom extension.

The building work, which also includes an additional school hall and office space while maintaining all playgrounds, fields and woodland, will provide state of the art facilities for present and future pupils.

Originally built for infants (aged 5 to 7 years), the little school at Black Hill has evolved over the years to meet the needs of village children. The millennium year in 2000 saw the biggest change when the school merged with the juniors, formerly housed on Lindfield Common, and  eight new classrooms were added to the site. 

Now, as the village continues to grow, the school is set to reach another milestone as it prepares to become a ‘three form entry’ primary school.

Read the full story on p.8 of May's magazine...

All Saints Church Development Project

By David Tingley

All Saints church has been standing on its present site since the 13th century. Its imposing tower and spire standing at 116ft  would certainly have made a big impression when villagers at the time caught sight of this. All Saints has become an iconic symbol of our picture postcard village, standing proud at the top of the High Street. However, 2013 is set to be a milestone in the building’s history as the church embarks on a major development project. 

In fact it’s a huge undertaking, with 50 separate elements all running along different timelines over the next three to five years. The development plans affect both the church and the building next door, known as The Tiger, and are estimated to cost in the order of £2m.

Read the full story in February's magazine - out now. www.allsaintslindfield.org

Proposed new development off Gravelye Lane, Lindfield

Lindfield Preservation Society just missed the copydate for Feb's magazine for this article, written by them, about a new development in Lindfield...

Wates the developers have applied for planning permission to build 230 houses on green field land off Gravelye Lane. Combined with the high-density housing estates that Lindfield has already been compelled to accept at Newton Road and Lyoth Lane, this scheme would add 1,000 new residents to the village – a population increase of 20%. It would put 600 additional cars on our roads (figures based on West Sussex County Council census data). This kind of speculative development is grossly disproportionate to the scale of our village and the capacity of its infrastructure.

Nor is there any need for it. There are currently approved sites for more than 4,000 homes in Mid Sussex, which developers have not taken up. This should be more than enough for them to be getting on with, especially as the historical completion rate is c. 400 houses per year.

Even if there were a need, this site is entirely inappropriate for large-scale development. A housing estate of this size would do further, serious damage to a local infrastructure that is already overstretched. Local roads are already congested at peak times, schools and medical facilities are oversubscribed and water and sewage systems are under considerable strain. Bland assurances from the developers that they would work with various bodies to mitigate the impact of their proposals are as meaningless as they are vague.

Our countryside is precious. Once it is gone, it is gone for good. Before more of it is lost, there should at the very least be a convincing demonstration of an overriding local need. There is clearly no such need here.

Concerned residents can help by sending their objections to Mid Sussex District Council Planning Department before the deadline of 8 February.