East Sussex residents accuse housing developer of making village roads a 'serious driving hazard'

Campaigners for East Hoathly group Village Concerns say contractors Redrow Homes are accessing the former Hesmonds Stud land via the entrance to Waldron Road which goes against a management plan they set out themselves.

A spokesperson said: "Mud on the carriageway has been made worse by the weather and we warn all residents to take care.

"There should not be mud on the road; they should not be using the WaldronRoad entrance but instead should have built their own site entrance of the London Road and should be using the same route to clear the site and take debris away.

"To add insult to injury it is now confirmed that last Thursday's unexpected power outage caused by damage to a UK Power Networks cable was caused by a contractor working for the developer."

In January, Wealden District Council granted planning consent to leading housebuilder Redrow to transform a 12-acre site into ‘Paddock Green’ – compromising of 133 homes for private sale and a remaining 72 homes earmarked as affordable homes.

The news was not taken well on a community Facebook group, with numerous people commenting their concerns regarding the overwhelming of local services and the destruction of green spaces in the area.

Village Concerns, an action group set up in 2016 for the Parish of East Hoathly and Halland, say more than 1200 hundred objections have been submitted regarding Redrow’s planning proposals in the last six years.

Justin Brown, head of construction at Redrow Southern, commented: “As a responsible housebuilder we are always keen to address any concerns from local residents.

"As a precaution, following these reports our site team have spoken to our sub-contractor partners to remind them of the proper access routes onto the sites and wheel cleaning procedures and we will continue to monitor this. We would like to thank residents for their understanding while we work to bring much needed new homes to the area.”

A spokesperson for Wealden District Council added: “Residents have reported a breach of the planning permission at this site and the Planning Enforcement Team are actively reviewing matters. It is noted from the initial article that East Sussex County Council have also been contacted and it is they, as the highway authority, who can enforce the matter of material on the road (that might cause a hazard to driving conditions).

“With regards to the alleged dangerous driving and excessive speeding. If that has occurred, it would be a Police matter. Wealden District Council has no power in such matters.”

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Villagers reported the latest breaches to ESCC highways and the Health and Safety Executive as they say there could have been a fatality.

They also say tractors clearing the site using Hollow Lane as a route to remove debris are travelling at a great speed up a single-track road frequented by many pedestrians and horse riders.