HELLINGLY DEVELOPMENT
Dear Editor,
Hellingly is now overbuilt and all new planning for more building and destroying many trees is a disgrace.
Any planning permission granted should be overturned.
The flooding in this area over recent years has been unbearable for many residents already with sewage problems in people’s homes and gardens.
Street flooding in the area also is simply unacceptable.
Stop the building now! Peter Wood
Dear Editor,
Thank you for an informative newspaper which is much enjoyed.
On principle, I object to plan application WD-2024-0078-MRM.
Every local village in East Sussex has this serious problem. Although, I believe that individuals have the right to use their own resources to enable their financial interests selling out to developers is causing terrible consequences.
Affordable housing, a requirement of building planning is never what it seems. Affordable must take into account the needs of Local families.
As a former PC on local council, I’m aware of our council overruling our informed decisions. However, when they agreed with us they themselves get overruled as you highlighted in your article.
All the local village parish councils supported each other in sincerely.
Build amongst the trees instead of cutting them down for maximum financial greed. It’s taken hundreds of years of growth to reach their beautiful country location and can’t be replaced by instant young planting.
I’ve learned since I moved here, that this area is on clay hence waterlogged and flooding occurs.
I’m thinking of taking up pottery every time I dig a hole, bit late at 84 yrs old. Mrs D.
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Dear Editor,
I was appalled reading that this application had been granted by some bureaucrat in Bristol, (Hailsham News, September 2024, Page 2).
Did Wealden present evidence of this year’s flooding & sewage destruction to people’s homes, or was it a case of just rubber-stamping approval?
With global weather changes happening, was this person oblivious to the fact that the flooding issues will, most certainly, happen again & again? After all, the whole area around Hailsham is a floodplain.
There has been enough development in this area, without any improvement to infrastructure. None!
All our villages are being turned into conurbations with no amenities.
Perhaps, if the fines were substantial enough, developers would be forced to build the promised doctors, schools and shops etc.
Not enough credence is given to issues raised by the local people who live & work in these areas.
I hope my letter is one of thousands that will bring some influence to bear with Wealden Council. Susan Page
Dear Editor,
Totally sympathise with Hellingly residents. We who live already in the south of Ersham Road, towards Hilliers garden centre, have been bombarded with new development, and it is noticeable.
The increase in noise out in our gardens, the noise from the bypass was hardly noticeable when we first occupied our house in Sandbanks Way. Now, you can hear a concrete crusher newly installed and loud road traffic due to the amount of trees that have been destroyed, beautiful meadows now housing estates!
It’s a crying shame, but as the population increases, we will see more and more green spaces and woods destroyed. It’s unstoppable, but building in areas where obviously little research as to drainage problems hasn’t been properly addressed is ludicrous!
Very sad we used to hear Tawney owls and little owls hoot at dusk….but no more! Jason Ball.
Dear Editor,
I have just read the article in the Hailsham News, regarding the development of yet more houses.
Hailsham was once a lovely, safe, market town. Hellingly being a pretty village.
Over a very short time, one can only say, it has been destroyed.
Hailsham and Hellingly is now one vast housing estate. How many acres of farmland concreted over? Grovelands farm, Hempstead farm, vines farm, Horsebridge farm. All built on over the last five years. Has the environmental impact been considered? 10% of a development is supposed to be re wilded.
If anyone has walked into the ancient wood, behind the Hellingly hospital development, there is a polluted pond, the trees are dead, some 100 years old.
Hellingly floods and it will get worse. How many persons make the decisions of what is built where, actually live in the area?
How many have been born and bred here? Not many if any.
Rest in peace Hellingly and Hailsham. Mrs C Sibbald
ED: Planning issues and protests will always keep this newspaper very busy. I’ve lived in Hailsham, apart from some time away elsewhere in Sussex, almost all my life. I’ve also seen a huge amount of development in the town, which has seen it become a large town, rather than a small town it once was. But, we are not alone. This is happening in every village, town and city across the country. I’m not necessarily against development of any form, but I share the opinion of many of our readers, that the infrastructure in Hailsham simply isn’t being updated in line with the number of homes and new residents we have. We do indeed need more doctor surgeries, shops, a better road network and more investment generally.
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SAVE OUR SCIENCE CENTRE
Dear Editor,
We would like to record our shock and concern over the report that Bader College of Queens University, Kingston, Ontario intend not to renew the lease of this site, which is of great local and National significance to astronomy and learning.
Surely there is a moral, if not legal, responsibility to ensure that the ongoing future of this site and amenity is safe? Barry and Sally Timms
ED: The science centre is extremely important for our local area. I’ve visited many times with my family, so have many hundreds of thousands of families from all over the globe. It was be a massive shame to see it disappear, but I’m sure the ‘power of the people’ will keep this vital centre open, even if in a new location. The Observatories are protected as far as I’m aware which is a sigh of relief.
LINE PAINTING LAUGHTER
Dear Editor,
I just couldn’t resist to send you this photo.
Although it was great to see the works completed to connect the new toilet block in Vicarage Field, I do wonder if the roadworkers were either having a laugh, or, there was just no common sense involved.
Replacing just two letters of the ‘Coaches only’ bay on Vicarage Lane is completely pointless. But, it did make me giggle and was a well-worthy photo to share on social media.
HEATING ALLOWANCE VOTE
Dear Editor, I have just read the article on winter fuel payment and I see Nusrat Ghana has commented that she will continue to pressure the ministers about her Sussex Weald residents.
I sent an email to Nusrat Ghana regarding the vote that was in parliament this week to ask why she wasn’t on the list of people who voted, and wasn’t on the list of the people who abstained.
Would it be because she was elected Deputy Speaker on the 23rd July? I haven’t received a reply as yet.
I think all politicians just say words that mean nothing and our pensioners myself included suffer. CS
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