Developers East Sussex minutes: 11 March 2025
Meeting details
Date: 11 March 2025
Time: 2pm
Location: Microsoft Teams
See the list of attendees and apologies for this meeting.
1. Welcome and introductions
1.1 JB welcomed the attendees to the meeting.
2. Review of previous minutes, 14 January 2025
2.1 There were no actions from the previous meeting. The minutes were approved as an accurate record of the meeting.
3. Market conditions / open forum
3.1 The group held its usual discussion on the current state of the market. The private sales market has seen a much-needed improvement since Christmas, with a sales rate now around 0.75 per week. House prices have not really moved, with sales consistently slightly below the base rate. Build cost pressures, while nowhere near as bad as they were a couple of years ago, are still a challenge.
3.2 The commercial market continues to demonstrate reasonable levels of demand/appetite, and transactions are still happening. There is a drive towards modern new buildings, but it’s difficult to persuade developers to build them. The difficulty is a lack of confidence.
3.3 Affordable housing is still considered the biggest inhibitor to the entire industry. Providers don’t just want S106, so it’s hard to make the numbers stack up and therefore hard to make sites work. This in turn affects the land market, which becomes challenging due to affordable housing uncertainty.
3.4 BH noted that the next (fifteenth) affordable homes roundtable forum is on 3 April 2025. Monthly meetings with MHCLG officials also continue, with those officials expressing a keen interest to bring more people into the roundtable discussions. JB added that he was recently invited to meet with Jonathan Reynolds MP (Secretary of State for Business and Trade) and Matthew Pennycook MP (Minister of State for Housing and Planning). The meeting went very well, with the Ministers giving time to all questions. They are clearly listening, and it’s reassuring to see them taking a genuine interest.
4. Devolution: open discussion
4.1 ES provided the latest information on Devolution, bringing the group up to date on the rapidly evolving picture since the government issued its Devolution white paper on 16 December 2024, pressing for every area of England to have a combined authority with an elected mayor and inviting areas to bid into a “Priority Programme” to fast-track applications.
4.2 East Sussex, West Sussex and Brighton and Hove Councils agreed to jointly submit an expression of interest to the Priority Programme for a Sussex-wide Mayoral Combined County Authority (MCCA). The EOI was submitted on 10 January 2025, and on 5 February 2025 the government announced its approval of this initial proposal. Parliament will make a final decision on the proposed MCCA at the end of the year, and the election of a Mayor for Sussex will then take place in May 2026. Note that this has impacted the County Council elections scheduled for May this year, which have been cancelled.
4.3 On 17 February 2025 the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) opened a consultation on the Sussex Devolution plan, which all DES colleagues are encouraged to participate in. The closing date for responses is 13 April 2025. Note that the consultation document goes into far more detail than the white paper, and lists the MCCA’s powers and functions related to housing and strategic planning, so is well worth reading.
4.4 ES also provided an update on the separate process of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR), where the government is proposing that all two-tier authorities are replaced with unitary authorities. All of the councils in East Sussex have been asked by MHCLG to submit their preferred options for forming a unitary government in East Sussex, firstly by submitting an “interim plan” by 21 March 2025, to be followed by a more detailed proposal later this year by 26 September 2025. Further timescales for the overall LGR process are to be confirmed, but the expectation is that a “shadow council” will firstly be established during 2027, with full implementation of the new unitary authorities by April 2028.
4.5 CBe noted that all six councils in East Sussex have come together to work through these matters, and most have published council/cabinet papers in the last 24 hours. There is a small obstacle to LGR regarding population – a key criterion for forming a unitary is a population of 500,000 or more, which is fine for East Sussex, but the guidance from MHCLG is ambiguous – and that lack of clarity is the only reason we don’t yet have a finalised position. But all of the authorities are largely in agreement and are in a very good position due to their strong relationships. AJ added that while integrating services may be new to authorities, it’s certainly not new to the construction industry, so please make use of developer colleagues around the table (lessons learned etc).
4.6 BH suggested that DES ought to take this opportunity to consider widening its remit to cover the whole of Sussex, not just East Sussex, and therefore represent a geography synonymous with the new MCCA. The group discussed this and agreed that at a time where boundaries are changing, and with an apparent lack of similar forums across the rest of Sussex, it’s very timely to be making this shift now. Strong relationships with our neighbours are vital, and as DES has a proven track record of bringing developers and planners together, it is quite right that DES should take the lead in this.
Decision: JB formally proposed that DES works towards repositioning itself as “Developers Sussex” (DeS). The group gave its unanimous approval.
4.7 JP suggested that conversations with West Sussex and Brighton and Hove should include discussions on their growth areas, obstacles etc, as while some will be very similar to our own, no doubt there will also be differences. It’s important we make sure everyone is included and don’t compete with our neighbours. GQ noted that Rother DC is already widening its remit as local authority housing enablers, and from next month will be meeting on a Sussex-wide basis – i.e. East Sussex, West Sussex and Brighton and Hove – rather than just East Sussex as previously.
5. Other national policy changes
5.1 JB advised that the government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill has just been published. The Bill makes provisions on infrastructure; town and country planning (planning committees and a national scheme of delegation); a new Nature Restoration Fund, including the creation of Environmental Delivery Plans; Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) reforms, including streamlining the consultation process; compulsory land purchase changes; and changes to spatial planning and the creation of overarching spatial development strategies (to be led by the new Mayoral authorities).
5.2 A lot more detail will no doubt follow over the coming months. The Bill will need to pass through various stages of approval so probably won’t be finalised before the end of the year.
5.3 BH added that £1.8 billion of funding was announced today as part of the government’s decarbonization agenda, to be allocated to local authorities and social housing providers through the Warm Homes: Local Grant and Warm Homes: Social Housing Fund.
6. East Sussex Housing Strategy
6.1 MC advised that a working-draft Strategy has now been prepared. It has been shared with management teams in each of the district and borough authorities and received support, and feedback has also been provided by the East Sussex Housing Partnership Board. Work continues to finalise the draft and confirm the timetable to adopt the Strategy. In the meantime, MC agreed to share the latest draft with DES colleagues.
Action: MC to share the latest draft East Sussex Housing Strategy with DES colleagues.
7. Local Planning Authority (LPA) updates
7.1 Officers observed that timelines for the development of Local Plans have been impacted by the changes to housing requirements in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and may be further affected by the Devolution/LGR changes mentioned above. Wealden DC requires a “targeted” Regulation 18 in order to incorporate the revised housing numbers, but officers still expect to move onto Regulation 19 (pre-submission) next year and are still open for sites to be submitted for inclusion. Likewise, Rother DC is looking to meet updated housing targets and is working to a similar timetable.
7.2 Rother DC is also developing its Housing Development Strategy, which is currently out to public consultation until 31 March 2025. DES members are encouraged to input to the consultation and to share it amongst their networks: Rother Housing Development Strategy Consultation
7.3 SRo noted that Wealden DC has been pushing the “foul drainage” issue with Southern Water. WDC has been subject to a recent Planning Appeal from a developer for a site in Horam against a refusal to grant consent (due to issues of foul drainage), which WDC has now won. SRo recommended viewing the appeal decision as it highlights the particular problems with foul drainage and dealing with Southern Water. Planning Inspectorate (appeals casework portal) link: Reference APP/C1435/W/24/3343709
8. Any other business (AOB)
8.1 JB flagged the DES meeting schedule for 2025/26 for colleagues’ diaries, which is now confirmed and listed on the agenda. He added that one of the meetings will again be held in person, most likely to coincide with the Leaders Dinner later in the year (TBC).
Summary of decisions and actions
Decisions
4.6 JB formally proposed that DES works towards repositioning itself as “Developers Sussex” (DeS). The group gave its unanimous approval.
Actions
6.1 MC to share the latest draft East Sussex Housing Strategy with DES colleagues.
Attendees and apologies
Attendees
- AF, Amy Fearn, Rother DC
- AJ, Alex Jones, Stantec
- BB, Beverley Bayliss, East Sussex CC
- BH, Brian Horton, South East Housing & Development Group
- BL, Brandon Lewis, Horton Strategic
- BW, Ben Weller, Vistry Homes
- CBe, Chris Bending, Wealden DC
- CBu, Craige Burden, Barratt David Wilson Homes
- CG, Caroline Gower, Mayer Brown
- CM, Chris Moore, Bellway Homes
- DE, Dave Evans, East Sussex CC
- DMh, David Maher, Dandara
- DMr, David Martin, Stiles Harold Williams Partnership
- DP, David Plank, Wealden DC
- EG, Emma George, Rentplus
- ERS, Elizabeth Ross-Smith, Greymoor
- ES, Edward Sheath, East Sussex CC
- GQ, Graeme Quinnell, Rother DC
- JB, Jonathan Buckwell, DHA Planning (DES CHAIR)
- JC, Janan Clatworthy, B.Yond Homes
- JM, Josh Mellor, Marrons
- JP, Joe Powell, Rother DC
- JR, Jason Roberts, Wealden DC
- JS, John Stebbings, Thakeham
- KB, Kim Bloxham, East Sussex CC
- LD, Lee Davies, HNW Architects
- LH, Laura Hannan, Spider Projects
- MB, Mark Bewsey, DHA Planning
- MC, Michael Courts, East Sussex CC
- NT, Neill Tickle, Counties and Capital Consulting
- PD, Paul Dadswell, Vistry Homes
- RA, Rebecca Armstrong, Wates
- RB, Rick Bhatia, Southern Housing
- RJ, Richard Jones, East Sussex CC
- RM, Rob Moore, Homes England
- SRo, Stacey Robins, Wealden DC
- SRy, Simon Ryan, Willmott Dixon Construction
- SS, Stephanie Shea, Sea Change Sussex
- TS, Tanya Szendeffy, Eastbourne BC / Lewes DC
- VM, Vici Mitchell, DHA Planning
Apologies
- CBr, Chris Broome, Sea Change Sussex
- GM, Graham Marley, Let's Do Business Group (LDBG)
- MH, Mike Hughes, Rother DC
- RT, Ryan Trodden, MHCLG
- RW, Richard White, Southern Housing
- TH, Tim Hardwicke, Stiles Harold Williams Partnership
- VC, Victoria Conheady, Hastings BC