East Sussex County Council Infrastructure Funding Statement 2023

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Date: December 2023

This document provides details on development contributions, section 106 planning obligations (S106) and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).

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1. Introduction

This is East Sussex County Council’s fourth Infrastructure Funding Statement (IFS) covering the financial year 2022/23. A new requirement was introduced from the 2019/20 financial year for local authorities to produce an annual IFS, which provides details on development contributions; section 106 planning obligations (S106) and Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), receipts and expenditure. The aim of an IFS is to improve transparency, increase accountability and promote infrastructure delivery. 

This IFS provides information which complies with the reporting requirements set out in The Community Infrastructure Levy (Amendment) (England) (No.2) Regulations 2019, Schedule 2, Paragraph 3. This requires an authority to publish a S106 report for the previous financial year on the amounts which an authority has received, allocated, and spent.  

The matters required to be included in the S106 report are listed below and in brackets where they are located in the report.  

(a) the total amount of money to be provided under any planning obligations which were entered into during the reported year – (see Table 1). 

(b) the total amount of money under any planning obligations which was received during the reported year – (see Table 2).

(c) the total amount of money under any planning obligations which was received before the reported year which has not been allocated by the authority – (see Table 4)

(d) summary details of any non-monetary contributions to be provided under planning obligations which were entered into during the reported year - None

(e) the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) which was allocated but not spent during the reported year for funding infrastructure – (see Table 4)

(f) the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) which was spent by the authority (including transferring it to another person to spend) – (see Table 3)

(g) in relation to money (received under planning obligations) which was allocated by the authority but not spent during the reported year, summary details of the items of infrastructure on which the money has been allocated, and the amount of money allocated to each item;

• Transport (see Tables 9, 10, and 11)
• Education (see Table 14)
• Libraries (see Table 16)
• Rights of Way (see Table 17)
• Environment (see Tables 20 and 21)

(h) in relation to money (received under planning obligations) which was spent by the authority during the reported year (including transferring it to another person to spend), summary details of;

(h) (i) the items of infrastructure on which that money (received under planning obligations) was spent, and the amount spent on each item –

• Transport (see Tables 6, 7 and 8)
• Education (see Table 13)
• Libraries (see Table 15)
• Household Waste Recycling Sites (see Table 18)
• Environment (see Table 19)

(h) (ii) the amount of money (received under planning obligations) spent on repaying money borrowed, including any interest, with details of the items of infrastructure which that money was used to provide (wholly or in part) – None

(h) (iii) the amount of money (received under planning obligations) spent in respect of monitoring (including reporting under regulation 121A) in relation to the delivery of planning obligations – None

(i) the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) during any year which was retained at the end of the reported year, and where any of the retained money has been allocated for the purposes of longer term maintenance (“commuted sums”), also identify separately the total amount of commuted sums held. – (see Table 4 and Transport see Table 12)

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2. Context

2.1 Development contributions – S106 and CIL

Development contributions are payments made by developers to help fund the provision of infrastructure which supports developments. There are two main mechanisms which are used to collect contributions; S106 and CIL.

S106 involves the use of legal agreements which secure contributions as part of a planning permission. They are used to make a development proposal acceptable in planning terms and are focused on mitigating the impact of that specific development.

CIL is a standard charge on development which can be levied by charging authorities on new development in their area. It is used to help deliver infrastructure which support development across their area.  CIL only applies where a charging authority has an approved charging schedule which sets out its CIL rates. In most cases it replaces contributions which were previously collected through S106.  

The County Council is not a CIL charging authority. In East Sussex the charging authorities are the districts, boroughs and the South Downs National Park Authority. Currently all authorities other than Hastings Borough Council have an adopted CIL charging schedule in place.

2.2 S106 process

Most S106 contributions are secured through planning applications which are determined by other authorities. The County Council only deals with planning applications in East Sussex, outside of the South Downs National Park, for waste, minerals and our own development (such as schools or roads.) 

In some areas (Rother, Eastbourne, Hastings) S106 contributions are paid directly to the County Council by the developer. In the National Park, Wealden and Lewes contributions are mostly paid to the districts and the national park authority who then hold the contribution on our behalf until we request the transfer of the contribution to a specific project.

For new developments being granted planning permission CIL has mostly replaced S106 contributions sought however there are still contributions from historical S106 agreements which are to be collected once the payment point has been reached and spent. Most contributions have 10 years to be spent after receipt.

2.3 Infrastructure planning and overall funding

Infrastructure which is required to support development is identified through the development of Local Plans and when individual developments are considered through the planning process. 

Local Plans, which set the levels and location of future development, are produced by districts, boroughs and the South Downs National Park Authority. During the production of Local Plans, the County Council works with planning authorities to identify infrastructure requirements, these are included in Infrastructure Delivery Plans which authorities produce to outline the essential infrastructure required to support Local Plans. These Plans inform the County Council’s capital strategies and our funding prioritises. 

The County Council is also consulted when individual developments apply for planning permission and provides advice on the site-specific infrastructure requirements. These generally relate to transport measures as other service area contributions are now covered under CIL payments in most areas of the County.  

Development contributions help to fund infrastructure requirements, but the levels of investment required cannot be funded solely from these contributions. Particularly large-scale transport and education projects require additional external funding. The County Council works extensively to secure further funding from a variety of sources to enable projects to be delivered. The current levels of growth proposed across the county will require additional infrastructure which will, in turn, require substantial levels of funding beyond what can be funded by the County Council. Therefore, funding from all available sources will be essential. Development contributions can act to facilitate leverage of additional external funding crucial to meet the County’s infrastructure requirements. Development contributions will therefore play an important part in achieving necessary funding, either through S106 contributions but increasingly through CIL allocations.

In this report the amount of contributions and projects within each district and borough reflects the level of development, completions, infrastructure requirements and delivery within that area.  There will be some fluctuation in these levels in future statements as this statement reports only on activity in the financial year 2022/23 and provides a snapshot of the situation as at 31 March 2023.

2.4 Capital Strategy and Programme

Development contributions are applied wherever possible to capital strategy and programme priorities. The capital programme supports delivery of the County Council’s priority outcomes: 

• Driving sustainable economic growth
• Keeping vulnerable people safe
• Helping people help themselves
• Making best use of resources now and in the future

The Capital Strategy focuses on the delivery of basic need for the County Council to continue to deliver our services as efficiently as possible. Basic Need for the purposes of the Capital Strategy is:

• Place: ensuring we can deliver services by planning for future need;
• Asset Condition: maintaining assets to an agreed level;
• ICT Strategy: ensuring that our ICT is fit for purpose for delivering modern council services in a digital era and protecting data; and
• Climate Change: supporting the Council’s aim of reaching carbon neutrality from our activities as soon as possible and in any event by 2050 in an appropriate and cost-efficient way.

Development contributions will be used in the first instance to support basic need projects in the capital programme, however it is recognised that there are some contributions that can only be used on projects outside of these purposes. There will also be contributions where it will be appropriate to be spent through revenue budgets, such as for bus services, and also to be delivered by third parties.

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3. Scope and content

3.1 Scope

This IFS is focused on S106 reporting. The County Council is not a CIL charging authority therefore other authorities will be reporting on the amounts of CIL collected across the county and how this has been allocated and spent. This IFS will provide information on the amounts of CIL that have been allocated so far by charging authorities to the County Council.

S106 reporting in line with the CIL regulations and guidance focuses on the S106 contributions which we have received and retain. To provide a comprehensive picture of the amount of contributions available the report also provides an indication of money retained by other authorities on our behalf to be spent on County Council infrastructure. 

Further details on amounts retained by other authorities including S106 and CIL can be obtained from their IFSs:

• Eastbourne Borough Council IFS
• Hastings Borough Council IFS
• Lewes District Council IFS
• Rother District Council IFS
• South Downs National Park Authority IFS
• Wealden District Council IFS

This IFS provides data on S106 monies secured to cover the cost of progressing Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs). It does not include information on Travel Plan Audit contributions, monitoring of this area continues to be improved so that it can be included in a future report. The detail of highway works secured through S278 agreements (e.g. new accesses, footways, bus stops, crossing facilities, etc) are also not included but will be considered for inclusion in future reports.  

3.2 Content

For the financial year 2022/23 (April 2022 to March 2023):

• Contributions for County Council infrastructure in new S106 agreements signed in 2022/23, through applications both ESCC and other authorities determine (see Table 1)
• Contributions which have been received either directly from a developer or transferred from another authority (See Table 2).
• Contributions spent within the year and what infrastructure they have been spent on (see Table 3, Table 6, Table 7, Table 8, Table 13, Table 15, Table 18 and Table 19).

For all contributions retained as at 31 March 2023

• Total amount retained (see Table 4).
• Amount which is not allocated to a specific project (see Table 4).
• Amount which is allocated and the infrastructure projects they are allocated to (see Table 4, Table 9, Table 10, Table 11, Table 12, Table 14, Table 16, Table 17, Table 20 and Table 21).

The report is divided into three main sections:

• Overall S106 figures: total money in new agreements, received, spent and retained
• Service area S106 information: details of projects money has been spent on or is allocated to and examples of recent projects completed using contributions
• CIL allocations: amounts charging authorities have so far allocated to the County Council

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4. Overall S106 figures

4.1 Amount of money in S106 agreements signed in 2022/23

The totals in Table 1 include contributions for County Council infrastructure in S106 agreements signed relating to planning permissions for developments determined by other authorities.    

Some of the contributions in the agreements are based on a formula therefore an estimate of the contribution has been made based on the most current information, this is in line with the CIL Regulations (paragraph 5c). 

Though the contributions have been secured in agreements, the payment is conditional on developments being implemented therefore there is no guarantee that contributions will be received.

Table 1: Total amounts of money in S106 agreements signed in 2022/23

District or borough	Transport Schemes	Passenger Transport	Rights of Way	TROs	Libraries	Total
Eastbourne	-	£12,500	-	£10,000	-	£22,500
Hastings	£161,470	£10,000	£5,232	£5,000	£61,805	£243,507
Lewes	£110,000	£385,675	-	£45,000	-	£540,675
Rother	-	£300,000	-	£5,000	-	£305,000
Wealden	£2,000	£427,157	-	£31,000	-	£460,157
Total [1]	£273,470	£1,135,332	£5,232	£96,000	£61,805	£1,571,839

4.2 Money received in 2022/23

The total amount of money received by the County Council in 2022/23, including money paid directly from a developer and money transferred from another authority who were holding the contribution on behalf of the County Council is provided in Table 2.

Table 2: Total amount of money received in 2022/23 including breakdown by district or borough

District or borough	Paid directly from a developer	Transferred from another authority	TROs – Paid directly from a developer	TROs – Transferred from another authority	Total
Eastbourne	£12,500	-	£5,000	-	£17,500
Hastings	£5,338	-	£6,000	-	£11,338
Lewes	-	-	£5,000	-	£5,000
Rother	-	-	-	-	£0
Wealden	-	£11,738	£5,000	-	£16,738
Total [2]	£17,838	£11,738	£21,000	£0	£50,576

4.3 Total money spent 2022/23

Table 3 provides the total amount of money spent by the County Council in 2022/23 including transfers to other organisations for them to spend on projects which meet the requirements of the S106 agreement. Table 3 also includes a breakdown by district and borough of where the infrastructure has been spent and also the service area. 

Details of the specific projects the funds have been spent on are within the section on individual service areas.

Table 3: Total money spent in 2022/23 including breakdown by district or borough and service area

District or borough	Transport Schemes	Passenger Transport	Transport Regulation Orders	Education	Libraries	Waste	Environment	Total
Eastbourne	-	£1,300	£5,000	-	-	-	-	£6,300
Hastings	-	£22,299	-	-	-	-	-	£22,299
Lewes	-	£13,489	£5,000	£11,077	-	-	-	£29,565
Rother	-	£2,823	-	-	£14,123	-	£23,500	£40,447
Wealden	£30,000	£7,718	£5,000	£287,309	£67,587	£168,042	-	£565,656
Total [3]	£30,000	£47,629	£15,000	£298,386	£81,710	£168,042	£23,500	£664,267

4.4 Total amount of money retained at 31 March 2023

Table 4 shows the total of money retained by the County Council as at 31 March 2023, after considering the money received and money spent during 2022/23. It shows the amount of retained money that is allocated to a specific project and the amount that is unallocated.  

Table 4 also includes the amount retained for Traffic Regulation Orders (i.e. monies secured to cover the cost to the County Council of progressing the TRO’s) and the amount for long term maintenance (commuted sums) of highway works undertaken by third parties, generally through S278 or S38 agreements. More details on these are included in the transport section.

Table 4: Total money retained at 31 March 2023

	Main Section 106 contributions	Commuted Sums	TROs	Environmental site measures *	Total
Total allocated to a specific project [4]	£8,358,322	£2,560,555	£289,546	156,762	£11,365,185
Total unallocated [5]	£537,649	-	-	-	£537,649
Total retained [6]	£8,895,970	£2,560,555	£289,546	£156,762	£11,902,833

* For applications determined by the County Council.

Details of the specific projects the funds have been allocated to are provided within the individual service area sections. 

The contributions which remain available to be allocated towards future projects will need to meet the specified requirements within the S106 agreement relating to each site. Though not allocated yet to a specific project the funds do relate to a particular service area as outlined below.

Table 5: Total money retained that is allocated and unallocated by service area

Service area	Allocated	Unallocated	Total Retained
Transport Schemes*	£4,681,158	£417,678	£5,098,836
Passenger Transport	£1,188,869	£25,101	£1,213,970
TROs	£289,546	-	£289,546
Commuted Sums	£2,560,555	-	£2,560,555
Education	£1,742,177	-	£1,742,177
Libraries	£236,172	£6,443	£242,616
Rights of Way	£483,795	£56,522	£540,317
Household Waste Recycling Sites	£0	£23,817	£23,817
Environment	£26,151	£8,087	£34,237
Environmental site measures **	£156,762	-	£156,762
Total	£11,365,185	£527,649	£11,902,833

* Some contributions may be able to be spent on passenger transport projects
** For applications determined by the County Council

4.5 Monies retained by other authorities

Further contributions have been collected from developers and retained by authorities on our behalf, principally Wealden District Council holds approximately £10m and Lewes District Council approximately £840,000.

The majority of money retained by Wealden District Council is for education provision and transport projects, further details on this is provided in the individual service area sections. The majority of money retained by Lewes District Council is for transport projects, further details are outlined in the transport section.

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5. Transport

5.1 Introduction

The current East Sussex Local Transport Plan (LTP3) Strategy was adopted in May 2011 and looks forward 15 years to 2026. The Strategy has been supported by a series of implementation plans which set out the intentions for transport investment. LTP3 seeks to invest in infrastructure which delivers sustainable economic growth achieved by helping to address congestion, improving safety for all road users, and promoting sustainable travel on foot, by bike, and by public transport.

A review of our Local Transport Plan commenced in 2022 and the fourth East Sussex Local Transport Plan (LTP4) will run from 2024 – 2050 with an emphasis on inclusive engagement and decision-making, balancing the needs of rural and urban residents, net zero carbon, health and wellbeing and social inclusion, opportunities for sustainable economic growth and safety. An initial public consultation on the transport issues, opportunities and priorities in the county was held in autumn 2022 with a further consultation on the draft Transport Strategy planned for November 2023 to February 2024, with a view to adopt in mid-2024. How far we are able to deliver our Local Transport Plan strategies over their life will be influenced by the levels of funding that will be available over the duration of each plan. 

Our plans for the development and delivery of transport measures are set out each year in our capital programme of local transport improvements and is reflective of the level of funding we have available in that given year. The programme is approved in March each year by the Lead Member for Transport and Environment.

Transport measures are funded through various sources including central government funding (for example, Bus Service Improvement Plan and Active Travel funding), Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) funding, County Council capital and revenue expenditure and development contributions. Development contributions are necessary to supplement and support other major funding streams and bids for external funding particularly where a local contribution is often required.

Development contributions are used to fund measures at a variety of levels from small site-specific projects, such as a bus stop upgrade or a pedestrian crossing, to helping to fund major transport measures, such as road junction improvements and town centre schemes. All measures mitigate the impact on the transport network from the increased travel demand generated by development including the cumulative impacts from all development in an area.

5.2 Local transport schemes – walking, cycling and other local transport improvements

In order to deliver large scale projects, it is often necessary for funding to be combined either from a variety of sources and/or from various developments. Therefore, it can take some time for the required funding to be achieved. This can delay the development of projects and the spending of individual contributions. 

The spending of contributions on transport schemes can be further affected by implementation procedures including the requirement to consult key stakeholders. To ensure schemes are delivered to the correct standards, schemes go through a process of feasibility design, option development and testing, consultation, statutory processes (for example, advertising Traffic Regulation Orders as changes are made to speed limits or parking) and final design before construction.

Key projects which development contributions have helped to fund in the past few years include major town centre improvements in Hailsham and Uckfield, new cycle routes including the Horsey cycleway in Eastbourne between Sovereign Harbour and the town centre and Newhaven Ring Road improvements.

5.3 Passenger transport

Funding for passenger transport improvements is mainly through County Council capital and revenue expenditure, Government and regional funding for specific projects and developer contributions. Capital development contributions are being used to improve bus stop facilities, by ensuring they are designed to comply with accessibility requirements, and to help fund the roll out of real time passenger information across the county. Revenue Contributions are also used to subsidise bus services in areas where development requires sustainable transport solutions but before services have become viable. £41.5m of Government funding was secured in 2023 to implement the East Sussex Bus Service Improvement Plan to improve the frequency of service in the daytime, evenings and weekends, as well as for the introduction of bus priority infrastructure.

5.4 Transport measures and initiatives delivered by developers

As part of a development, other infrastructure or initiatives can be provided by the developer.  Under s278 agreements, the developer can provide off-site highway infrastructure within the vicinity of the site including new junctions or changes to existing to provide access to the site, as well as improvements locally to footways, cycle routes, crossings and bus stops. 

In addition, Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) contributions can be secured to enable changes to parking restrictions and speed limits within the vicinity of the site to be advertised and implemented. Also, as part of larger developments, travel plans are developed by the developer to encourage greater levels of walking, cycling and public transport by new residents or employees; contributions are secured to monitor and audit the impact of these travel plans and implement any ancillary measures necessary to ensure the travel plan is being effective.

Data on TROs is provided below. The monitoring on Travel Plan Audit and full information on S278 agreements is being considered for inclusion in future reports.

5.5 Projects money has been spent on in 2022/23

Transport Schemes – walking, cycling and other local transport improvements [7]

Table 6: Summary details of the transport projects money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Wealden	Crowborough pedestrian crossing improvements	£30,000
Total	Combined Projects	£30,000

Passenger transport [7]

Table 7: Summary details of the passenger transport projects money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Eastbourne	Real Time Passenger Information	£1,300
Hastings	Real Time Passenger Information	£22,299
Lewes	Real Time Passenger Information	£13,489
Rother	Real Time Passenger Information	£2,823
Wealden	Real Time Passenger Information	£7,718
Total	Combined Projects	£47,629

Traffic Regulation Orders

Table 8: Summary details of the TROs spent in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Eastbourne	Traffic Regulation Orders	£5,000
Lewes	Traffic Regulation Orders	£5,000
Wealden	Traffic Regulation Orders	£5,000
Total	Combined Projects	£15,000

5.6 Projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

Transport Schemes – walking, cycling and other local transport improvements [8]

Table 9: Summary details of the transport projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Eastbourne	Eastbourne local cycling and walking improvements	£958,173
Eastbourne	Eastbourne bus stop and pedestrian crossing improvements	£29,096
Hastings	Hastings local cycling and walking improvement	£146,593
Hastings	The Ridge bus stops improvements	£97,435
Hastings	Hastings Junction improvements	£5,684
Lewes	Chailey pedestrian crossing improvements	£155,864
Lewes	A259 measures between Brighton and Newhaven	£371,619
Lewes	Ditchling Common transport measures	£263,055
Lewes	Highway safety measures	£3,031
Lewes	School Transport	£17,567
Rother	Bexhill walking and cycling network improvements	£371,012
Rother	Rye Greenway	£244,381
Rother	Bus services and infrastructure in Bexhill	£184,358
South Downs National Park	Lewes cycling network improvements	£17,517
Wealden	Uckfield Phase 4 Movement and Access improvements	£57,627
Wealden	A22 corridor: Major Road Network proposals	£1,529,069
Wealden	A272 footway improvements	£23,114
Wealden	Hailsham junction improvements	£13,104
Wealden	Hailsham movement and access improvements	£62,135
Wealden	Crowborough bus stop and pedestrian crossing improvements	£92,603
Wealden	A271 bus stop improvements in Herstmonceux	£18,774
Wealden	Wadhurst High Street pedestrian and traffic management scheme	£19,347
Total	Combined Projects	£4,681,158

Passenger transport [8]

Table 10: Summary details of the passenger transport projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Eastbourne	Real Time Passenger Information	£5,505
Hastings	Bus services in Silverhill area	£182,059
Hastings	Real Time Passenger Information	£82,147
Lewes	Real Time Passenger Information	£14,555
Rother	Real Time Passenger Information	£36,780
Rother	Bus services in Bexhill	£780,914
Wealden	Real Time Passenger Information	£85,582
Wealden	Bus services in Polegate	£1,326
Total	Combined Projects	£1,188,869

Traffic Regulation Orders

Table 11: Summary details of the TROs retained at 31 March 2023

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Eastbourne	Traffic Regulation Orders	£64,808
Hastings	Traffic Regulation Orders	£71,000
Lewes	Traffic Regulation Orders	£83,677
Rother	Traffic Regulation Orders	£10,061
Wealden	Traffic Regulation Orders	£60,000
Total		£289,546

Commuted sums

Commuted sums are financial contributions made by third parties to Highway Authorities as compensation for taking on the long-term future maintenance responsibility for newly created highways or highway improvements. They can be retained for many years as they are based on the life of the asset which can be 16, 30, 60 or 120 years. The commuted sums are generally secured through S278 and S38 agreements.

Table 12: Breakdown of commuted sums held at 31 March 2023 by district and borough

District or Borough	Amount
Eastbourne	£108,060
Hastings	£206,894
Lewes	£584,714
Rother	£173,637
Wealden	£1,487,250
Total [9]	£2,560,555

5.7 Monies retained by other authorities

In addition to the contributions above Wealden and Lewes District Councils hold significant monies on our behalf for transport projects.

Wealden

Approximately £5.75m is retained by Wealden District Council. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements, including on the following projects:

• Hailsham movement and access improvements
• A22 Junction improvements
• Crowborough bus stop and pedestrian crossing improvements
• Polegate High Street pedestrian improvements
• Uckfield Phase 4 Movement and Access improvements
• Wadhurst High Street pedestrian and traffic management scheme
• Bus services between Hailsham and Eastbourne
• Bus services in Polegate and Stone Cross
• Movement and Access Strategy for Hailsham and Hellingly (MASHH2)
• Real time passenger information in Heathfield
• Walking and cycling improvements in Stone Cross area

Lewes

Approximately £450,000 is retained by Lewes District Council. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements, including on the following projects:

• Lewes walking and cycling network improvements
• Walking and Cycling improvements in Seaford
• Walking improvements in Chailey
• School Transport in Wivelsfield and Newick
• Bus Stop Improvements in Wivelsfield
• Real Time Passenger Information in Seaford
• Real Time Passenger Information in Ringmer

5.8 Examples of recent spending

Crowborough pedestrian crossing improvements – Jarvis Brook

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Jarvis Brook, Crowborough

Description

Refurbishment of existing zebra crossing to improve safety for all road users, in particular pedestrians, which meets sustainable transport requirements in line with S106 agreement. The works include high friction surfacing, tactile paving, footway betterment and improved streetlighting.

Implementation

The scheme was implemented in conjunction with a maintenance programme and was substantially completed in March 2023

Project costs

£40,000

£10,000 for street lighting upgrade remains to be spent.

Additional Funding Sources

To note: The scheme was done in conjunction with maintenance work therefore the original £55k estimate has been reduced to £40K actual spend.

Polegate Rail Station cycle parking

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Polegate

Project description

The contribution will be used to deliver a number of improvements to cycle parking at Polegate station including:

• Installation of a cycle repair stand somewhere near the cycle facilities.
• Deep clean of the cycle rack closer to the station building.
• LED lighting to the CCTV rack furthest from the station building (the other cycle rack already has lighting).
• Installation of CCTV to both cycle racks.

The project was delivered by Govia Thameslink Railway

Implementation

The project was completed in March 2022

Project costs

Total cost: £10,757
S106 contribution: £10,757

Real time passenger information signs in Seaford

District or Borough

Lewes

Location

A259 Eastbourne Road, Seaford

Project description

New Real Time Passenger information Sign on Eastbourne Road, adjacent to Manor Road.

Implementation

The project was completed in March 2023

Project costs

Total cost: £10,068
S106 contribution: £12,500

Real time passenger information signs in Hastings

District or Borough

Hastings

Location

Conquest Hospital, Hastings

Project description

New Real Time Passenger information Signs at the Conquest Hospital, Hastings - one indoor sign and one outdoor sign.

Implementation

The project was completed in October 2022

Project costs

Total cost: £11,212
S106 contribution: £10,583

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6. Education

6.1 Introduction

The County Council has a statutory duty to ensure that there are sufficient primary, secondary, and special school places in the right locations to meet demand. The County Council is responsible for promoting a good supply of strong schools through planning, organising and commissioning places in a way that raises attainment, increases diversity, encourages collaboration between schools and promotes community cohesion. The need for school places fluctuates in response to population changes, new housing developments and government policy and can lead to rising as well as declining pupil numbers. Increases in demand can lead to the establishment of new schools or the expansion of existing schools. Decreases in demand can lead to a reduction in places through changes to admission arrangements or the rationalisation of provision.

Each year the County Council publishes a School Organisation Plan, the purpose of which is to share the projected demand for school places in the future and to set out where the County Council thinks it will need to commission additional places or re-organise existing provision. The current School Organisation Plan covers the period 2023 to 2027 and is available on the County Council’s website at: School Organisation Plan 2023 to 2027 | East Sussex County Council

Included within the School Organisation Plan are pupil forecasts for each school planning area in East Sussex. In forecasting demand for school places, the County Council takes account of factors such as births, trend data, parental preference, housing growth and existing and planned capacity as well as patterns of inward and outward migration. The County Council works closely with local planning authorities in East Sussex on the production of their Local Plan documents. This planning process identifies the requirement for additional school places and /or land for new schools arising from new housing development.

The County Council receives Basic Need capital funding from the government to support the provision of primary and secondary school places. This funding is provided on a formulaic basis using information provided by the County Council to the Department for Education in the annual School Capacity return. The County Council also receives High Needs Provision capital funding to support the delivery of new provision for children and young people with special educational needs.

The capital funding that the County Council receives from the government is insufficient to cover the entire capital costs of new build and expansion projects and the County Council must supplement the funding provided from other sources, including its own capital programme.

In areas where pressure on school places comes from new housing developments, the County Council works closely with local planning authorities to secure development contributions towards the cost of providing additional school places through the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and, in some instances, through the negotiation of Section 106 agreements.

Development contributions are also used to fund small scale school improvements to support additional pressure from development. In these cases, it is sometimes more appropriate for individual schools to implement projects locally, therefore once a project has been agreed monies are transferred to a school to deliver.

Although CIL has mostly replaced S106 contributions there are still some contributions from historical S106 agreements which are yet to be collected, however it is expected that in most of the county future development contributions for education provision will be through the CIL. 

6.2 Projects money has been spent on in 2022/23

(See Footnote 7)

Table 13: Summary details of the education projects money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Lewes	Enlargement of Wivelsfield Primary School	£11,077
Wealden	Special Educational Needs provision in the Wealden area	£287,309
Total	Combined Projects	£298,386

6.3 Projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

(See Footnote 8)

Table 14: Summary details of the education projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Lewes	Enlargement of Wivelsfield Primary School	£21,072
Rother	Future primary and nursery places at northeast Bexhill	£1,022,769
Wealden	Special Educational Needs provision in the Wealden area	£698,335
Total	Combined Projects	£1,742,177

6.4 Monies retained by other authorities

In addition to the contributions above Wealden District Council retains approximately £4.8m on our behalf for education projects. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements.

Approximately £390,000 is retained by Lewes District Council. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements.

6.5 Example of recent spending

New secondary places at Hailsham Community College

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Hailsham

Project description

A project to enlarge Hailsham Community College by 420 places with effect from the 2022-23 academic year.  As a result, the school’s PAN has increased from 240 to 300 and its capacity has grown to 1,800.

Implementation

The project was completed in summer 2022.

Project costs

Total cost: £13.6 million
S106 contribution: £5,166,363
Additional funding sources: Basic Need Grant, County Council contribution

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7. Libraries

7.1 Introduction

The County Council developed and implemented a Strategy for the Library and Information Service as part of a wider Libraries Transformation Programme (LTP) and is available on the County Council’s website at: Libraries strategy | East Sussex County Council. The LTP was designed to deliver a modern and sustainable Library and Information Service for East Sussex, based on current and future needs for the county. New library services introduced include an enhanced, modern eLibrary, a new children and young people’s offer to support literacy and numeracy, increased outreach work in our most disadvantaged communities and new Community Library Membership and Teachers Library Membership.

Refurbishment of library buildings are funded by a 10-year Libraries Maintenance and Refurbishment Program, which started in 2018/19. Development contributions provide additional funding which allows for enhancements. This funding has been used to help fund the expansion of children’s libraries, create multiple use suites for adult educational services and install public study spaces where customers can use their own devices, with charging points whilst creating energy efficiency savings where possible. 

Development contributions will continue to be used in line with S106 agreements on improving and increasing capacity of library provision. This will be achieved both within library buildings and by enabling people to access services remotely through the eLibrary and outreach programmes.

7.2 Projects money has been spent on in 2022/23

(See Footnote 7)

Table 15: Summary details of the library projects money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Rother	Rye Library improvements	£14,123
Wealden	Hailsham Library Services project	£67,587
Total	Combined Projects	£81,710

7.3 Projects that money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

(See Footnote 8)

Table 16: Summary details of the library projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Rother	Bexhill Library improvements	£223,598
Rother	Rye Library improvements	£316
Rother	Rother library services outreach project	£12,259
Total	Combined Projects	£236,172

7.4 Monies retained by other authorities

Wealden

In addition to the contributions above Wealden District Council retains approximately £245,000 on our behalf for library projects. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements, including on the project to improve library facilities in the Hailsham area.

7.5 Example of recent spending

Hailsham Library project

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Hailsham

Project description

Funding used to develop a 2-year project for library services in the Hailsham area to support new housing development. 

Aims:

• Purchase additional stock for the library to support the growth in population, ensuring the stock is of sufficient quantity to meet the needs of additional customers.
• Purchase additional incentive materials for the Summer Reading Challenge (SRC) to meet the increased number of children. The SRC supports literacy and library use over the summer holidays.

Increase the capacity of the Librarian team to support increased demand by:

• Delivering outreach library services at the Children’s Centre such as support to go online, improve employment opportunities, children’s books.

• Delivering outreach to schools in Hailsham to help them to develop their school libraries to meet additional need and to introduce children who are new to the area to the public library.

• Engaging with nurseries and early years settings to make families aware of available library services, including our online offer.

Implementation

The project commenced in June 2021 and has delivered meaningful results for the local community.

As at the end of the project the librarian had signed up a total of 2,415 new memberships to the library (comparator 2019/20 fig. 812) as well as making delivering a wide range of outreach events and activities for new and existing communities within the area to take part in.

In 2022/23 these included:

• 50 librarian led Storytimes and Rhymetimes
• Librarian visits to all primary schools in the area
• 15 class visits hosted in the library
• 3 librarian advisory visits (supporting schools to curate library stock)
• 48 local group visits
• 20 dedicated library events
• 50 outreach events and activities with 1,738 book bags given to participants.

Over 100 connections have been made with local groups that operate within the Hailsham area to promote, signpost and provide access to library services.

The Librarian closely worked with schools, culminating in every child in Burfield; Grovelands; Hawkes Farm; Hellingly; HCCAT; Phoenix; White House received at least two author events and a copy of the book. Individual school events were also supported, alongside making connections with Hellingly and Hailsham children’s centres, circus school and Lansdowne secure unit.

EYFS children also received a National Storyteller event with John Kirk and a book alongside many other events and activities throughout the year.

Wellbeing workshops were also delivered both in schools and in outreach settings as well taking an active role in many local outreach events for children and families.

Adult groups in the area also received weekly books and games sessions, Reading Friends group and creative writing support. Wellbeing boxes and reminiscence resources were also delivered to dementia groups and lunch clubs within the area.

In total over 6,620 attendees came to library events in 2022/23 as a result of the S106 funding. Far reaching local connections have been made with the schools and EYFS settings, alongside wider engagement with community groups operating in the area.

Project costs

Total cost: £67,587
S106 contribution: £67,587

Rye Library Refurbishment

District or Borough

Rother

Location

Rye and surrounding area

Project description

Funding used to support the provision of a newly refurbished and much improved children’s library in the Rye area.

Implementation

The project commenced in Autumn 2022, to refurbish the library for the communities within the Rye area to ensure the building is fit for purpose to deliver public library services as part of the libraries capital basic need program.

As a result of receiving S106 funding, the Children’s area of the library received improvements to support greater footfall associated with the surrounding developments to cater for increased volumes of children and young people within the area.

The children’s area was relocated within the library, to a large section at the front of the library which has been re-designed to dedicate to children and young people. New furniture, shelving and stock was purchased to ensure this new area could better accommodate children and families as well as more readily host school visits due to the increased size.  This improvement with the library layout also provides a wider area for adult stock in the main section of the library, including improved study space and a more versatile layout to improve the library’s ability to host adult events.

Since the improvements have been made, the library has seen an increase in weekly footfall, better attendance of regular groups as well as an increase in school visits to the library.

Project costs

Total cost: £217,954
S106 contribution: £13,954

Additional funding sources: Libraries capital basic need

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8. Rights of Way

8.1 Introduction

Improvements to public rights of way are funded via the County Council’s revenue and capital streams. Development contributions provide additional funding for public rights of way which have increased use generated by new developments in the area. Contributions are generally used to help fund surface improvements. A significant contribution has been secured towards the improvement and management of Ditchling Common.

Development contributions will continue to be used in line with S106 agreements on improving public rights of way in the surrounding areas of the developments where contributions originate.

8.2 Projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

(See Footnote 8)

Table 17: Summary details of the Rights of Way projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Lewes	Implementing the Ditchling Common Management Plan	£476,038
Wealden	Surface improvements to Hailsham Public Footpath 18	£6,503
Wealden	Community Routes initiative in Herstmonceux	£1,255
Total	Combined Projects	£483,795

8.3 Examples of recent spending

Surface improvements to Hailsham Public Footpath 18

The image on the left shows Hailsham Public Footpath 18 before improvements and the image on the right shows the footpath after the addition of the tarmac path surface.

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Hailsham

Project description

Addition of tarmac path surface to previously muddy/unsurfaced path.

Implementation

The project was completed in 2021.

Project costs

Total cost: £18,806
S106 contribution: £18,806
Additional funding sources: None – paid for entirely by S106 funding

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9. Household waste recycling sites

9.1 Introduction

The majority of contributions that have been collected and retained by the County Council for improvements to household waste recycling sites are from developments within the Hailsham area. These were allocated on providing additional waste and recycling facilities at Hailsham household waste recycling site which serves Hailsham and the surrounding areas and was spent on this project in 2022/23.

9.2 Projects money has been spent on in 2022/23

(See Footnote 7)

Table 18: Summary details of the Household Waste Recycling Site money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Wealden	Hailsham household waste recycling site improvements	£168,042

9.3 Monies retained by other authorities

Wealden District Council retains approximately £34,000 on our behalf for waste projects. This will be spent, by the County Council, in line with the relevant S106 agreements, on additional household waste recycling facilities which serve the relevant developments.

9.4 Examples of recent spending

Expansion of Hailsham Household Waste Recycling Site

District or Borough

Wealden

Location

Hailsham

Project description

The household waste recycling site in Hailsham has been expanded by 8m, creating an additional 300 square meters of concrete hardstanding on the lower level. This means that four additional 40 yard containers have been provided to create more capacity - increasing the number of 40 yard containers on site from 8 to 12.

This has freed up space on the upper level to separate black bag waste from bulky waste, aiding landfill diversion, and for another garden waste bin, helping recycling levels.  

The reuse shop and some other containers have been moved to the expanded area, creating more space on the upper level for pedestrians and cars.

The new area is accessed by 3 additional parking spaces, increasing parking on site from 6 to 9 spaces.

Implementation

February 2023

Project costs

Total cost: £172,310
S106 contribution: £168,042
Additional funding sources: ESCC Waste Team Budget

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10. Environment

10.1 Introduction

The money spent in Table 19 and retained in Table 20 is for the purpose of managing, displaying and interpretation of archaeological findings from various developments sites in Bexhill where the planning applications were determined by Rother District Council. 

Amounts which are allocated in Table 21 are related to planning applications the County Council has determined and are contributions which will mitigate the local environmental impacts from the developments.

10.2 Projects money has been spent on in 2022/23

(See Footnote 7)

Table 19: Summary details of the environmental projects money was spent on in 2022/23

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Rother	Bexhill Museum project	£23,500

10.3 Projects money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

(See Footnote 8)

Table 20: Summary details of the environmental project money retained at 31 March 2023 is allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Rother	Managing, displaying and interpretation of site archaeological findings	£ 26,151

Table 21: Summary details of the environmental site measures money retained at 31 March 2023 are allocated to

District or Borough	Project	Amount
Lewes	Air Quality Action Plans	£32,389
Lewes	Local Wildlife Sites enhancements – to be delivered by the Local Nature Partnership	£21,593
Rother	Bexhill to Hastings Link Road Monitoring: Planning, Landscaping, Ecology, Noise and Archaeology	£102,780
Total	Combined Projects	£156,762

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11. Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) allocations made to the County Council

11.1 Introduction

CIL charging authorities (districts, boroughs and the South Downs National Park Authority) are responsible for allocating CIL money they collect in their area. Generally, they allocate money through a bidding process. Infrastructure providers, including the County Council, are therefore required to submit bids to charging authorities in order to receive CIL money to fund infrastructure projects.  

The County Council’s bid prioritisation process prioritises critical infrastructure required to support development which is also identified within the capital programme. 

11.2 Projects which have been allocated CIL funding

Table 22 shows the County Council projects which have so far been allocated CIL funds by charging authorities.

Table 22: Projects which have been allocated CIL funding

Charging Authority	Project	Amount Allocated
Lewes	Seahaven Academy Expansion	£ 2,250,000
Lewes	Newhaven Ring Road	£300,000
Rother	London Road Corridor in Bexhill	£300,000
South Downs National Park Authority	Lewes Town Centre Traffic Management Scheme or A26 Malling Hill, Church Lane Junction Improvements or Regional Cycle Route 90 Improvements	£256,009
Wealden	New roundabout at Ersham Road, South Road and Diplocks Way, Hailsham	£1,500,000
Wealden	Junction improvements on A22 in South Wealden	£2,500,000
Total		£ 7,106,009

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Footnotes

1. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3a - the total amount of money to be provided under any planning obligations which were entered into during the reported year.
2. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3b - the total amount of money under any planning obligations which was received during the reported year 2021/22
3. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3f - the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) which was spent by the authority (including transferring it to another person to spend)
4. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3e - the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) which was allocated but not spent during the reported year for funding infrastructure 
5. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3c - the total amount of money under any planning obligations which was received before the reported year which has not been allocated by the authority 
6. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3i - the total amount of money (received under any planning obligations) during any year which was retained at the end of the reported year and where any of the retained money has been allocated for the purposes of longer term maintenance (“commuted sums”), also identify separately the total amount of commuted sums held
7. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3h(i) - in relation to money (received under planning obligations) which was spent by the authority during the reported year (including transferring it to another person to spend), summary details of the items of infrastructure on which that money (received under planning obligations) was spent, and the amount spent on each item
8. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3g - in relation to money (received under planning obligations) which was allocated by the authority but not spent during the reported year, summary details of the items of infrastructure on which the money has been allocated, and the amount of money allocated to each item
9. CIL Regs. Schedule 2, paragraph 3 (i) - … also identify separately the total amount of commuted sums held

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