Thousands rally to support Don’t Urbanise the Downs campaign
Plans by Eton College for a 3,000-house new town at East Chiltington have attracted thousands of protests from right across East Sussex and beyond.
Nearly 1,900 people have pledged support for the campaign via the campaign website, with more than 920 joining the Don’t Urbanise the Downs facebook page.
The campaign argues that the planned development by Eton College, which is right on the border of the South Downs National Park, is simply not needed and would devastate a huge area of idyllic countryside.
Campaign leader Marc Munier said: “This is a rural area – utterly beautiful. The proposed scheme is the largest in the whole of East Sussex and would destroy wildlife-rich habitat in open countryside while doing absolutely nothing to support local housing need. We are strongly urging Eton College to step up to its green credentials and set an example of how to protect precious countryside rather than destroy it. We urge them to rethink their plans for this site.”
“We have been overwhelmed by the response to this campaign and by the passion of those protesting”
Protestors who have signed up so far come from all walks of life and include lawyers and academics, farmworkers, NHS staff, artists, property developers and more than 50 teachers.
Many of those who have signed up have expressed their outrage over the scheme and are horrified by the huge scale of the proposed development. One Sussex teacher wrote: “The infrastructure of the proposed area cannot possibly support a new 'small' town, and will ruin an area of outstanding beauty. We don’t need another town in the area; what we need is affordable housing (for people like myself) and we should be looking at the many brownfield sites already available. This development will cause more traffic, more people on the roads, and ruin the lives of those who live here. It’s an absolute travesty.”
A property developer who joined the campaign wrote simply: “New homes should be built on brownfield sites; no more green fields should be built on – ever!”
Munier said: “We want to make it clear that this is not a “NIMBY” issue. People from all over the county have joined the campaign because they treasure the natural environment and want to protect it. The countryside around here, along with its unique ecology, is an asset to the whole region even if you don't regularly visit.
“We are certainly not against development – we are crying out for affordable housing – but it should be of appropriate scale, on brownfield sites and in locations where people can use public transport. None of that is supported by this scheme.
“We want to thank everyone who has signed up so far. We apologise if you haven’t received a response to us yet; we have been busy converting to a new email system but communication should improve very soon! The campaign is entirely run by volunteers but we really do appreciate the huge response and many offers of help.”
Action you can take!
Donate to support our campaign at Go Fund Me
Request to have a poster/board put up outside your home
Email your local MP; we have a standard template here which you can amend as appropriate. You can find your MP’s email here if you don’t already know it.
Follow us on social media:
facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/donturbanisethedowns
Twitter: https://twitter.com/savesussexdowns
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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/don-t-urbanise-the-downs/
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