This announcement by the Department of Communities & Local Government recognises the contribution that Shoreham Harbour could potentially make to the economic development prospects of the local area including Brighton & Hove.

The granting of GP status will involve significant upgrades to public transport, and measures to improve long-term flood protection for the wider area. It will also enable a range of new community infrastructure such as schools and doctors’ surgeries to be provided, along with public open space and improved beach access.

Peter Latham, Adur District Council Director of Services commented: “The aim is to create a significant urban extension that will be an international exemplar in sustainable development, and Central Government funding made available through Growth Points status will help to enable this vision to be achieved. This project will provide important benefits both for current and new residents of the area, and it will be crucial that existing communities are well integrated with new development, and that they are able to play an active part in this process.”

Proposals for the Shoreham Harbour area represent a large-scale, mixed-use redevelopment scheme which could provide significant economic growth together with a range of new homes and jobs as part of a sustainable vision for the area.

Plans for regenerating the harbour have existed for nearly a decade, but the scheme that is now being envisioned is a step change in the thinking - promoting a high quality mixed-use sustainable neighbourhood taking in parts of Shoreham, Southwick and Portslade around a consolidated and modernised Port.

Proposals will be subject to detailed testing and community consultation through an emerging Area Action Plan process to be developed jointly by the three local authorities (see earlier story).

Early analysis suggests that the project has the capacity to deliver a number of key enhancements to the local area including: -

• up to 10,000 new homes with a wide mixture of tenures and housing types;
• 7,750 new jobs, many of these in high value sectors;
• new retail and leisure facilities; a high quality network of public open space including a significantly improved public beach;
• new community facilities including health, education and skills training;
• regeneration for the existing adjacent communities;
• renewable energy and zero carbon development;
• a package of high quality public transport improvements including an extension to the proposed Rapid Transit System (RTS) link with Brighton & Hove
• upgrades to the existing railway stations and rail services.

Delivery of new homes, employment and community facilities could begin to come forward within the next three years in parts of the area where there are no major physical constraints – largely at the brighton & Hove end of the harbour – but the complete regeneration programme has a 15-20 year delivery period.