Former Novartis Site, Parsonage Road

Paul Basham Associates Southern Office were tasked with supporting Muse with a full planning application for 244no. homes in Horsham.  

Tasked with supporting Muse to deliver 244no. new dwellings on the Former Novartis site at Parsonage Road, Horsham, our transport planning team set to work with the project team to ensure a fantastic scheme would come to the fore.  

A lapsed commercial planning consent on the brownfield site and the proximity to a level crossing gave added levels of complexity to the scheme, but our transport planning team quickly set about engaging with West Sussex County Council highway officers to discuss the elements of the previous scheme that may be pivotal in re-providing or able to be revised. This ultimately led to a change in the access arrangements (and removing the need for a right turn lane junction design), as well as the understanding of the principles the county council would need to see through the application.

Our team then, working collaboratively with the project team, prepared a Transport Assessment and Travel Plan to support the application itself. The TA included reviewing the proposed access arrangements and giving consideration to distributions depending on whether the level crossing was in use or not. Junction modelling was also undertaken with the results considered against the baseline position and lapsed consent and proposed mitigation schemes, but also mindful of an additional development to the immediate west of the site (remainder of the Novartis site); for which we were also acting as the transport consultants.

Additional works undertaken included a Walkling and Cycling Audit of the locale, a Highways Response note and an Addendum TA but ongoing liaison with the highways team at WSCC was imperative and ensured that there were no untimely delays to the application.

The project now sits within our S278 team as they seek to gain technical approval on the access and new pedestrian/cycle connection onto Parsonage Road.

The scheme was approved at committee in October 2025, and the decision notice issued in January 2026. We have been delighted to be involved in this scheme and help deliver some much-needed housing in the area. We cannot wait to see the scheme being built and residents moving in.