A coalition of volunteers and conservation organisations is pressing Hastings Borough Council to remove the contested Sandrock Bends site from its emerging Local Plan, saying a proposed housing scheme would endanger the nearby St Helen’s Woods Local Nature Reserve.
What is being proposed
Developer Gladman Developments Ltd has lodged a bid to build 65 new homes on a Greenfield site on The Ridge, adjacent to St Helen’s Woods. Councillors are due to decide which sites remain under consideration ahead of the Local Plan’s publication on 10 August.
Community and conservation response
The St. Helen's Park Preservation Society, working with campaign groups including Save Sandrock Bends, Standing Up for Nature and the CPRE (Campaign for the Protection of Rural England), says the development poses a direct threat to one of Hastings’ most important natural habitats.
Campaigners emphasise the woodland’s sensitivity at a time of prolonged dry conditions, arguing the proposed building works would disrupt the hydrology that supports rare wet woodland and meadow habitats within the reserve.
- Site proposed: Sandrock Bends, on The Ridge (Greenfield)
- Proposed homes: 65
- Nearby protected site: St Helen’s Woods Local Nature Reserve (about 106 acres)
- Decision timetable: councillors to confirm sites before the Local Plan is published on 10 August
Why hydrology matters
Conservationists describe Sandrock Bends as acting like a natural "sponge". The site’s complex underground layers of clay and sandstone, together with dense vegetation, are said to capture and filter rainwater that feeds spring lines supplying St Helen’s Woods.
Wet woodlands—characterised by waterlogged soils and species such as alder and willow—are comparatively rare. The Society warns that removing the site’s natural groundcover and replacing it with hard surfaces could interrupt those spring lines, risking long-term harm to specialised mosses, fungi and invertebrate communities.
Local context and stewardship
Most of the 106-acre St Helen’s Woods was gifted by Isabel Blackman in the 1950s and is managed by the St. Helen's Park Preservation Society, which has responsibility for the site’s protection and ongoing upkeep.
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| Woodland size | Approximately 106 acres |
| Developer | Gladman Developments Ltd |
| Proposed dwellings | 65 homes |
| Key date | Local Plan to be published 10 August |
As the council prepares to finalise which sites will remain in the emerging plan, campaigners are urging councillors to weigh ecological risks alongside housing needs. The outcome will determine whether Sandrock Bends remains a candidate for development or is removed from consideration to safeguard the adjacent nature reserve.
Further scrutiny of planning documents and environmental assessments is likely before any detailed planning application could proceed, should the site be retained in the Local Plan.
