Worth Abbey
Coming soon habitat bank · Mid Sussex · High Weald
Worth Abbey Habitat Bank
Restoring a historic High Weald landscape, with plans for local BNG units to support your development.
LPA: Mid Sussex District Council · National Character Area: High Weald
The opportunity
Recreating Worth Abbey’s lost parkland
Worth Abbey is a working Benedictine monastery, school and community, set within the High Weald. Caring for this land has long been part of life here.
Historic mapping shows that this land once formed part of Paddockhurst Park, with wood pasture and parkland where there are now areas of grassland. Some of the original trees still remain, tracing the old parish boundary.
We’re exploring how 24.6 ha could become a richer, more varied landscape again. Plans include creating lowland meadows, improving existing grassland, bringing trees back into their historic positions, and exploring opportunities for new hedgerows.
If you’re planning a development in the area, Worth Abbey could provide a source of local off-site BNG. Talk to us about what you need.
Location and potential reach
Building in Mid Sussex or the wider South East?
Planning a development in Sussex or elsewhere in the South East? We can help you understand whether Worth Abbey could be suitable, based on where you’re building and the habitats your project needs.
Planning context
Plans for nature
What we’re planning
We’re looking at opportunities to create and improve grassland, restore trees to the historic parkland and introduce new hedgerows. The habitat types and number of units will be confirmed as plans develop.
| Habitat opportunity | Current position |
|---|---|
| Other neutral grassland | Creating richer grassland from existing fields |
| Lowland meadow | Creating species rich meadow |
| Trees and wood pasture | Bringing trees back into the historic parkland |
| Hedgerows | Exploring opportunities for new hedgerows |
A place with a long view
Start the conversation early
Worth Abbey is not yet registered, but you don’t need to wait to talk to us about your BNG needs.
Tell us where you’re building, the units you expect to need and when you need them. We can discuss whether we could bring the site forward in time to support your project.
A place with a long view
Rooted in the Abbey landscape
Part of a landscape bigger than the site
Worth Abbey sits within Weald to Waves, a nature recovery corridor connecting habitats from the High Weald towards the Sussex coast. The area has also been identified through the West Sussex Local Nature Recovery Strategy as having potential to become more important for biodiversity.
By restoring meadow, grassland, trees and hedgerows here, the plans for Worth Abbey have the potential to strengthen nature beyond the boundaries of the habitat bank itself.
Care that continues
We’ll create and care for the habitats over the long term, checking how they develop and reporting on progress. You’ll work directly with us throughout, with a team you can turn to as your project moves forward.
Your BNG needs
Planning BNG in or around Mid Sussex?
Looking for local BNG for your development? Let’s talk about whether Worth Abbey could be the right fit.
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