In Sussex we continue to see unsustainable and damaging development. We are faced with huge house building schemes, proposed new towns, road developments, potential airport expansion and onshore drilling for gas and oil. To combat this we respond to planning applications where we can, putting the case forward for wildlife.

Visit our campaigns page to find out more about the current issues in Sussex that concern us.

Planning applications usually take a long time to put together, but once one is submitted and goes out for consultation, we have just 21 days to respond. For every proposed development we have to assess the application, put together the evidence and put forward our argument all within less than a month. Often the consultation period will get extended, but we can't rely on this. These tight deadlines are one of the reasons that we can only deal with a limited number of cases at any one time. We have to prioritise and put our efforts where they will have the most benefit for wildlife and people in Sussex. Our policy on Housing and Industrial Development explains how we decide which planning application to get involved in.

•   Sussex Wildlife Trust's Policy on Housing & Industrial Land ( 90KB)

We cannot respond to every planning application we hear about, so it would be great if you could help us by commenting on applications yourselves.

Find out how you can comment on planning applications and make sure that wildlife is given a voice.