Landowners propose alternative site for Bognor Regis Golf Club outside Flansham

They say the approximately 130 acre site, to the north and west of Flansham, would offer better protection against flooding and keep the golf club relatively local.

The club is currently set to be moved to a new site just outside Climping, where developers Hallam Land Management have said it would make for a ‘cultural and recreational asset’ (M/16/22/PL). Meanwhile the present venue, on Downview Road, could be converted into a controversial 480 home development (FP/274/21/OUT).

Landowner Nick Adames said this alternative site in Flansham was actually Hallam's first choice for the golf club. A deal was going to be made, but fell through when one of the stakeholders – the late Judy Fuente – pulled out, saying Hallam would not pay for her land upfront.

Mrs Fuente’s land has now fallen to her four daughters, and her husband Peter said the family are once again open to negotiations if current plans fall through. This, alongside Mr Adames’s agreement, could mean the deal is still on the table.

Since the alternative site adjoins the current golf club, it satisfies a now-breached requirement that the new site remain within two miles of Bognor Regis. This, combined with an alternative access which might draw golf club traffic away from Downview Road, makes the Flansham site an ideal alternative, the landowners say.

"It just fits in so well,” Mr Adames said. "This has only come back on the table because the Felpham residents have been so passionate about it – which I quite understand. I want to make it absolutely clear to them and the planners that there is an alternative.”

Although he stands to gain from selling the land, Mr Adames, a former captain of the golf club, made clear this deal is really about legacy and heritage.

With a golf club to the north and west of the village, Mr Adames plans to plant a forest on twenty acres of land near his home, protecting the hamlet against future development. "My family have lived in Flansham for 150 years and when I’m dead and gone, I want to make sure that developers don’t come in and build this place up like they are Yapton,” he said.

Hallam Land Management have declined to comment.

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