New bespoke signs welcoming people to the South Downs National Park have been given the go-ahead by planners
The Planning Committee of the South Downs National Park Authority voted unanimously to approve 31 gateway signs at specially-chosen locations across Hampshire, West Sussex and East Sussex. The new signs will be installed during 2020.
It follows a pilot scheme earlier this year that saw 19 signs installed at entry points and being positively received by residents and visitors.
The 12 sites granted planning permission in Hampshire are:
A325, Alice Holt
B2150, Hambledon
B3035, Bishop’s Waltham
Bottom of Catherington Down, Horndean
Woodberry Lane, Rowlands Castle
Shipwright’s Way, Rowlands Castle
B2070, Liphook
B3047, Alresford Road junction for Itchen Stoke
Shawford, Winchester
Bar Gate End/Tun Bridge, Winchester
West Tisted
B2177, Lower Upham
The new signs will mirror the design of those already installed. The signs are made from iron or a mixture of wood and iron — reflecting the history of iron work in the South Downs during the 17th and 18th centuries. The sweet chestnut wood in the signs has been sourced from the Stansted Estate.
Sites have been chosen based on their sense of arrival, for instance, where people emerge from urban areas into the downs. This means that the sites do not need to be on the precise line of the boundary of the National Park.
