The Historical Background

Up until the 1920s Ferring was not much more than a hamlet centred around the parish church, then in the 1920s and 1930s large swathes of land were sold as freehold to be used for house building, because there were effectively no planning regulations at that time the plots were developed in a somewhat irregular manner.  This is one of the characteristics that give Ferring its unique appeal. The main swathe that was developed initially was from The Grange down to the sea shore and from what is now Ocean Drive to Sea Lane and this area became South Ferring. The other major area was from the railway line up to the Littlehampton Road and became known as North Ferring. The main arterial roads through the village (that is Sea Lane, Ferring Street and Langbury Lane) were “adopted” by West Sussex County Council and consequently have street lights, pavements and most importantly the roads are maintained by the County Council. All the other roads in Ferring were not “adopted” and so do not have the benefit of these facilities and additionally the property owners in those roads are responsible for the maintenance of the road fronting on their property. Unfortunately these owners also pay the full County Council tax, which includes an element for road maintenance, with no rebate for the fact that their roads are not maintained by the County. This is another aspect of the unique nature of Ferring.

How the Association was born

In the 1930s the then new residents recognised that it was not sensible, nor cost effective for individuals to look after their own bit of road, the result of which would have been patchwork to say the least, so they formed The Ratepayers’ & Owners’ Association to take on that collective responsibility. That Association subsequently was renamed in 1991, The Residents’ & Owners’ Association and then in 2009, The Ferring Roads Scheme Association. Each Association included a collective Public Liability Insurance against any accident that may occur on our roads that can be attributed to inadequate maintenance, which otherwise would be a personal liability. After several years of escalating maintenance costs, which were not accurately reflected in the annual subscriptions, we have embarked on a long-term budget that should see us through the next three decades while, at the same time, improving the quality of the roads in the village. At the Annual General Meeting of the Association, which is held in May, the members elect a Committee that is given the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Association for the year and in particular of selecting and supervising the road resurfacing work for that year. The property owners pay an annual subscription to the Association to fund this activity and each owner pays the same amount.