Graffham Parish Council is urging all villagers to support its request to West Sussex County Council to make our roads safer by signing this petition by the end of July 2026.
Its proposal is to:
- Reduce the current 30mph speed limit in the village centre to 20mph.
- Introduce new "buffer zones" with speed limits lower than the current national speed limits at each entrance to the village.
- Install "Welcome to Graffham - please drive carefully" signs in an appropriately rustic design at each entrance to the neighbourbood to make visiting drivers aware they are entering the village where they need to take extra care.
A map showing the scheme in detail is posted at graffham-pc.gov.uk
The aim is to improve safety for all roads users – residents, school children, visitors, dog walkers and other pedestrians, cyclists and horse-riders.
It is part of the parish council's new Village Plan and follows extensive local consultation – but to help persuade the county council's highways team of its validity we need to demonstrate as much community support for the proposal as possible.
The move follows a recent spate of near misses at a time when traffic through the village is increasing, with the recently approved Woodcote development, other property improvement works, an increasing trend towards multiple vehicle households and more online shopping deliveries. And of course cars, lorries and vans today are much larger and faster than our roads were originally envisaged to handle.
Please support this initiative to make our village's roads safer for all users by signing this petition before the end of July 2026 and encouraging your family, neighbours and friends to do so too.
Updates
Graffham road safety proposal and petition submitted to county - but please keep asking others to sign
August 3, 2026
Graffham Parish Council (GPC) on Friday (31 July) formally asked West Sussex County Council (WSCC) to implement its proposals for making the village’s roads safer – supported by the petition which you and nearly 200 other residents from some 110 properties in the neighbourbood have now signed. While the proposal is now in WSCC’s hands, the petition will remain open for residents to sign, to be used in any future dialogue with the county council. So the more residents who put their name to it, the greater the impact it could have in persuading WSCC to support the scheme and to counter the proposal's detractors, the most vocal of whom do not live in the village. So please encourage any other adults in your household and your neighbours to sign it too - either online at www.ipetitions.com/p/make-graffhams-roads-safer/ or on paper at Graffham Village Shop. A full update on this issue with further detail that may be of interest has been posted today at graffham-pc.gov.uk/news/road-safety-proposal-and-petition-submitted-to-county/ and Facebook's Graffham Noticeboard. Thanks for your support.
Make Graffham's roads safer petition to be submitted today - but remains open
July 30, 2026
The petition calling on West Sussex County Council to make the village's roads safer will be submitted today in support of Graffham Parish Council's proposals. Thank for being among the 150 or so to put their names to it, online or on paper at the village shop. This is the biggest show of opinion by our community on any single issue in most of our memories. Although the petition as it stands now is being submitted to WSCC, an updated version with more names could be used in future dialogue with the county council. So the petition will remain available for a while longer. Looking through the list of those who have put their names to it so far, it is clear that there are quite a few properties where just one person living there has signed. If that applies to you, please encourage any other adults living or working under the same roof as you to sign the petition too. Please also encourage neighbours to add their names. The more names there are, the greater the impact it could have.
Reached 100 supporters
July 28, 2026
More than 100 have signed the petition to make Graffham's roads safer
July 28, 2026
Thanks for supporting Graffham Parish Council's petition to make the community's roads safer. More than 100 have now added their names - just shy of 100 online and almost a further 30 more in pen at the village shop. The plan is to submit the total to West Sussex County Council in the next few days - so if you know of anyone in your household or any neighbours who have not yet signed then please encourage them to do so as soon as possible. Thanks again for your support.
76 Comments
Approaching our village at 60 may be legal but it is not safe. There have been many cars leave the road at Merlin’s Wood, there is no pavement from the campsite to the village and many stables/livery yards meaning pedestrians and horses are regularly put at risk. 20 within the settlement is well supported and 40 leading into the settlement seems to be a suitable buffer justifiable on safety grounds.
We have narrow bendy unsighted roads and bends throughout the village.No pavements and horseriders with an infant school at the top It seems common sense
Always walking around village to shop and dog walks. It’s impossible to avoid going on a road during my walk. There are no verges nor safe places to stay when two cars meet going in opposite directions. I have some near accident through no fault of mine.
Frequently having to avoid speeding delivery vans and unfortunately many parents on their way to the two schools at the southern end of the village
Absolutely makes sense. The speed cars drive along Woodcote Lane is often far too fast and extremely dangerous to walkers, horse riders, etc
For the community, safer roads for walkers, bikers and car drivers.
We live on this road and cars go too fast right by our house multiple times a day, especially on school runs We have a 3 year old so it’s concerning
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Graffham Parish Council is urging all villagers to support its request to West Sussex County Council to make our roads safer by signing this petition by the end of July 2026.
Its proposal is to:
- Reduce the current 30mph speed limit in the village centre to 20mph.
- Introduce new "buffer zones" with speed limits lower than the current national speed limits at each entrance to the village.
- Install "Welcome to Graffham - please drive carefully" signs in an appropriately rustic design at each entrance to the neighbourbood to make visiting drivers aware they are entering the village where they need to take extra care.
A map showing the scheme in detail is posted at graffham-pc.gov.uk
The aim is to improve safety for all roads users – residents, school children, visitors, dog walkers and other pedestrians, cyclists and horse-riders.
It is part of the parish council's new Village Plan and follows extensive local consultation – but to help persuade the county council's highways team of its validity we need to demonstrate as much community support for the proposal as possible.
The move follows a recent spate of near misses at a time when traffic through the village is increasing, with the recently approved Woodcote development, other property improvement works, an increasing trend towards multiple vehicle households and more online shopping deliveries. And of course cars, lorries and vans today are much larger and faster than our roads were originally envisaged to handle.
Please support this initiative to make our village's roads safer for all users by signing this petition before the end of July 2026 and encouraging your family, neighbours and friends to do so too.
Updates
Graffham road safety proposal and petition submitted to county - but please keep asking others to sign
August 3, 2026
Graffham Parish Council (GPC) on Friday (31 July) formally asked West Sussex County Council (WSCC) to implement its proposals for making the village’s roads safer – supported by the petition which you and nearly 200 other residents from some 110 properties in the neighbourbood have now signed. While the proposal is now in WSCC’s hands, the petition will remain open for residents to sign, to be used in any future dialogue with the county council. So the more residents who put their name to it, the greater the impact it could have in persuading WSCC to support the scheme and to counter the proposal's detractors, the most vocal of whom do not live in the village. So please encourage any other adults in your household and your neighbours to sign it too - either online at www.ipetitions.com/p/make-graffhams-roads-safer/ or on paper at Graffham Village Shop. A full update on this issue with further detail that may be of interest has been posted today at graffham-pc.gov.uk/news/road-safety-proposal-and-petition-submitted-to-county/ and Facebook's Graffham Noticeboard. Thanks for your support.
Make Graffham's roads safer petition to be submitted today - but remains open
July 30, 2026
The petition calling on West Sussex County Council to make the village's roads safer will be submitted today in support of Graffham Parish Council's proposals. Thank for being among the 150 or so to put their names to it, online or on paper at the village shop. This is the biggest show of opinion by our community on any single issue in most of our memories. Although the petition as it stands now is being submitted to WSCC, an updated version with more names could be used in future dialogue with the county council. So the petition will remain available for a while longer. Looking through the list of those who have put their names to it so far, it is clear that there are quite a few properties where just one person living there has signed. If that applies to you, please encourage any other adults living or working under the same roof as you to sign the petition too. Please also encourage neighbours to add their names. The more names there are, the greater the impact it could have.
Reached 100 supporters
July 28, 2026
More than 100 have signed the petition to make Graffham's roads safer
July 28, 2026
Thanks for supporting Graffham Parish Council's petition to make the community's roads safer. More than 100 have now added their names - just shy of 100 online and almost a further 30 more in pen at the village shop. The plan is to submit the total to West Sussex County Council in the next few days - so if you know of anyone in your household or any neighbours who have not yet signed then please encourage them to do so as soon as possible. Thanks again for your support.
76 Comments
The street outside our house Northwood farm is 60 miles . With walkers , horse riders and access to driveways is untenable. A reduced speed limit to 40 would better.
Approaching our village at 60 may be legal but it is not safe. There have been many cars leave the road at Merlin’s Wood, there is no pavement from the campsite to the village and many stables/livery yards meaning pedestrians and horses are regularly put at risk. 20 within the settlement is well supported and 40 leading into the settlement seems to be a suitable buffer justifiable on safety grounds.
We have narrow bendy unsighted roads and bends throughout the village.No pavements and horseriders with an infant school at the top It seems common sense
Always walking around village to shop and dog walks. It’s impossible to avoid going on a road during my walk. There are no verges nor safe places to stay when two cars meet going in opposite directions. I have some near accident through no fault of mine.
Frequently having to avoid speeding delivery vans and unfortunately many parents on their way to the two schools at the southern end of the village
Absolutely makes sense. The speed cars drive along Woodcote Lane is often far too fast and extremely dangerous to walkers, horse riders, etc
For the community, safer roads for walkers, bikers and car drivers.
We live on this road and cars go too fast right by our house multiple times a day, especially on school runs We have a 3 year old so it’s concerning
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The street outside our house Northwood farm is 60 miles . With walkers , horse riders and access to driveways is untenable. A reduced speed limit to 40 would better.