Twittens and roundabouts

A twitten is Sussex for a narrow path between walls or hedges. We have five of them, and they are one of the small things that make walking round this estate different from walking round anywhere else.

They join up parts of the estate that would otherwise be a long way round. Taken together, they are the reason nobody here lives more than about five minutes’ walk from anybody else. That does more for how well neighbours know each other than any amount of organising, and it is worth remembering the next time one needs cutting back.

The twittens and the roundabouts are maintained by the Association, and their cost is shared across the whole estate rather than charged to any one road.

The five

Until now they have never been named or photographed anywhere. So:

Sea Way to West Close

The longest of them, and the one that does the most work: it links two different road groups in a couple of minutes on foot.

A long narrow tarmac path running between a close-boarded fence on one side and shrubs and small trees on the other, with a strip of gravel and fallen leaves along the fence line and paving slabs in the foreground — Sea Way to West Close.

West Close to East Close

Green and heavily overhung, with ivy along the boundary and dappled light most of the way.

A narrow tarmac path between a tall hedge on one side and a close-boarded fence carrying a house name sign on the other, with ivy and fallen leaves along the edges and dappled sunlight on the path — West Close to East Close.

West Close to Merry End

A narrow path with timber chicane barriers set across it carrying red reflective markers, a brick wall and a white rendered building beyond, under a blue sky with cumulus cloud — West Close to Merry End, with the timber barriers that slow cyclists down.

South Walk to Merry End

A narrow path between close-boarded fences with timber chicane barriers across it, a sign on the fence asking dog owners to clean up, and a thatched roof visible beyond — South Walk to Merry End.

Sea Lane to the Greensward

The one that ends at the sea.

A narrow tarmac path running between hedges and a wooden gate, heading towards the sea under an evening sky — Sea Lane down to the Greensward.

What we ask

If your garden backs onto a twitten, please cut back overhanging branches and vegetation from time to time. They narrow quickly, and a twitten you have to duck through stops being a shortcut and starts being an obstacle, particularly for anyone less steady on their feet.

Clean up after your dog, and keep it on a lead. That applies on all the estate twittens and roads, and there are signs on the twittens saying so. There are three bins on the Greensward and one at the top of Sea Lane.

Litter. If you use the twittens, a hand keeping them clear is appreciated. There is no contractor for this. It is just neighbours.

Please do not cycle through them. They are narrow, they have blind corners, and somebody is going to come round one of them on foot. Two of them have timber barriers across the path for exactly this reason.

The roundabouts

Where the private roads meet there are planted islands rather than plain junctions: a clipped hedge, in places a mature tree, and the road passing either side. They slow traffic without a single speed bump, and they are a good part of why the estate reads as a village rather than as a housing layout.

West Close has one at each end, and they are not alike.

A circular kerbed island in a road junction, planted with a single large leaning Scots pine over parched grass, carrying a blue keep-left sign and two 20 mph roundels, with tile-hung and mock-Tudor houses beyond — The junction of South Walk and West Close, at the northern end. One pine, leaning hard, and two reminders of the speed limit.

That tree is the reason the junction works. It is visible from a good way off along South Walk, so drivers slow for it before they can see whether anything is coming the other way.

A planted roundabout island with a clipped hedge and a tall mature pine, a blue keep-left sign at its edge, and the private road dividing to pass either side of it between garden walls — The other end of West Close, at the southern turning circle. Clipped hedge rather than kerb, and the road divides around it.

The planting and mowing is done by our grounds contractors, paid for out of the estate charge. If one is looking neglected or a sightline is blocked, tell us and we will get it seen to.