FEARS Leigh Sinton will turn into ‘one big urban conurbation’ have been raised after a development set to increase the village by 50 per cent was approved on appeal.
Residents have expressed their anger after a series of new homes have been given the go-ahead in the area, which currently has about 220 properties, with the latest being the construction of 35 houses on Elmhurst Farm on Hereford Road.
The original application was refused by Malvern Hills District Council’s Northern Area Committee in May last year, but the lodged appeal was subsequently successful.
Concerns were also raised as a high pressure gas main runs straight through the field and Stephen Seymour, chairman of Leigh and Bransford Parish Council planning committee, said the nature of the village was being changed.
“We are basically destroying the village by this urbanisation,” he told The Observer.
“Instead of letting villages grow organically we are putting big housing estates on them which is against the way we normally set up.
“They are building urban housing estates, the sort of things you see in the suburbs, in a village which just doesn’t work.
“I am very disappointed it has gone ahead. I am concerned it is changing the nature of the village and I am not very happy with the gas main running straight through.
“It is not just happening here, it is all over the country.”
Those homes come on the back of another 53 which were passed on Kiln Lane, with the two combined developments likely to increase the size of Leigh Sinton by half its current population.
David Millard, of Lynn Close which backs onto the site, added: “What are the council there for? It seems local decisions are just becoming worthless.
“If they carry on with this we will join to Malvern, Malvern will join to Worcester and there will be no green space left and we will end up as one big urban conurbation of housing estates.
“We don’t want to sit there with a building site in the backyard.
“Our lovely views of the Malvern Hills – which we paid a premium for – are now going to be blocked by someones back window.
“It is going to increase traffic volumes and it is going to be a blight.
“The Government has just let the developers run riot really,” he added.
