Residents in a village which has already doubled in size due to new housing are rallying together to protest against a further 300 new homes being built.
Locals in Wharncliffe Side, Sheffield, say they are ‘traumatised’ at the prospect of hundreds of homes being built on their green belt land.
The former farm village – which has an average house price of £318,939 – has a population of around 1,335 but over 1,000 new homes have been erected nearby in recent years.
Residents say the village infrastructure cannot cope with more new properties and earlier this month hundreds of locals rallied to protest against the plans.
Lead protester David Thornton, 62, says developers decided against building on the land 30 years ago, so he cannot understand why it is being considered now.
He said: ‘We’ve already had 1,000 or so houses built in this area. The whole community is traumatised by this whole idea.
‘They looked at doing this 30 years ago and decided it wasn’t viable and it’s no different now. We don’t have the access and certain parts of the land can’t be built on because of drainage and flooding.
‘There’s all sorts of wildlife that have lived here for 50 or 60 years, like bats and badgers and butterflies.’
Mr Thornton says the field is ‘very important’ to the local community and believes the residents will miss being able to use it.
He added: ‘It’s used by the community. I live close to it and I’m very fortunate. I get the chance to see all the other local residents who use the space.
‘Some of the older people who live in the village and some of the children are really, really upset that they might lose their field.
‘It’s very important to us. It’s a unique and special space.’
There are currently plans for more than 3,500 homes to be built on green belt land across the city and on Wednesday, May 14, Sheffield City Council held a meeting to decide if the properties should be constructed.
The council voted to ‘agree that exceptional circumstances now exist to justify the release of greenfield land in green belt for new development.’
At the meeting, several local residents said they were concerned that the proposed plans will affect the wildlife in the local area.
Jane Williams said: ‘It is not a piece of wasteland but an area of nature. We are at a critical point in climate change, things have to be protected.
‘How can Sheffield City Council justify using this particular piece of land when it is so rich, environmentally?
‘Why more houses being built in Wharncliffe Side and the Deepcar area, in addition to the 1,000 houses being built or under construction?
‘Why has there been no improvements to public transport?
‘If this goes ahead, will Sheffield City Council ensure us that if this goes ahead, then any application to develop this land will be subject to the usual planning permissions?’
Rebecca Johnston said: ‘This is a unique, ecological site that is full of diverse species including badgers, newts and owls to name a few.
‘How does the reclassification of green belt fit in with Sheffield City Council’s ecological policy?
‘The field absorbs a lot of water and prevents flooding from the river – how does this fit in with the flood management policy?
‘The field provides exercise space that benefits residents’ mental health – how does the policy fit in with the wider mental health strategy?’