OPPONENTS of a 350-home development on the edge of Devizes will have to fight again as the developer Mactaggart and Mickel is appealing against the planning refusal.

It was refused outline permission to build on just under 49 acres next to Coate bridge, off Windsor Drive, by Wiltshire Council in September after a recommendation to refuse by planning officers.

The plan is bitterly opposed by Roundway and Bishops Cannings Parish Councils and Devizes Town Council, plus other groups.

A rally against development at the site, held on The Green in Devizes last December, was attended by nearly 250 people.

Wiltshire Council planning officers say the large development cannot be justified as the site, which is in the parish of Roundway, is outside the limits of development for Devizes, is not in the Wiltshire Core Strategy and there is a five-year supply of land for housing.

A Neighbourhood Plan for Devizes, produced by Devizes Town, Roundway and Bishops Cannings Parish Councils, does not favour the site and instead identifies small-scale sites around the town for housing.

But Ken Hopkins, the company’s strategic land manager, said: “Naturally we were disappointed with the council’s decision not to grant planning consent and we have decided to appeal against this decision. We believe this site is a sustainable location for development and will assist in meeting Wiltshire’s housing needs.”

Community representatives who spoke against the application at the strategic planning committee gave their reaction.

Tony Sedgwick, chairman of Devizes Community Area Partnership, said: “The Neighbourhood Plan proves beyond any doubt that we don’t need these major developments to meet our requirements in Wiltshire’s Core Strategy.

“We are looking to develop brownfield sites, not to encroach on our countryside.

“This proposal would be a terrible incursion on the countryside.”

John Kirkman, chairman of the Kennet group of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, said: “Devizes can meet its housing targets without breaching its current settlement boundaries.”

Roundway Parish Council vice-chairman Rick Rowland said: “Air pollution in parts of Devizes is already in excess of European standards.

“No-one in their right mind would think that building 350 houses would not have an impact on air quality.”

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