There is mounting opposition to plans to move a dedicated nature reserve in order to make way for two new schools.

The land that is subject to a planning application for Bearsted Primary and the Snowfield Academy special needs school at Pope's Field off Bearsted Road is supposed to have been a nature reserve under the terms of an earlier planning approval for the Kent Medical Campus.

Now an amendment to that application has been submitted to Maidstone council seeking to move the reserve elsewhere. Boxley argued it was important the reserve stayed where it was to maintain a green corridor from the M20 to Mote Park, going via Weavering Heath and Vinters Valley Nature Reserve.

The land is identified as a Local Nature Reserve in the Maidstone Local Plan, approved only 15 months ago.

Parish Council Chairman Bob Hinder said: “This local nature reserve site should have been up and running by now, but the developers at Kent Medical Campus have instead mown the site to within an inch of its life and put up animal barriers.

"It is about time MBC forced the developers to put in place what was promised in 2013.”

The proposed replacement site is to the north of Pope's Wood and named Hockers Lane Nature Reserve.

Cllr Hinder said: “The parish council sees no value in allowing a change to the location of the current local nature reserve as this will only result in a reduction in the biodiversity of the whole area.

"The relocation is solely to gain development on the current site for the financial gain of the landowner.”

The parish council has already opposed the separate application for the two schools on traffic and safety grounds.

Borough Councillor Wendy Hinder said “It is ridiculous to expect primary school children to be walked to the proposed primary schools from Bearsted, and it is no use developers saying they will be encouraged to walk as there are no safe crossing points and the current footways are narrow, poorly maintained and criss-cross the road, for a large stretch of the road there are no street lights and no parent or carer is going to risk trying to walk a child along there.”

Planning application 18/506609 refers on the Maidstone council website: https://maidstone.gov.uk/