A decision on plans to build nearly 300 homes has been pushed back due to health care concerns.

The Frognal Lane development in Teynham has permission in principle, and work has already begun on the new roundabout and access road.

But the finer details of the scheme – for 298 homes, sports pitches and a community allotment – are yet to be rubber-stamped over fears the new residents would be without a GP as the village does no longer has its own GP surgery.

It used to have two, but the last of those, in London Road, shut in May 2022. Some 3,000 patients have had to register with Sittingbourne Memorial Hospital, around four miles away, instead.

Hopes of reopening the London Road practice were snuffed out after plans were approved to redevelop it into a dental laboratory.

Meanwhile, it is understood GPs in Sittingbourne are not taking on new patients because their books are already full.

A scheme to combat that with a new state-of-the-art surgery in Bell Road, Sittingbourne, which could welcome 6,000 patients have also stalled.

However, it is understood a health care centre and employment hub are on the cards as part of a separate development by Trenport.

Cllr Julien Speed, who represents Teynham and Lynsted, said councillors need to see these plans for before it makes a decision on Frognal Lane.

He said: “It has given a bit more time for several issues to be sorted before the decision is taken. If the development is built then it will mean around 700 people will move into the area, with each home having on average 2.3 people.

“At present those people would live here without a GP. So the question is where will these people go to receive health care? We can’t build these homes without having the infrastructure.

“There are also issues with sewage in Frognal Lane already and the system would need a serious upgrade before homes could be built.”

However, in a letter to Swale council, Southern Water did not object to the plans and said its current sewerage capacity would allow for “50 initial dwellings to connect without reinforcement”.

Eleven out of 12 members of Swale council’s planning committee voted to defer the decision at a meeting last Thursday.

Teynham Parish Council also objected to the development.

It said in a consultation letter: “Our previous concerns remain, including the absence of GP facilities, potential disruptions during the construction phase, the car-centric design within the residential zone, and the short-term nature of the lease agreements for community assets including the allotments, orchards, and the sports facilities.”