More than 1,500 extra homes could be built in and around Sittingbourne on top of what was already planned, as Swale council seeks to meet a higher house-building target.

Changes have been proposed to the authority’s Local Plan, a blueprint for what can be developed and where until 2031.

Council officers have suggested that 572 homes could be built at Iwade; 564 could go on farmland off Wises Lane and Cryalls Lane; 115 are proposed for north of Newington High Street; and the Bell Centre could accommodate 120.

They have also suggested other planned developments, such as the massive plan for housing off Quinton Road and Bramblefield Lane, could take an increased allocation of 176 homes, bringing the total there to 1,330.

Another plan for homes off Crown Quay Lane, north of Eurolink Way, could also be increased by 176, say officers, to 650.

Land for nearly 3,000 extra homes has been identified and revealed in a report to be considered by the council’s Local Development Framework Panel tonight (Thursday).

Of the additional properties, 820 would be destined for Sheppey, mainly at Minster, and 803 in Faversham.

The council is proposing new sites for development, some of which it had previously ruled out, because it has been told it must increase the level of new homes to 776 a year to meet demand for housing.

The location of the new sites, which are to be the subject of a six-week public consultation starting in June, has been roundly condemned by opposition councillors.

Cllr Mike Baldock, Ukip group leader on Swale, said Faversham needed to take more of its fair share: “These proposed modifications highlight the folly of the division between Sittingbourne, Sheppey and Faversham.

“The Conservatives on the council have supported this zoning and the result is that Iwade, Newington, Borden, and parts of the Island are facing housing allocations way beyond what’s sustainable that are potentially going to destroy villages and totally change the nature of Iwade.”

Labour group leader Cllr Roger Truelove said: “The fact is that local government is having control of local development dragged away from us by the government.

“The omission sites now being considered were strongly rejected by councillors but the government, through the Planning Inspectorate, is forcing Swale to reconsider.

“We would like to reject this pressure but without a Local Plan, every plot of land would be open to development.

“I wonder why there are not more allocations in the Milton Creek area to the north of the Sittingbourne town centre.”

Cllr Gerry Lewin, Tory cabinet member for planning on Swale, admitted it had been challenging to find additional sites to meet the increased housing target set.

He said: “As part of this process we have to make sure our approach does as much as possible to protect what is important to the local community in the face of significant pressure from developers.

“The sites put forward for inclusion in the plan have been rigorously assessed and we believe are the most appropriate of a very large number put forward by developers.”

House-building firms would be asked to make contributions towards infrastructure, he added, so the population growth did not affect services.

New locations for house-building are the “least worst” of more than 150 options put forward for development, says a council planning chief.

Sixteen sites out of 171 suggested by landowners and developers could be added to Swale council’s Local Plan for what can be built and where over the next 15 years.

Gill Harris, the council’s spatial planning manager, said the authority had been left with difficult decisions about where to build after planning inspector Sue Turner advised the annual housing target should be increased.

The focus had been Sittingbourne and Sheppey, she added, due to investment in infrastructure both areas had received from being in the Thames Gateway, as well as the planned improvement of Junction five of the M2 at Stockbury roundabout.

Cllr Gerry Lewin, the council’s cabinet member for planning, said the authority would stick to its policy of concentrating on those areas over Faversham, which had not seen the same level of investment, an approach supported by Ms Turner.

He added that failure to adopt a Local Plan would see Swale “go into the wilderness where developers can pick or choose as they wish” regarding where to build.