Villagers have held a protest at the site of a major building site amid fears over the loss of endangered birds.

Borden Wildlife group has been actively protesting the development in Wises Lane since the decision to build almost 700 new homes, along with a primary school, commercial areas and a rugby club, was granted in August 2021.

The application was first submitted in November 2017 with the plans approved by a planning committee two years later, to the dismay of many in opposition who had sent hundreds of letters arguing against the plans.

Six months later the plans were then reviewed by the then secretary of state for housing, Robert Jenrick, who gave the green light for the plans in August 2021, despite the argument from Swale Council.

Within the application, regulations were given with regards to the skylark population which has used the proposed building location as a nesting area.

Quinn Estates submitted a plan with a mitigation strategy which was approved by the council on September 30.

However protesters are continuing to fight for their cause as they look to cease all action at the site due to the occupancy of the red-listed birds.

Vivien Smith is a member of the Borden Wildlife Group and has been in opposition of the plans since they were first submitted.

She said: “The objections we were putting in originally were that they shouldn't be building on a red-listed bird habitat.

“The reason why skylarks are endangered is because they are losing their habitats.

“Skylarks are a ground nesting bird and have to have at least three clutches of eggs a year to keep up their numbers.

“Losing this nesting area is already causing a deficit.

Vivien was involved in a protest to protect nesting skylarks which was thwarted by police last year.

She was alerted to an incident by former RSPCA officer, Nicola Honey, who saw a tractor spraying weed-killer while she was walking her dog.

“It’s a massive development and we have campaigned for years but now I want to see a stop to the damage to the skylark habitat.

“It’s been a real struggle to save our wildlife but right now it seems they don’t care.

“The thing is once you’ve destroyed the evidence then there is none to prosecute.”

Councillor for Borden and Grove Park Mike Baldock has also voiced his discontent against the plans and has on occasion joined the picket line at the construction zone.

He said: “Skylarks have once again been spotted in the vicinity and acting in a way that appears to show them nesting.

“I’ve been opposing the plans since the start and have been a supporter of animals rights all my life.

“There is less than might be desired from the developers over the care of the animals.

“In the planning application it says mitigation zones were to be set up for the skylarks but we don’t see any evidence of these happening.

“If they don’t build these mitigation zones you are probably going to lose huge populations in this area, that’s why it’s important these mitigation forms must be followed properly.

“Once you lose a couple of years of sustainable breeding you lose a lot of the population.”

Vivien has made accusations against Barratts David Wilson Homes, the company supervising the construction, claiming mistreatment of the wildlife in the area. The company strongly denies all claims.

A spokesman for David Wilson Kent said: “We strongly reject any accusation of damaging nesting habitats for skylarks and take our commitment to nature and habitats very seriously.

“All ongoing works at Applegate Park are closely supervised by an independent ecologist, who has undertaken a thorough three-day search, and is entirely satisfied that there are no larks nesting within our site boundaries.

“We continue to monitor the development closely and ensure that all local habitats remain protected and wherever possible enhanced."

Vivien also reported her claims to the RSPB, who are partners with Barratt Homes.

The charity confirmed it had received the claims but after investigations no signs of nesting were found.

A spokesman for the RSPB said: “We take any reports of possible new Skylark nesting sites very seriously as sadly this amazing bird is one of many in the UK in serious decline and urgently needs our help.

“It is an offence to intentionally damage or destroy active birds’ nests, so as soon as we heard that an area potentially containing nesting Skylark might be under threat we made a formal report to the Wildlife Crime Unit at Kent Police to begin an investigation.

“After a visit and full inspection to look for evidence, the police’s investigation concluded that there was no evidence of nesting activity or nest sites.

“We have asked that the site continue to be observed should there be signs of nesting activity, and will continue to monitor the situation with the site’s independent ecologist.”

The Skylark population is understood to have declined by 15% since 1995 and the birds are red-listed which is the highest status.

The construction of the first 80 homes at the site is currently underway.