Five homes are set to be built on what was once the grounds of a private boarding school despite fears of overdevelopment.

Planning permission has been granted for the scheme at Wellesley House in Broadstairs.

The land was previously owned by the school but has been passed over to the Foreland Partnership.

Developers want to build two three-bed and three four-bed houses at the site, which is made up of vegetation and a gravelled area.

The town council told planning officers they should refuse the application on the grounds it was overdevelopment and would increase traffic.

Despite this, the project was approved, with officers noting: “The five new dwellings will generate a relatively small number of vehicle movements and are unlikely to have a severe impact on the highway network.

“Furthermore, all other matters relating to visibility, parking etc can be controlled by conditions.”

Architects Turner Jackson and Day argue the scheme will improve the street scene by “activating” the road.

Documents lodged with Thanet District Council said: “The proposal presents the opportunity to improve the street scene on Ramsgate Road.

“It will need to achieve a balance between activating an important street, which is currently blank, and retaining the leafy character of the road.”

A similar application was approved in 2021 for three homes instead of five.

Objectors claim developers are trying to “cram in more houses” on the site.

Karen McKenzie commented: “This new application has moved the goalpost to five houses - cramming in another two and riding rough-shod over the previous decision.

“It's a mockery of the process.”

The land in question is home to trees under a protection order.

Objectors to the scheme want to see them left alone rather than chopped down and replaced with new ones.

Ms McKenzie added: “This is an increased loss of trees and there is no need for more houses on this site.

“This does not create a greener neighbourhood and increasing to five homes will make it even worse.”

Turner Jackson and Day claimed: “The green and leafy appearance of Ramsgate Road is an integral part of the street’s character and should be maintained wherever possible.

“An updated tree report was commissioned which recommended the removal of several additional non-TPO trees, the loss of which will be mitigated by providing replacement new trees on site.”

Access to the homes will be from Ramsgate Road and each one will have two off-road parking spaces.