Plans for a historic village to grow by almost 150 homes have been refused following a huge public backlash.

Despite being recommended for approval, the proposals in Cliffsend, near Ramsgate, were rejected by councillors at a recent Thanet District Council (TDC) planning committee meeting.

Ahead of the meeting, residents feared the plans would see their village turned “into a town” with the additional 141 properties proposed for the site – directly north of the newly built Thanet Parkway train station and near the disused Manston Airport.

Councillors decided the development would result in a loss of the countryside, cause harm to the landscape and see irreversible loss of agricultural land.

Members discussed at the meeting on December 19 how the proposal had failed to demonstrate the benefits of the proposal would outweigh the harm arising from the loss of agricultural land and that no other suitable sites of poorer agricultural quality could accommodate the development, or lead to likely accumulated and significant losses of high-quality agricultural land.

Cllr Steve Albon (Lab) said: “I think it is a nice development and laid out very well but for me, it’s in the wrong place.

“The report actually says the site forms a natural expansion of the village. We’ve already had one extension of the village and now we’ve got an extension on the extension.

“I have to say that we have enough land allocated within the local plan for development and now we’re asked to accept a piece of land that’s not within the local plan to put 141 houses on.

“I don’t think I can support this application.”

Cllr John Davis (Con) also objected the proposals and said he did not think it was necessary.

“There is the issue in that Cliffsend needs to be more sustainable but it needs to be one village,” he said.

“There’s an application to build a shop in the south side of the village. That doesn’t help these people at the top end of the village and putting in another couple of hundred people there is simply going to isolate them.

“There are no public transport facilities that are worth speaking of unless you traipse across the field to the Parkway Station, but the bus services have been cut back – the village is isolated and putting people out there, whether they’re in affordable homes or not, is not sustainable or viable at the moment.

“I don’t think this is necessary.”

Cllr Heather Keen (Lab) added: “I think it will have a huge impact on the village as it is and its character and I also think developments are supposed to preserve and enhance the character and I can’t see that this does.”

Developers Monson Homes first lodged its bid for 141 homes on the agricultural land in October 2021.

The plans would have connected with a previously approved 62-home project in Cliffsend to form an estate of more than 200 properties.

But the motion proposed was to refuse the application and was agreed.