A parish council says it will not be supporting a planning application to build 168 new homes in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Land adjacent to Turnden and Hartley Road in Cranbrook is earmarked for the new properties after developer Berkeley Homes submitted an application in March.

In a virtual meeting held by Cranbrook and Sissinghurst Parish Council, members expressed frustration at having to discuss a large scale development over video link.

Cllr John Smith said the meeting was not practical but there was no other choice as previous calls to withdraw the application were not met.

This came after residents in the village preciously asked for more time to discuss the development because of lockdown.

One of the objections made by parish council includes concerns over the type and mix of housing. It says the homes proposed do not meet local requirements and will mean the area will be overcrowded.

Cllr Nancy Warne explains the land nearby has already been approved for other developments and adding more could cause problems.

Cllr Warne said: "A planning application for 36 homes and extensive renovation of the Grade II listed Turnden Farmhouse was passed in November 2018, based around the historic farmstead site between Cranbrook and Hartley.

"This new application relates to a proposal for a further 168 new homes between this farmstead and the site to the south of Cranbrook - Brick Kiln and Corn Hall Farm - which was allocated for 240 homes in 2016 which are yet to be built.

"If this application is passed, in total this would see the addition of more than 400 new homes on this side of the town in potentially a short space of time, with three separate accesses along the A229 within a short distance of each other."

The parish council recommended refusal on the grounds the development would cause harm to the area of outstanding natural beauty and the medieval field patterns.

It also said it would have a significant impact on the A229's traffic flow, air quality and road safety.

Tunbridge Wells Borough Council will make the final decision.

If approved, the land will be developed to include the new homes with associated access, car parking, refuse and recycling storage, and landscaping.

A spokesman for Tunbridge Wells Borough Council said: "The views of the parish council will be taken into consideration as part of the decision-making process for this planning application.

"It would not be appropriate to comment on a planning application before it has been considered but, the Government’s Chief Planning Officer has made it clear that councils should be continuing to determine planning applications and so the Planning Services Team is operating a business as usual approach.

"On receipt of a valid planning application a council must start to consider it, this is a process which is governed by legislation, and for major planning applications may take many weeks or months. It would not be possible for a council to require an application be withdrawn. Not to begin consideration of an application would leave the council open to appeal which could mean an application being decided by the Planning Inspectorate.

"Planning applications continue to be consulted on in line with legislation, and the council has always taken the view representations on planning applications will be accepted after the legally required 21-day consultation period has ended. Representations can be made in writing or online."

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