Residents' concerns about the future of their Weald village have been set aside by Tunbridge Wells councillors, who approved a controversial planning application for Horsmonden.

The council has given the green light to a scheme to build 49 homes on an agricultural field outside the village's limit-to-built development.

The four-and-a-half acre site is bordered by Furnace Lane and Gibbet Lane, with the proposed access from Furnace Lane. The entire boundary hedge on the southern side of the site will be removed.

Planning officers advised that because the borough could not currently demonstrate that it had a five-year land supply to provide for new housing, under Government regulations the council could not apply the usual constraints.

The council is working on a new Local Plan to meet the requirements, but the plan has a long way to go yet until adoption.

The planning approval has angered residents who say the new homes will put intolerable pressure on the local school and doctors surgery, destroy a valued section of hedge, as well as bringing more traffic to local roads and putting pedestrians' lives at risk.

There is also concern for wildlife on the site, said to include lizards, bats, owls and dormice.

Planning officer Kevin Hope said the developer was taking measures to mitigate the adverse effects, including re-locating the lizards off-site.

Monson Homes would contribute £151,000 to the expansion of facilities at Horsmonden Primary, £187,000 to Mascalls Academy in Paddock Wood - the nearest senior school, £48,000 to support the Howells Surgery in the village and £11,000 to the parish council to purchase outside gym equipment.

Nevertheless the parish council still objected to the plan, saying a recent housing needs survey showed the village needed predominantly single-storey accommodation for the elderly. The Monson plan will provide two bungalows, but the majority of the housing will be family homes, including eight large four-bedroom properties. The developer however is proposing 17 affordable homes, and councillors insisted it be written into the permission that such homes be offered first to people who could demonstrate a connection to Horsmonden village.

The council received a total of 66 objections to the plan and four residents addressed the planning committee meeting, which was held remotely.

Mel Greener from Gibbet Lane told the committee that Furnace Lane and Gibbet Lane were already dangerous and pointed to the number of crashes at the nearby crossroad by Heath Road Stores.

Dr Ian Anderson of Furnace Lane warned that the village infrastructure was already overloaded. Giving money to the school or doctors was no use if there was nowhere for them to expand.

Jessica Rowe of Gibbet Lane said she would be concerned for the safety of her children aged five and nine, having to walk along the narrow road with the extra traffic.

Tracy Belton of Gibbet Lane pointed out that since the proposal provided no extra employment in the village, the new residents would inevitably have to use their cars to travel to work.

Cllr Jane March, (Con), who represents Horsmonden and Brenchley, said she was concerned that the plan included adding double yellow lines to part of Furnace Lane and urged the scheme be amended to include replacement parking areas for existing residents. However, as she is not a member of the planning committee she had no vote on the application.

Members of the planning committee also seemed to have doubts. Cllr Christian Atwood (Con) was concerned there were fewer than two parking spaces per household on average.

Cllr Sarah Hamilton (Con) was worried that although the lizards were to be saved, "the dormice have been given short shrift." She was concerned at the loss of a natural habitat "that had taken years to evolve."

But Mr Hope assured her the constructors would use "dormouse avoidance measures" when building the new homes.

Cllr Trevor Poile (Lib Dem) questioned the wisdom of putting the site's open play space next to the drainage attenuation pond, but again Mr Hope said this was normal - and the pond would be fenced.

Cllr Bob Backhouse (Con) worried about the effect on water pressure in the village, but was assured that this was down to Southern Water to solve, and if they had to build another pumping station they would.

Cllr Hugo Pound (Con) said he was "not entirely convinced" that giving the school and surgery extra money could solve their capacity problems, but nevertheless he moved approval. Cllr Poile seconded the motion which was then carried by eight votes to one. Only Cllr Sarah Hamilton (Con) voted against the proposal.

Afterwards, Claire Sanders, who has lived on Furnace Lane for 25 years declared herself dismayed.

She was also shocked to learn there was no appeal process for residents to challenge the decision - only for developers if it had gone against them.

She said: "It's like the council has lost all sense of what is right and what is wrong.

"The residents are treated as insignificant. The council are walking all over us. There's no justice."

"I wrote to each member of the planning committee before the hearing with a number of pertinent questions - and I never even received an acknowledgement, let alone any answers!"

*Planning application 18/01976 refers.

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