Elmswell consultation event over controversial eco homes plan is attended by 200 people and sees petition handed over

Villagers turned out in droves to express their views on a district council's eco housing proposal that is facing opposition from hundreds of people.

Mid Suffolk District Council (MSDC) held a drop-in session in Elmswell, near Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, on November 17 for people to find out more about its plans for an eco-friendly housing development of 50 homes in council-owned open space off School Road and Church Road in the village.

About 200 people are estimated to have attended the event, during which a petition with nearly 600 signatures calling for progress on the proposal to be halted was handed over.

Opponents to the scheme say a new primary school would be preferable to more housing in the village, which is undergoing considerable growth.

A MSDC spokesperson thanked everyone for attending the event and said: "As we have said throughout, we are keen to work with communities to try to ensure they have the facilities they need.

"However, the ultimate decision over primary school provision for Elmswell rests with Suffolk County Council as the local education authority and they have been clear that they are no plans for a further school in the village.

“We are now working our way through the feedback we received on the day, plus email and postal responses received since, to pull together a full report so next steps can be considered – but this is still very early days.

"Whatever comes next, there is plenty more discussion to take place and further opportunities for everyone to have their say.”

They said the land was owned by MSDC for the specific purpose of providing housing.

Elmswell resident Brendon Pyle, 51, who helped launch the petition, said he had been 'impressed' by the event, adding MSDC had been 'very open'.

"I think they handled it very well and they were on the charm offensive. The chief executive was there," he said.

Mr Pyle, wo has lived there for 17 years, will ask a question about the site at the MSDC meeting later, starting at 5.30pm.

Cllr Dr Helen Geake, a district councillor for Elmswell, said she felt 'it's for the people of Elmswell to decide' and 'to be given the options' over the use of the site.

She said: "The school idea is a good one considering that a school for Elmswell has got to be in Elmswell. 50 eco houses for the district don't need to be in Elmswell."

She added: "It would be a pity to lose a bit of the open space but that would be better than the housing."

Last week, Suffolk County Council said they were continuing with the plan of a new school in the neighbouring village of Woolpit, where the growth was large enough to be offered a new primary school site, and they had invested 'significant' sums expanding the existing Elmswell school.

They added that whilst they understood the aspirations of the parish council, a new school site in the village 'is not something that we require to deliver new places across the two villages'.

The £15 million eco homes development would include a mix of affordable homes for social housing and open market properties and would potentially be delivered by the council’s own development company Mid Suffolk Growth Ltd.

The company was set up to enable the council to deliver more new housing and higher standards than the profit margins of other developers would allow. The council will, however, still look to achieve a modest profit for the scheme overall, which can then be reinvested across the district, from the sale of the market homes, MSDC said.

A planning application is expected to be submitted later this year.