Fears new homes could turn 'special' village into a town

VILLAGERS FEAR THAT SERVICES ARE INADEQUATE AND AREA'S CHARACTER COULD VANISH

- By JOSHUA HARTLEY

RESIDENTS of a “special” village fear it could lose its character and be transformed into a town by hundreds of new homes.

Villagers in Ravenshead where homes sell for an average of £428,251 compared to the UK average of £269,000 - are nervously eyeing a set of plans that could change it forever.

Gedling Borough Council recently outlined a number of sites that could be built on as part of its Local Plan, a planning document that outlines the future development of the borough up until March 2043.

Ravenshead is one of the “key settlements” where new housing estates could spring up, with areas on the village's northern, eastern and southern edges currently being considered for new homes.

Land between Main Road and Ricket Lane has been selected in the north, while a triangle of land that reaches from east of Church Drive to the end of Chapel Lane has also been highlighted by planners and developers.

Space around and below a leisure centre in the south of the village, which is run by the parish council, has also been touted as potentially suitable.

While the proposals are at a very early stage and the quantity of housing that could be built around the village has not been detailed, the prospect of extensive development has alarmed villagers fond of their close-knit and rural environment.