Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council has thrown out an outline application to build 57 new dwellings in Sherfield-on-Loddon.

Citing that the proposed development is “not responding positively to the landscape qualities of the area” and being “heavily reliant on using cars” due to lack of public transport access, the development control committee voted unanimously to reject the proposal.

The plan to build 57 new houses on land at Redlands, Reading Road was submitted by Cooper Estates Strategic Land Limited last year.

Although the council officers recommended that planning permission may be given if the developer completes the listed legal agreements, the council decided that the plan is “unsustainable”.

Sherfield-on-Loddon parish councillor John Darker, who objected to the plan, said: “There are no local facilities and there is an inadequate bus service, which will force all residents to own and use cars in order to access shops, surgeries, stations, schools.

“School and surgeries are all at the limits of capacity. The current narrow access road from the Sherfield Park roundabout will become a recipe for all possible houses and cars for serious congestion both at the roundabout and A33.”

Cllr Barker also cited that the development is very close to the incinerator.

Basingstoke Cllrs agreed that the development would not have adequate facilities like shops, surgeries, stations, schools.

Cllr Angie Freeman said: “It concerns me greatly the lack of schools near the development. We have already got 150 houses built near this site, but there’s no school there. There’s no plans for [new] schools.

“Everything for the children to access is apparently across rather busy roads. It just doesn’t seem sensible until we see a lot of this at the moment. They’ve got no schools to send their children to, no shops, no facilities at all.

“It just doesn’t seem right to be putting more houses when they haven’t even got the infrastructure to cope with what’s already planned.

Cllr Jenny Vaux spoke about the lack of playing fields near the development.

She said: “I'm concerned about young children and their developmental needs, which the play areas provide. While I can accept the principle behind 57 new houses makes planning senses set out in your papers, I am very concerned about the social welfare of residents living in this development, particularly families with young children.

“I therefore appeal to the committee to consider making it a condition that the final design for the 57 houses includes a leap for residents or apply a Grampian condition that these houses cannot be built until the community facilities in the east of Basingstoke development are accessible for residents.”

Cllrs Nicholas Robinson, Paul Harvey, Chris Tomblin and Sven Godesen also objected to the plan during the debate.

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