CONTROVERSIAL plans for 326 new homes on green belt land in Rochford have been recommended for refusal.

Nearly 300 people have written to object to the plans for Coombes Farm, which have been submitted by developers the Colonnade Group.

The plans were recommended for refusal by head of planning Shaun Scrutton, and councillors will vote on the issue on Thursday.

The news was welcomed by members of campaign group Race – Residents Against Coombes Farm Expansion – but group founder James Bowker said he would not rest easy until the application had been formally turned down.

Mr Bowker, 43, added: “We feel quite pleased because the council has done a very thorough piece of work on this and the report is very comprehensive.

“The reasons it has stated are the ones we have been flagging up, from the green belt issues to the change the development would cause to the character of the area.”

He added the group would be protesting at Thursday’s meeting and said even if the application was refused the group would remain vigilant in order to fight any appeal made by Colonnade.

The development would consist of both family housing and flats and an area has also been allocated for community uses, but no details had been given on what these would be.

Mr Scrutton said there had been a large number of objections to the plan including both Rochford and Stambridge Parish Council, Rayleigh MP Mark Francois, county councillor Tracey Chapman and 291 individual letters from people living nearby.

The area involved was outside both the existing Rochford district replacement local plan and also the emerging Rochford core strategy submission due to be submitted to the Government before the end of the year.

Mr Scrutton said: “Further harm would be caused to the green belt as a result of the proposed development including the sprawl of a large built-up area, the encroachment into the countryside, the loss of an open, attractive landscape close to where people live, and the loss of opportunities for outdoor recreation.

“There is no need to release green belt in this location in order to retain an up-to-date supply of deliverable sites for residential development.”

Colonnade declined to comment on the matter before the meeting, which takes place on Thursday at Rochford District Council’s Civic Suite, in Hockley Road, Rayleigh at 7.30pm.