Residents and local councillors are united in their opposition to plans for a 160-unit retirement village in Freeland.

Some 130 objections have been made on the West Oxfordshire District Council's planning portal and many more on the village’s community Facebook page.

They say the development - from Inspired Villages - is not in the Local Plan and therefore if it is approved, gives the green light to develop remaining green spaces in Freeland.

They add that the village has no bus service, no street lighting, no shops, and already has a far larger elderly population than average.

Campaign leader Fiona Lehane said: “It’s an unsuitable and unsustainable location with few amenities and no public transport.

"It’s the wrong development in the wrong village for the wrong reasons.

"I haven’t yet met anyone in the village in favour of it, and have been overwhelmed by the level of support in terms of engagement and the contributions to protect what we have here.”

Former chairman of Freeland Parish Council Peter Newell said that after the developer gave him a rough outline of the plans he suggested they canvass the village.

“I understand that, on the basis of the returns, it was clear that they could expect little support.  

“I was surprised, therefore, to see that, despite the lack of support from WODC or the village, they had actually submitted a planning application."    

He said the proposal would add to traffic problems and "would bring no benefit to the village. This is a very rural and sensitive location which would be harmed by such a large scale development."

And Freeland and Hanborough district councillor Dr Alaa Al-Yousuf commented on the WODC portal that he wanted to echo the response of the Principal Planning Officer during the pre-application consultation process which was that the site does not lie within a sustainable location for this scale of development.

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He said no affordable units are proposed, which is in conflict with the Local Plan, and "it is not considered that the benefits of the scheme outweigh the significant harm that would arise from such a large scale development in this sensitive rural location.”

Cllr Al-Yousuf added: “In addition, I wish to underline that this site was not included in the WODC Local Plan 2031, that was adopted in September 2018, because it was deemed unsuitable for development for the reasons mentioned above.

"This application seeks to challenge the soundness of the Local Plan even before its first review scheduled for 2023.

“Residents expect the Local Plan to provide them with certainty and protection from large speculative developments.

"For the same reasons, WODC must stand firm and defend its Plan. This application should therefore be refused.”

Inspired Villages, which is a subsidiary of Legal and General, has made two planning applications which were refused then overturned under appeal – including one for a retirement village in Sonning Common.

A spokesperson from Inspired Villages said: "As a long term developer and operator, we are dedicated to bringing forward schemes which not only address the chronic shortage of housing for older people across the UK, but which are designed and built to respond to local community needs.

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"Our proposals at Freeland have been designed to address the growing shortage of specialist accommodation for older residents in West Oxfordshire, whilst also delivering a range of new facilities including a village club house and shop, wellness centre and transport to surrounding retail and leisure outlets - all open to the local community."

They said they had met with local politicians and parish councillors to gain feedback and began engaging with WODC planning officers in December 2018, making representations to both the Local Plan and Salt Cross Area Action Plan.

"We have also undertaken extensive engagement with local residents over the past year to ensure local priorities are reflected in our design.

"As part of our commitment, we are dedicated to enhancing the surrounding ecology for local residents and the scheme at Freeland will achieve a biodiversity net gain, aiming to be carbon net zero to minimise environmental impact."