Village homes plan rejected by council

Concerns were raised about the development's proximity to the church-owned Parish Room building

Plans to build five detached houses in a rural village have been blocked by councillors.

Developers A R Cartwright and D Walker had applied to construct the homes on land off Chapel Lane in Witherley, close to the Leicestershire-Warwickshire border.

However Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council's planning committee rejected the plans, saying they would "result in unsustainable and unjustified ribbon development" in the countryside.

Witherley Parish Council had also objected to the plans, citing concerns about extra traffic on Chapel Lane and potential harm to the village's rural character.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said one of the applicants who spoke at the meeting said she was "genuinely at a loss as to why this site is being recommended to be refused".

She was subsequently invited to work with planning officers "to come up with something that's agreeable to everyone".