CONTROVERSIAL proposals to build homes on Salvation Army farmland will be opposed by Leigh Town Council after a unanimous vote at a heated meeting.

Dozens of furious residents living in both Leigh and Hadleigh gathered at the Leigh Community Centre on Tuesday night as they urged the town council to support their fight to stave off development threats.

Leigh Town Council will back residents and strongly oppose the inclusion of farmland next to Hadleigh Country Park in Castle Point Council’s local plan consultation.

A large swathe of the farmland, which borders both Hadleigh and Leigh, has been included in a consultation of proposed sites after the Salvation Army stated it could be used to provide “much needed housing”.

Following a united stand from residents, all councillors unanimously voted to oppose any developments on the site.

Councillor Bernard Arscott, who chaired the meeting, said: “We raised our concerns over the development.

“It would have a negative impact on Leigh. It would have an impact on the infrastructure, we don’t have that to cope with the volume of properties proposed potentially on that land.

“The green belt is also there for a particular purpose and this acts as the separation between urban areas. There is the potential that could be lost, with Leigh and Hadleigh then becoming one.”

Leigh Town Council is now set to issue a letter of objection to both Castle Point Council and the Salvation Army.

A spokesman for the Tattersall Residents Group, from Leigh, said: “It was very well attended and the councillors voted unanimously to defend this from development.

“Residents from Hadleigh were also present and the various interested parties will now work together to object to the Salvation Army’s vision of turning our green belt into a housing estate.”

Leigh Town Council has been given an extension by Castle Point Council to submit a consultation response after the closing date earlier this week on Monday.

Hadleigh resident, Martin England, who also attended the meeting, added: “The feelings of Leigh residents and councillors is one of dismay and disbelief. They all accept that this is a buffer zone between Hadleigh and Leigh, and they cannot comprehend properties built on that land. If they build on this farmland, what is the point of having green belt land?”