Spoiling for a fight over housing plans

Communities across Notts are up in arms at the possibility of housing development on green belt land in the county. At the first public meeting to protest the plans, Rob Parsons assessed the mood.

It was standing room only at the Watnall Women's Institute building as the campaign against new houses gathered speed.

In fact, there was barely even that much space. Residents, councillors and other interested parties squeezed themselves in and hastily found spare chairs and even a piano stool to sit down on.

They gathered to hear the latest news about housing plans for Watnall after the Evening Post revealed large chunks of land near the village were earmarked for possible new homes.

Despite the wealth of other options available on a Saturday morning, as many as 100 residents came from Watnall and the surrounding area wanting to be part of it. With two minutes to go until the start of the meeting, those wanting to be inside were still queuing out of the door.

Council officials urged residents not to panic earlier this month - saying many possibilities were being investigated and analysed before a shortlist of preferred sites was produced.

But judging by the turnout at Saturday's meeting, few of them were assured by this.

Locals have experience in this area. In 2003 plans emerged for 750 homes and a business park on nearby green belt, only to be removed from Broxtowe Borough Council's local plan after widespread opposition.

And among the attendees on Saturday there were a myriad of reasons for objecting to any more housing around Watnall this time round.

Some worried the green belt might disappear under a carpet of concrete, others about the impact on traffic and public services. Finding myself stuck for half an hour getting out of the village after the meeting, I could certainly sympathise with the latter.

But the prevailing concern was that Watnall, which considers itself distinct from Greater Nottingham's suburban spread, could find itself submerged into nearby Hucknall.

The meeting itself was organised by the Broxtowe Conservative group, and unsurprisingly given the importance of the subject there were a few attempts to gain political capital at the expense of the Labour government.

But in general all present were unified by their common purpose. Having seen off housing plans just a few years ago, many were keen to try and do again.

The women's institute building - more used to painting classes and cake sales than high-octane debate - was bulging at the seams. A nearby log cabin was prepared as a standby just in case, but nowhere in the village was there an available building big enough to comfortably seat 100 people.

And in essence that tells a story about why development around Watnall is so widely opposed.

Conservative councillor Philip Owen noted that people come to live there because they don't to be part of city life, preferring instead a village existence. If Watnall's boundaries start to blur with those of Kimberley to the south and Hucknall to the north, that village identity will be threatened.

There's a long way to go in the process of deciding which sites in Notts will feed the ever-increasing demand for new homes.

But if all communities in the county are able to mobilise themselves the way Watnall has, it's a safe bet that the inevitable wave of new development won't go through without a fight.