RESIDENTS have vowed to fight plans to build five new homes on the edge of a village - amid fears it will pave the way for many more houses which will swamp their community.

Residents in Burneston, near Bedale, believe the planning application for the houses on land next to Manor House Walk is outside the existing village development limits and will open up a much bigger area which could be targeted for development.

The village currently has around 130 houses with 300 residents, a small post office, a school and pub.

Over 60 people packed a meeting of the parish council to express their concerns.

Resident Peter Walker said: "If this is granted, the settlement line of the village will be redrawn. I have concerns about this application which is for five houses, I believe this is a stalking horse, a flag of convenience, it is designed in its entirety to move the eastern boundary of the village fifty metres to the east.

“What will happen if that is allowed is that becomes the eastern boundary of the village and that would permit development to take place all the way along Lamberts Drive and to the back of Pennine View, and about 40 to 50 houses would go in there.”

He warned that the most recently built houses in the village at Manor Walk, was originally for a development of six to seven houses and 19 were eventually built.

“Be aware this would put a stick in the ground for future development,” he added.

But there was also concern that more houses were needed in the village and the community should to grow to keep up with the times as services were constantly being downgraded, because they were not used.

Resident Peter Bowe said there were major concerns over drainage in the village. “We have been here before, the service is appalling, it has got better but every time we get a downpour of rain we get problems, the parish council needs to put that forward.”

Other residents were also concerned about problems with broadband and other utilities and more pressure being put on the roads. Councillors said they would pass on residents concerns to Hambleton District Council.

The application has been made by Charles Craggs from Carthorpe, and Arthur Barker, a North Yorkshire county councillor for the Swale division.

Cllr Barker said: This planning application is for five houses and there ought to be a reasonable expectation that all applications are decided on their merits and not speculation.”