Residents and developers clashed in an appeal hearing to decide the fate of a planned 200-home development near Beaufort Park.

Developers Southern Home Ownership want a government-appointed inspector to overturn Bracknell Forest Council’s decision to refuse the project planning permission.

But residents of nearby Crowthorne – and council officers – say Southern Homes Ownership’s plans for parking spaces in the new neighbourhood aren’t enough for the traffic the new development would bring.

Jeff Allen from Crowthorne Parish Council told the hearing that the main roads surrounding the development were already often congested heavily. He also raised concerns about the environmental impact of the increased traffic.

He said: “Nine Mile Ride is an already heavily used carriageway. However, what cannot be disregarded is the possible use of West Road. This is a heavily congested road, especially in the morning and evening rush hours.

“Developers say they will be encouraging other means of transport. It is hardly likely that future residents will visit shops and carry on bicycle shopping of a heavy nature.

“Whatever the developers say about the routes that traffic will take are unenforceable and unrealistic.”

But Chris Holdup from Mode Transport Planning, speaking on the side of the developers, said planners and Bracknell Forest Council were “in complete agreement” about the impact on traffic.

He said: “Matters relating for example use of West Road, Wokingham Road, that’s allowed for. Some traffic has been assumed to go by that route. That has allowed for low traffic impact.”

READ MORE: Crunch time for plans for 200 homes near Crowthorne

The main disagreements between planning officers from Bracknell Forest Council and planners from Iceni projects are over parking and safety.

Southern Homes Ownership’s latest plans include a total of 549 parking spaces. This is made up of allocated driveways, visitor spaces, garages, car ports and a car park for a new park.

But council officers’ objections include the fact that the smaller streets do not have enough visitor parking – meaning visitors would be tempted to park on the side of the road or the kerb.

They also questioned whether enough parking had been allocated to homes designated as “affordable housing.” And they said the car park for the new park was too small, at 14 spaces.

Mr Holdup argued that the amount of parking provided for affordable housing was based on data on car ownership taken from the 2021 census. And he said there would be enough alternative transport options – such as bus routes – available.

He also argued that visitor parking would be a short walk from houses on the narrower streets.

The government’s planning inspector Rachael Pipkin is now due to visit the proposed site for the development before making her decision.