Beaconsfield residents have called for the town council to hold a public meeting to justify proposals to release a slice of Green Belt for development as part of the Local Plan.

The Beaconsfield Society has slammed both Beaconsfield Town and South Bucks councils for a lack of communication over the district-led blueprint for thousands of homes in the area.

Residents fear the release of green belt land near Maxwell Road will significantly increase travel time in the town, and they also argue that the growing housing crisis is not an acceptable reason to build on the protected land.

Beaconsfield Society is now calling for more light to be shed on the plans for Beaconsfield, as dozens of residents have said they have had no communication from the town council on why it supports the release of Green Belt.

Member of the society, Peter Foster, also aired concerns that "democracy is falling apart" in Beaconsfield, as three councillors who sit on the town council are also members of SBDC.

He said: “The town council said they are happy to release the green belt land so we can create a new boarder to the town.

“So we have said to the town council we think you should hold a public meeting to say why you think I should support it.

“The town council is at odds with the town, and the districts are double-hatters – five of them sit on the district and town councils. It is democracy falling apart.

“The communication around this is dreadful – there is no way to find out what is going in apart from the society which keeps banging on about it.”

When the Bucks Free Press contacted chairman of the town council, Alastair Pike, he refused to comment.

However a press release issued on May 24 stated the town council will only support changes to the green belt if there is an “appropriate volume” of homes, and the maximum amount of affordable housing is provided.

Chiltern and South Bucks’ Local Plan outlines where 9,150 will be built by 2033, while Wycombe District Council needs to allocate space for 10,925.

SBDC insisted it has involved residents in producing the Local Plan, and all views submitted to the council will be taken into account before the final proposal is complete.

Spokesman, Connie Primmer, said: “We have worked hard to ensure residents have had an active part in developing the plan by carrying out an extensive public consultation over this period.

"There will be further public consultation on a draft plan in due course.

“We understand concerns about traffic and we are working with service and infrastructure providers to consider the need for new and improved roads and public transport as well as schools and healthcare facilities.

“We publish updates about the developing Local Plan across our social media channels, on our website, and through press releases to the local media as and when there is new information to share.

“Information about the Local Plan is easy to find on our website; simply type ‘Local Plan’ into the search box of the South Bucks website, or on an external search engine, and numerous web pages with information about the plan comes up."