ANGRY villagers have accused the local authority of siding with developers after a U-turn on their neighbourhood plan.

Hazlemere residents warned earlier this week of an 'uprising' after Bucks council rescinded its decision to let people vote on future developments in the area.

The local community believe the council are delaying the neighbourhood plan from going to referendum to give developers time to put in their plans.

The scheme from Bellway Homes Ltd involves demolishing the existing buildings, including Inkerman House, to erect a housing estate known as ‘Orchard Hill Park Estate’ on former Green Belt land on Amersham Road.

It includes 47 one-beds, 48 two-beds, 108 three-beds, and 56 four-beds in the form of 179 homes and 80 apartments. Nearly 125 of the proposed units are proposed to be affordable. 

A total of 502 car parking spaces and 80 garages predominantly for three and four-bed homes are proposed. It also includes open space that provides a total of nearly three hectares.

Earlier this year, anxious Holmer Green and Hazlemere villagers faced a 'daunting' wait to find out if their community will be lost to a controversial housing development - and the plans were thrown out.

A five-day planning inquiry took place at the beginning of October to decide whether the plans should go ahead.

However, Buckinghamshire Council decided to refuse planning permission on December 2 due to a "failure to meet key design principles required to achieve high-quality sustainable development".

It's now more important than ever for residents to get the right plan approved for their community.

Susan Jamson said: "The Developer want this Neighbourhood Plan delayed as much as possible so that they can put through their Plan and get it approved. 

"So Bucks Council has said that they are asking the community to make comment by 27 June – which is over a month – then it goes back to them and then they decide if it can go out to referendum. 

"It is all delay so that the property developer can get his plan through.

"Our community has already shown the Strategic Sites Committee that the Plan was breaching Local Planning Policy.  If you watch back the two meetings – you will see that the Planning Chairman of the site halted that meeting before it went to a vote – when it was obviously going in our favour.  Then it went back again – and we won! 

"It went then to appeal and Bucks Council HAD to work for us that time which was very weird. 

"Bucks Council takes no responsibility for the Local Plan or the Policy that was created by Wycombe District Council.  When the MP walked about Holmer Green this weekend saying he “protects the green belt’ he was shown very short shrift from the Community who said about our Green Belt. 

"The people knocking on the doors said it wasn’t their fault – it was Wycombe District Council’s decision. Not theirs.

"Now this document is delaying the process so the developer can get through the system. 

"I would like to ask who is Bucks Council working for – the community or the property developers."

Buckinghamshire Council wouldn't comment further on the issue, standing by their original position.

Councillor Peter Strachan, Cabinet Member for Planning and Regeneration: "The referendum on the Hazlemere Neighbourhood Plan has not been cancelled but rather postponed.

"The decision to not proceed with a referendum at this time has been made by Buckinghamshire Council, following legal advice. This identified that the current Hazlemere Neighbourhood Plan failed to meet a number of basic conditions and was at risk of being successfully challenged if a Judicial Review was brought.

"In order to strengthen the decision making process and bring the Neighbourhood Plan into accord with the basic conditions, Buckinghamshire Council has made a decision to propose further modifications to the Neighbourhood Plan, in addition to those proposed by the examiner's report.

"A public consultation on these modifications has now been opened and this will allow residents the opportunity to give their views.

"When this consultation finishes and the representations and planning arguments have been considered, we can reconsider the decision to proceed to a referendum."