HOLMES Chapel Parish Council has reiterated calls for housing plans in the village to be halted until a neighbourhood plan is put in place.

The council has embarked on the process of developing a Neighbourhood Plan to provide the legal and binding structure for all future development consistent with growing and changing needs.

More than 600 new houses have received planning permission over the past few years and are likely to be completed during the next five years.

The recent statement from the governing body of Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School that they cannot accommodate any further growth in pupil numbers is further evidence that the current situation is out of control.

The council told the Guardian it would like to see Cheshire East call a halt to further planning approvals until the Neighbourhood Plan is prepared and a way forward is established that balances population size and housing growth with service provision.

It added that without such a pause there is a danger that land needed for vital infrastructure is lost to further housing development.

Brian Bath, the leader of the Neighbourhood Plan team, said: "This represents a 25 per cent increase in the number of houses within the village boundary.

"This figure does not take into account applications for major developments just outside the village boundary and in the neighbouring villages that depend on Holmes Chapel for vital services such as health, leisure and retail.

"Even so developers are continuing to explore even more large developments in what is left of the green space in or near Holmes Chapel."

Steve Ranger, chairman of the parish council, added: "Sustainable development in Holmes Chapel needs all new housing developments, to have a parallel development of vital services.

"The Neighbourhood Plan will incorporate the need for expanded educational and health services; the need for additional parking; and the need to preserve the Village environment.

"It will also look at ways of expanding business and employment opportunities. The village centre is already fully developed with little or no room for additional facilities. The Neighbourhood Plan will seek to earmark land to ensure the services and traffic flow needed by Holmes Chapel and the surrounding villages can develop in line with the increasing population."

The Neighbourhood Plan Team will be attending the Village Fair at the Victoria Club on Sunday, May 3, when residents who return a short questionnaire will have the opportunity to provide more opinions on what the village wants and possibly win a prize as well.

In June a comprehensive questionnaire will be sent to all village residents and businesses, informing them of what has been discovered and asking for opinions and support in all the key areas.