RESIDENTS are up in arms over housing plans they say will destroy a haven for wildlife and put more pressure on amenities already stretched to the limits.

The concerns come from Handforth residents opposed to Morris Homes (North) plans for 26 properties on land off Sagars Road, of which 13 would be affordable.

The homes would be mews, semi-detached and detached properties in a range of one to five bedrooms, and some one-bedroom apartments.

The site is near The Fairways, a major housing development being created by Anwyl Homes on land between Clay Lane and Sagars Road.

A report with the application to Cheshire East Council said: “The scheme proposes a wide choice of housing, and is attractive to new residents and influenced by extensive market research.

“The emphasis has been one to five-bed family housing, with some one-bed apartments which will be attractive to families and professional workers.

“The development proposes 50 per cent open market and 50 per cent affordable properties to create a balanced development.”

A resident from Meriton Road said information relating to the application was a rehash of a 2013 scheme with new dates, which meant it was at least seven years out of date.

They said: “It was rejected in 2013 as the area was in Green Belt and that could not be overlooked. It was also rejected on appeal. It is still in Green Belt.”

A resident from Valley Drive said the alternative to the scheme was the land remaining in its present state indefinitely with potential disruptive uses such as flytipping, travellers’ occupation or use by youngsters for inappropriate purposes.

A Sagars Road resident said: “We have put up with the ongoing building of The Fairways and the site traffic involved on Sagars Road for months.

“We shouldn’t be expected to go through this again with more building and disruption. Handforth doesn’t have the infrastructure to deal with all the extra people and cars belonging to the dwellings.”

A resident from Pickmere Road said it was ‘unbelievable’ the number of green spaces which had been built on in the area in the past few years.

They said: “My children attend the already full primary school, the doctors’ surgeries are full and I struggle to shop locally as I can never get a parking space.

“The roads and traffic are horrendous during rush-hour and beyond. The amenities in Handforth are already pushed to their limits.

“Affordable housing? You have got to be having a laugh! All the ‘affordable housing’ that has popped [up] in Handforth is not affordable for the people that need it most.”

An Elm Grove resident said: “I object to more development in Handforth destroying the rapidly dwindling green spaces we have all valued so much during the lockdown. This area was a haven for wildlife adjacent to the Dean Valley and woods where kingfishers fly down the river and buzzards soar overhead.”

“Access to this site will be as contentious and difficult as the other site across the road where 250 homes are being built.”

Comments on the scheme, 20/3562M, can be submitted on the Cheshire East planning portal, until September 24.