Anxious wait on homes plan

Villagers near Wolverhampton face more anxious months of waiting about controversial plans which would could see 42 acres of South Staffordshire's green belt wiped out by hundreds of homes.

Campaigners have been waiting since July on a final decision by government housing minister Yvette Cooper as to whether proposals to build 360 homes in Featherstone will go ahead.

And they were today dealt a further blow with the announcement that she will not be making a decision until at least February next year, when she has considered reports about two other massive housing development plans in the district.

Persimmon Homes' proposals for the development between Junction 1 of the M54 and Brookhouse Lane in the village caused outrage from residents and councillors.

It was thrown out by South Staffordshire planning bosses last year after protests from angry residents who joined forces to sign petitions and fight the plans. But a two-week public inquiry was launched following an appeal by Persimmon, which claimed the shortage of housing in the district was so critical it warranted the release of green belt land.

Dozens of protesters launched desperate campaigns to stop the application going ahead and packed into the public inquiry to make a last-ditch attempt at getting the development thrown out.

Residents in Featherstone are still waiting for another decision on a rejected housing scheme by Taylor Woodrow, which will effectively double the size of the village.