Abbeylands homes plans rejected

Plans to build 10 homes in the orchard of a historic house in Staffordshire have been thrown out by council chiefs.

Residents lodged 43 separate objections to the scheme for Abbeylands in Weston near Stafford fearing the development would ruin the views of the Victorian house, which dates back to 1858.

It was also feared the development would increase traffic using the busy A518 through the village.

Stafford Borough Council's planning committee had been recommended to approve the scheme but turned it down.

The plans would have seen a mixture of two and three-bedroom homes built in an L-shape.