RESIDENTS in Oldswinford were this week cautiously celebrating after a controversial plan to create 15 extra car parking spaces and a new access route into an Oldswinford sports fields was unanimously rejected.

The proposal, submitted by the trustees of King Edward VI College in Stourbridge, to create a second entrance, access road and additional parking spaces at The Green Fields off the Oakleigh Road side of the site was turned down by members of Dudley's planning committee on Monday.

People living in nearby Oakleigh Road, Love Lane and Cobham Road, who formed an action group to fight the plans, say they are "very pleased" to have seen off the scheme which had been recommended for approval by Dudley planners.

Nearly 500 residents signed a petition objecting to the development which they feared would generate further traffic and parking problems near a dangerous bend as well as affecting wildlife and people's privacy.

The trustees said the plan had been drawn up to try and help with traffic problems in the Swinford Road area which is typically awash with cars parked on the street and pavement when sports matches are played.

But after a visit to the site - which is hired out to Stourbridge Football Club - councillors on the development control committee unanimously refused the proposal.

Norton councillors Heather Rogers and Colin Elcock, who have been representing the concerned residents, breathed a sigh of relief after the decision, with Cllr Rogers saying: "Common sense has prevailed."

Richard Deakin, of the Oakleigh Road, Love Lane, Cobham Road Action Committee, added: "The committee and residents surrounding the sports field are obviously very pleased the application has been refused. We would like to now consult with the trustees of the college to find a solution to the issue of parking in Swinford Road and preserve the field for the long term as a sports facility which the area is very short of."

Action group member Bob Zglinski said the planning committee's refusal of the scheme was a "great result" and added: "We now hope the college will seriously consider the proposal put forward by locals which would provide over 90 spaces on the field and alleviate the misery of the residents of Swinford Road when the field is in use."

Residents, however, have been left wondering whether the trustees will appeal and take the matter to the Planning Inspectorate.

King Edward VI College principal Remley Mann said: "The matter will now be considered by the trustees’ professional advisors."