CHILDREN are at risk of being killed on a busy Blakedown road if plans to build new homes in the village are given the go-ahead, it has been claimed.

Barratt West Midlands wants to build 42 new homes in Belbroughton Road but some residents fear it could make the area unsafe by increasing traffic congestion.

A total of 26 letters have been submitted to Wyre Forest District Council objecting to the plans and only one letter of support.

One concerned resident said: “It is only a matter of time before one of the fast cars on Belbroughton Road or lorries on the Birmingham Road kills a child. Adding more traffic – throughout construction stage and thereafter – will only increase this risk.”

Another added: “Heavy lorries will travel through Belbroughton and the full length of Belbroughton Road during the construction phase to avoid travelling through Hagley, making these already fast and busy roads more unsafe.”

The letters also raised concerns about planning policy, the type of housing, design and layout and the impact it would have on Blakedown Primary School.

Despite the concerns, the plans have been recommended for delegated approval.

Julia Mellor, district council planning case officer, explained the design of the properties and the proposed layout of the site were “appropriate”, adding the development “would have no significant impact upon the amenity currently enjoyed by neighbours”.

Barratt wants to build the seven bungalows, 33 houses and two flats, together with parking, at the former Blakedown Nurseries site, which has been empty for seven years. Nineteen of the homes would be affordable but one of the objecting residents said there was “absolutely no need for 'affordable' housing”

in the area.

Churchill and Blakedown Parish Council has also objected to the plans as it claims the scheme does not meet acceptable affordable housing requirements.

It added the “density of the development of the site is too great for the village”

and the “mix of the house types is unsatisfactory”.

It requested that a more up-to-date Housing Needs Survey is undertaken, which would be completed by next month.

The district council’s planning committee is set to discuss the plans at its meeting tomorrow.