CAMPAIGNERS have welcomed a move to refuse planning permission for a five-house development on land on the edge of Dursley described as the town’s “hidden jewel”.

Previous proposals for the site, off Hardings Drive, have drawn stiff resistance from nearby residents as well as action group Defend Dursley’s Green Escarpment (DDGE), which was formed in 2013 to fight initial plans for 69 homes on the land – which is part of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and outside of the town’s designated settlement boundary.

Despite being scaled back, a 27-home application was refused by Stroud District Council in November 2015.

The latest attempt to secure permission to develop the site was submitted at the end of last year and drew more than 150 formal objections.

Earlier this week, the council’s planning department turned down the proposal, viewing it as being contrary to its key planning document – the Local Plan.

In making a decision, planning officer John Chaplin said that no justification had been put forward for developing land in an AONB, that it would only provide “limited benefits” and that he still had concerns about its setting.

The refusal was welcomed by DDGE member Phil Maynard who said that protecting the town’s green spaces for future generations was “most important”.

“I’m glad that the council has decided to refuse the application,” he said.

“It sets a very important precedent to protect these buffer areas that we see in numerous places on the edge of the Cotswolds.

“We have a hidden jewel here – the town’s backdrop – and it needs to be protected.”

As well as about 150 comments of objection, the proposal also received opposition from Dursley Town Council, which deemed the plans to be unsustainable, and also from councillors.

Stroud District Council’s refusal can be appealed within the next six months.