A COUNCIL’S decision to take its fight against a 188-home development in Berkeley all the way to the High Court has been blasted as “a waste of money”.

However, Stroud District Council said the appeal is about preventing developers from making “speculative” applications for sites outside of its Local Plan, which undermine SDC’s authority over housing allocation in the area.

SDC will challenge a government planning inspector’s approval of developer Charles Church’s application to build a new estate on the western edge of Berkeley.

A High Court hearing is expected to take place in Bristol or Cardiff in the next few months as the council seeks to overturn the inspector’s decision, which itself came after Charles Church appealed SDC planning committee’s rejection of the application.

Despite being opposed by SDC, the development has been supported by Berkeley Town Council which favours the construction of more homes.

At its meeting on Monday, councillors vented their fury at SDC for launching a High Court challenge, describing the move as “immoral”.

Cllr Frazer Brown said the development had the backing of the town and was vital to tackling a shortage of housing.

“Berkeley Town Council has twice voted in favour of the development, the doctor’s surgery and school have said they support having more people in the town and I’ve been sent letters and messages from various people who are in favour of it,” he said. “Challenging this decision is a waste of our money and frankly I think it’s immoral.”

Town councillors agreed to write to SDC outlining its opposition to the High Court challenge.

Charles Church Severn Valley managing director Steve Roche said SDC’s appeal would “waste taxpayers’ money”, adding: “It is delaying the development of much-needed affordable housing in Stroud.”

But a SDC spokesman said that approving the Berkeley scheme undermined its Local Plan as the site was not earmarked for homes.

The spokesman said: “The decision of the government-appointed inspector has significant implications on the weight to be attached to the recently-adopted Local Plan and the strategy for managing housing growth within the district.

“The implications of this appeal decision are therefore not restricted to Berkeley and could harmfully impact on the wider district.

“The judicial review process does have costs associated with it and the council makes provision to meet these costs. However there is the potential for greater costs to be incurred if such decisions remain unchallenged, resulting in speculative applications and subsequent planning appeals on other sites.”