Building 50 new homes on the western edge of Wells would ruin valuable farmland and "destroy" the identity of a nearby village, according to local residents.

Land Allocation Ltd. has applied to build the homes on the northern side of Wookey Hole Road in Wells, directly opposite the existing Priory Fields housing estate.

Numerous local residents have already lodged objections to the plans, claiming it will put further pressure on Wells' local services and road network and lead to a merger with the village of Wookey Hole.

Mendip District Council is expected to make a decision on the new proposals by early-summer.

This is the second attempt by the York-based developer to build on Wookey Hole Road, after permission for 148 homes was roundly refused by the council in May 2020 – plans which were roundly unpopular and which drew the ire of local MP James Heappey.

These newest proposals, for 50 homes, will see a smaller part of the original land developed, with 20 of the new homes being affordable – higher than the council's 30 per cent target for any new development of ten homes or more.

But Dr Alison Morgan, who lives near the site, said the development would still have an unacceptable impact on the character of the local area – including the nearby Mendip Hills area of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).

She said: "This is on greenfield land, outside the designated development areas for Wells and sits right on the boundary of the Mendip Hills AONB.

"Wells is seeing a huge number of housing estates being built on green field sites on its periphery. There are few job opportunities here, and pressure on community services is high; the small city centre is becoming permanently overcrowded.

"Wells does not have the capacity to sustain a population increasing at the current rate – and nor is there a demand for this quantity of houses from local people.

"At present Wells is separated from the village of Wookey Hole by green fields. One of the reasons for the rejection of the previous application was that the proposed development would annihilate the intervening agricultural land and destroy the identity of the village."

The site is not allocated for development either in the council's Local Plan Part I (which included the land south of Wookey Hole Road) or the Local Plan Part II, which identified further sites at the city's western edge near the A371 Portway and the B3139 Elm Close.

Local resident Angela Cox said Wookey Hole Road and the surrounding roads were not equipped to deal with any further increase in traffic.

She said: "Building 50 more houses will mean at least 100 more journeys along the road each day. The traffic already cause an increase in noise levels to the houses along the road.

"The footpath along Wookey Hole Road is narrow only two feet wide on places and young mothers with pushchairs and people in mobility scooters have to go out into the road. This is already an accident waiting to happen before building any more houses.

"Wells' doctors are at capacity and are unable to see patients in a timely manner without increasing the population in Wells.

"If these houses are built it will set a benchmark for the rest of the houses that were refused before to be built."

Steve Gladwell added: "Many residents of Priory Fields moved into this area because of the view on this side of Wookey Hole Road.

"We were informed at the time of moving that this was not a site where residential building was planned.

"In addition to this, building houses on this area would destroy the view enjoyed by walkers of the West Mendip Way."

In addition to the Priory Fields development (comprising 203 homes), there have been numerous attempts to build new homes on Wells' western edge – some more successful than others.

Gladman Developments was refused permission to build 90 homes west of Priory Fields (near St. Cuthbert's Mill) in September 2020, in an area designed as a "green gap" within the Local Plan.

The same developer, however, was granted permission to build 100 homes on the B3139 in February 2020 following a "long and detailed debate" – shortly after separate proposals for 220 homes on the A371 Portway were given the go-ahead despite concerns about the "dull" designs of the houses.

Gleeson Strategic Land was refused permission for 68 houses between Elm Close and the Wells Touring Park just before Christmas 2020, with the council ruling it would negatively impact "the openness of the wider setting of Wells".

The council is expected to make a decision on plans by the beginning of summer.