DEVELOPERS are "determined to turn Bury into a concrete jungle".

That is the claim of residents in the town who this week won the first round of their fight to protect one of the borough's last urban wildlife havens.

Builders Stately Developments have vowed to appeal against a decision by Bury's planning control sub-committee to reject proposals for 16 new homes on land behind Newington Drive.

The scheme involved draining a wildlife-rich lodge and demolishing two houses to allow access to the site.

Residents and councillors strongly objected to the proposals.

Councillor Roy Walker, who was against the scheme, said: "Stately Homes's track record on building on established wildlife havens has been poor. We must not let them destroy a lodge that is wildlife rich and irreplaceable." Dr Barry Brown, fellow objector and Newington Drive resident, believes housing development schemes off Bolton Road, Spen Moor and other neighbouring areas will put extra pressure on a small number of schools whose populations are already near breaking point.

He said: "More homes mean a bigger influx of children to the area and as a consequence bigger problems in accommodating them in our schools.

"Developers are only concerned with turning green, open land into a concrete jungle for nothing more than profit."

Mr Philip Rothwell, agent for Stately Homes, confirmed the company would appeal against Bury Council's rejection of the scheme at a public inquiry.

He said: "We have commissioned an ecological survey of the pond and, although it means a lot to residents, it is of no real importance.

"We will take our fight to develop this land to a public inquiry."

Planning control sub-committee members voted unanimously to block the development proposals which they said would lead to the destruction of an "established ecological feature, an aquatic habitat and wildlife refuge in an urban area".

In rejecting the scheme, Councillor Warren Flood said: "Accepting this proposal would be a death sentence for the lodge."

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