New homes development causes outrage with villagers

Thurston is set to have a further 210 homes built on the outskirts of the village.

The application has been put forward by Bloor Homes and Sir George Agnew who are seeking outline planning permission for the development on land at Beyton Road.

It comes as five other planning applications in the village totalling more than 800 homes have already won approval, while a public consultation on another proposed 210-home development east of Ixworth Road was launched by land promoter Gladman Developments in March.

But the latest development has prompted a host of complaints by residents on the Next Door website with many of them calling for highway improvements and comments made to Mid Suffolk District Council objecting to the plans.

Jonathan Masters said: “Enough is enough. This is in addition to the planning applications from Hopkins, Linden, Persimmon, Bovis, Gladman, Laurence Homes and the Granary. This must already be over 1,000 dwellings. Ridiculous. Although the number of objectors makes no difference it would send a big signal to Mid Suffolk District Council that Thurston has had enough. Please send your comments to them.”

Steven Fordham asked: “How do we stop this? I don’t know. The infrastructure, road network and services are all going to suffer big time pre, during and post construction, but this is going to happen all over the country whilst central government are setting house building targets. Who are going to buy all these properties and how? I just cannot see how all new buyers will fund. There is only going to be so much help to buy.”

Tracey Hall-Roberts, said: “My sense is that we need to upgrade the roads before any work starts. We need three roundabouts. One each at Fishwick Corner, Pokeriage Corner and at the top of Sandpit Lane where it meets Norton Road. It is a terrible junction and with the blind rise from Norton towards Thurston … has too much speeding traffic on it … and then potentially another will be needed with a lot of other infrastructure, like an underpass to safely allow people to cross to the site of the new primary school. Unless this is done the village will be gridlock for the entire time of the construction.”

Steph Hubbard, said: “With all this building I do wish they up the services in the villages to cope with the number of people moving in, Thurston could really do with a doctors’ surgery to take the pressure off Ixworth and Woolpit, the roads can’t cope with the amount of traffic on them now so can you imagine the state they will be in in like five plus years?”

Peter Harris said he feels as if he is living in a prison with a “tall metal fence placed directly against my boundary.” He added: “I don’t think these people have any idea how much disruption this size of development will cause.”

Damian Pine said that the pedestrian crossing on Station Hill needs to be upgraded to a traffic light operated system while Michael and Irene Rhodes, who own The Lodge and Thurston Place, said they were happy to help “because we too are very unhappy about the Bloor Homes suggestion.”

Meanwhile, Drinkstone resident Jean Bowen, said: “I really feel sorry for Thurston, it will soon be a satellite for Bury.”

Gary Linares, from Norton, added: “It is just crazy to build all these new homes without road and junction improvements. Sadly, MSDC do not know the meaning of this outside of towns.”

And fellow villager Andy Mason, who was a volunteer doctor for the Suffolk Accident Rescue Service (SARS) charity for 40 years, said: “During my time with SARS I attended very many incidents in Thurston and there can be few people with more personal experience of the various accident blackspots on Thurston’s roads. I have responded to multiple incidents at the Fly crossroads, Pokeriage Corner crossroads and, in particular, the Fishwick Corner crossroads which I have long regarded as being highly dangerous … and, until a staggered junction or roundabout is constructed at Fishwick Corner there is a fatal accident waiting to happen here. My prediction is that it will involve a cyclist or motorcyclist travelling on Mount Road being hit by a motorist on the Thurston to Rougham road who accidentally fails to stop at this junction. And, the increase in traffic brought about by the frenzy of building activity in the village can only make such an event increasingly likely.”