THE owners of land at Quakers Walk in Devizes say they will consult with all neighbours and interested parties before a planning application for up to 230 homes is submitted to Kennet District Council.

Rumours had been rife in the town that the charity, the Society of Merchant Venturers, the heirs of Lord Roundway, were about to submit plans for the scheme despite many concerns about access, traffic and the close proximity to the helicopter pad at Wiltshire police headquarters.

Residents feared the plan would be submitted after planning inspector Robin Muers approved the inclusion of 230 homes on agricultural land between the police headquarters and Quakers Walk in the Local Plan in April last year.

But James Bainbridge, head of planning and development at the Merchant Venturers' agents, Carter Jonas, said: "I don't know where the rumour came from but we are at a very early stage in the development.

"The next stage is to prepare a development brief for the site and for that we want not only to consult with the councils involved, but also members of the public."

The agents are planning an exhibition in Devizes, probably in January, to show draft plans for the scheme and get feedback from all interested parties and townspeople.

Feedback from that will be incorporated into a development brief that will be the basis for negotiations between the Merchant Venturers and Kennet District Council.

Mr Bainbridge said: "It is only at that point that we would be in a position to put in an outline planning permission and we are looking to do that by March next year."

No developer has been approached about the site as yet and Mr Bainbridge said it was unlikely that this would happen until planning permission had been granted.

The promise of consultation, however, did not make the prospect of the new housing scheme any more acceptable to its critics.

Geoff Brewer, one of Roundway's two district councillors, said: "I don't want to see it happen at all. Every bit of green in Devizes should be kept green. The necessary infrastructure for a development that big is not there and is not likely to be there.

"The state of London Road is fine for those who sit in offices and make decisions about it, but not for the motorists who have to sit in traffic jams every morning and evening.

"There is not the employment to support this amount of housing. Inevitably, it will be a dormitory for people who work in other towns.

"What we need is some joined-up thinking. There is no overall plan for the town. It has all been piecemeal."

Viv Alexander, chairman of Roundway Parish Council, said that his councillors had received no recent information. He said: "We're completely in the dark. We have a number of concerns about building on this land, particularly about them selling houses with the helicopter operating right above them.

"The traffic on London Road continues to be a problem, as well. Where is the access to the site to be? I can see no acceptable option on that so far."

It is believed the Merchant Venturers were successful in buying a strip of land in nearby Roundway Park, which would be the emergency access to the Quakers Walk site. They also acquired 415ft of amenity land in Roundway Park as part of the same lot in the auction held on September 30.