Councillors decided the Suffolk Arms site at Tetbury Hill should not be included as an area for development in Malmesbury, but there was disagreement on the future of Filands.

Both sites were under discussion as part of North Wiltshire District Council's Urban Capacity Study Review, which identifies areas of possible development at previously built on areas in Malmesbury and the rest of the council's catchment.

At a meeting held last week the council's area 1 committee decided unanimously that there should be no housing located at the Suffolk Arms Pub.

Owner Lord Suffolk, who closed the pub in February this year, has already lodged an appeal against a previous objection by district councillors to a ten house development on the site.

A further two applications for up to 19 houses submitted by developers Crest Nicholson were also refused by the council, a decision the company has appealed against.

The pub had been a valuable local amenity that should continue, councillors said in defence of the rejection. The effect the new development would have on neighbours to the site was also a concern.

This cross party agreement at the meeting did not extend to the expansion of housing at Filands, which could have up to 140 houses built on it, if given permission.

Filands is also a possible location for the new hospital proposed by Kennet and North Wiltshire Primary Care Trust.

Councillors Patrick Goldstone and Anne Davis opposed development, including the 3.9 hectare site in the study.

Coun Goldstone said: "I would grudgingly go for a smaller area of 2.5 hectares but the pressure these extra houses would create on the infrastructure of Malmesbury would be a concern."

The money raised from the Filands area, should housing be permitted, was to be used by Wiltshire County Council to fund a new £2 million building for Malmesbury Primary School and fund a £4.5 million PFI contribution to the comprehensive school's new building.

The committee voted to include Filands in the capacity plan.