ANGRY residents grilled councillors at South Cerney Parish Council meeting last week over proposals to create a new pathway in the village.

Developer Redrow Homes is building 150 houses on the Mallards housing development in the village.

In order to improve access to facilities in the village for the new tenants, South Cerney Parish council is proposing to pave a bridleway that connects between Sudeley Drive and Ham Lane.

A gap in a hedge (pictured) on Sudeley Drive currently provides an access for people to use the bridleway and the council are suggesting the proposed path will be accessed through a ramp, which is disabled friendly.

At the meeting, on Wednesday July 8, nine Sudeley Drive residents who had been tipped off about the proposals criticised the council for not consulting with the residents on the street before drawing up plans.

They also expressed concerns that path will cause congestion on Sudeley Drive as it is very narrow and that people will dump rubbish on the pathway.

But the council maintains that details of the proposals, have been publicly available as they were recorded in minutes of parish council meetings, which are available on its website, and published in news publications which are distributed around the village.

Susan Skene, a Sudeley Drive resident, said at the meeting: “This is basically a done deal. What about the people that do not know about it.”

“You are creating a walkway just because of residents of a new development? Well that is disgusting. ”



Another Ria Newing, who lives next to access point to the cut through, said she had to fence off her garden, which backs out into the green area, due to people littering there.



And she said she believes the littering problem could be exasperated if the proposals for the path go ahead as even more people will use the bridleway.



She said: “We found bottles of vodka, cans of beer, condoms. Children came to my door and said do you know what is there?.”



Chairman of the council, Philip Nicholas explained that he had contacted some residents of Sudeley Drive about the proposals and that they had responded positively to them.



He said that the proposals had been on the cards for 18 months and he was genuinely surprised that all the residents on the street did not realise this.



He said: “The situation is that we have 150 houses in the process of being built and these people are part of our community.”



He explained he was looking at the consequences and how they affect the community.



“If we do nothing, all of the residents of this new development they will take the desire line (shortest route between an origin and destination) to get to the school and play group.”



Residents also suggested that the gap in the hedge should be fenced off and that the pathway was not needed because those living on the new development could take a short detour to the top of Ham Lane to reach the facilities.



After the discussion with residents, councillors agreed to publish the pathway proposals and to fence off the access to it,in the local media.



Cllr Nicholas said that council will be holding a consultation over the proposals with everyone in the village.



He said: “I have to say we will not just be consulting the residents of Sudeley Drive – it will represent the whole village.



“A wide democratic discussion is what is required.”