The destruction of one of Britain's ancient woodlands, a sweet-chestnut coppice that has been part of the Kent landscape for more than 400 years, is at the centre of a political and legal scrap involving claims of ministerial foul language and bullying.

Last week Oaken Wood in the village of Barming, on the outskirts of Maidstone, was condemned to be turned into a quarry to supply Kentish ragstone to a company called Gallagher Aggregates.

The last hope for the 80 acres of woodland – an attempt by campaigners to force a judicial review of a decision made by the communities secretary, Eric Pickles, to allow development – was thrown out by Judge Mark Ockelton in a 10-minute hearing. Campaigners fear that those 10 minutes could be a landmark point for another 300 ancient woods, covering nearly 9,000 hectares, that the Woodland Trust has said are under threat from the government's new permissive planning policy, which prioritises economic gains. However, it was also the latest twist in what campaigners say has been an example of business and government trampling on the fears of residents. It is a model that they are concerned could be replicated across the country.

In the five years since the quarry was first considered, campaigners say that the feelings of the 6,000 people who have emailed Pickles have never been respected, despite a lengthy public inquiry and some stays of execution.

Jasper Gerard, the Liberal Democrat prospective parliamentary candidate for Maidstone and the Weald, described an alleged outburst by Pickles outside a local Indian restaurant two weeks ago as among the many upsetting developments. Pickles had been due to attend a champagne reception at the Mughal Dynasty in Maidstone to raise funds for the local MP, Helen Grant, when the incident happened. Gerard, a former journalist at the Observer and Sunday Times and one of the leaders of the protest, said: "There were about 60 of us and I invited Pickles to come and see Oaken Wood, which he dismissed out of hand. He said it had all been decided by a junior official. Then one protesters said, 'shame on you'.

"Pickles responded: 'You're a little shit.' I heard it clearly, so did others."

A source close to Pickles categorically denies the words were used. "There was a forthright exchange of views, that's fair to say. But he didn't swear at all," she said. A statement from Pickles said: "This is simply not true and has no basis in fact." But the nastiness did not end there, the Royal Courts of Justice heard on Thursday.

The attempt by Gallagher Aggregates to begin digging the quarry has been held up since the end of August by a legal claim from a local campaigner, Sarah Cooper, in which she said the secretary of state had ignored an EU directive on the conservation of birds and had failed to make available the "mathematical calculations" behind Pickles's conclusion that the economic benefits overrode the need to protect the woodland.

In a terminal blow to campaigners, earlier this month Gallagher Aggregates sent Cooper paperwork showing that it was now applying to be a defendant in the case as well as Pickles and Kent County Council – and Cooper would be liable to pay the company's legal costs if the case were lost. Cooper felt forced to withdraw. "I withdrew the appeal because I received a draft order from Bircham Dyson Bell LLP [representing Gallagher] stating that Gallaghers would apply for costs," Cooper told the Observer. "I felt I had no choice as it is a risk that I simply cannot afford to take."

Last Thursday, Alan Meekings, a fellow campaigner, told Judge Ockelton that Cooper had been "essentially bullied". He asked the court to give campaigners more time to launch a separate claim. Meekings was told by the judge that the time for appeals was over and that he was making very serious allegations "without any evidence".

On the court steps, the chief executive of Gallagher, Nick Yandle, denied there had been any bullying, and said the quarry was crucial to maintain his business and jobs and insisted that he had never had any intention of pursuing costs against Cooper. Whatever the truth, Oaken Wood's days are numbered, and campaigners say that hope for the 300 other woodlands on the developers' hit list has dimmed a little.