MAVERICK Stroud district councillors defied officer advice to reject a planning application for eight homes on a small island of land in Stonehouse.

Stroud District Council principal planning officer John Longmuir strongly urged councillors meeting yesterday to permit the revised Westbury Homes plans for Bristol Road, previously turned down in June.

He said: "I feel there has been a genuine attempt on their behalf and this is their bottom line. This is the best solution that could be brought before you." But after impassioned representations from two ward councillors, the development control committee voted down the plans.

Chris Brine (Lab, Stonehouse) said: "Again we have a developer playing the planning game and trying to wear this committee down. It's crazy that the system allows this to happen.

"There are very, very strong reasons to oppose this. We understand development will happen there but we believe eight properties is over-development."

Pointing to a glossy brochure sent to committee members by the developer, ward colleague Cllr Mattie Ross (Lab, Stonehouse), said: "We're at the mercy of a developer whose playing games with us and we, the people of Stonehouse, don't like these games very much."

Councillors complained the plans amounted to site over-development, obscured view of properties behind and bore no relation to housing already there, while adversely affecting the appearance of Bristol Road - a gateway into Stroud.

Paul Smith: "I think we should refuse it until they come up with some sort of development that is more sympathetic."

The application included four detached homes and a terrace of four, all three and four bedroom properties.