Villagers have voiced worries over whether their home can deal with the largest housebuilding project it has seen in decades. In Cropwell Bishop 85 homes are currently being built off Church Street, with residents now questioning the impact of the properties as new homeowners move into the small village.
The homes, which a few residents have now moved into, sit between a sewage plant and the Cropwell Bishop School. A new access point to the school and a new roundabout on Church Street were included as part of the plans.
Jeremy Weinberg, 52, and Eleanor Weinberg, 44, who objected the building of the houses next door to their home on Church Street said they still had concerns despite the development turning out better than expected. Mr Weinberg, who works as a computer developer, said: "It is quite a lot for a small village and we were dead against it.
Read more: Life in the Nottinghamshire village which is a 'lovely place to live'
"We appreciate the need for houses, of course, but we didn't really want the houses there. And we wish there wasn't a new roundabout outside our house - what village has a roundabout?
"We used to look out onto open fields. Having said all that the general layout is quite nice, it has kept it fairly open."
Mrs Weinberg, who works as a orthotist, added: "It feels quite closed in. We have a few worries about being able to get off our drive as well when everyone has moved in.
"And the school here is already full. We used to have kids come here from Saxondale and Cropwell Butler but they will get pushed out, the houses don't just impact here."
Jimmy Mularkey, 87, who has lived in Cropwell Bishop for 40 years, said: "It is a good thing really I suppose. But when we moved to 40 years ago it was a nice little village and now houses are going up.
"It must be the most houses that have been built since I've lived here, 80 odd is a lot in a small place. They're building all over but so far there hasn't been that many put here.
"There would definitely be more traffic. The school is not getting any bigger either and there are not many shops - it used to just be farmer's field."
The vast 10-acre site was released from the greenbelt in 2020 so it could be sold to a housing developer in a deal worth more than £5m. The site, now owned by Bloor Homes, was previously included within Rushcliffe Borough Council's local development plan.
David Hall, 35, a dog walker who has lived in Cropwell Bishop all of his life, said: "I was born and bred here and houses do now come up a lot around here.
"Everyone wants to live in a little village don't they, houses get snapped up right away. The only concern would be over facilities but it is a tidy place for a new house.
"It is the most house building I have seen. Shops and the doctors is only small - plus the Co-op gets busy as it is."
In a planning document Bloor Homes, who are building the new homes, said: "The character of the scheme as set out in the DAS [planning document] has evolved directly from an assessment of the site and its context. This has considered the existing settlement character, including building arrangements, materials and detailing and boundary treatments.
"Existing landscape features will be retained and enhanced where possible. The scheme looks to reinforce that character and sense of sense of local vernacular by using local character features and differing materials on visually prominent plots."
