‘Leominster is not against people coming here to work but not at any price’ – Councillor June French.

A PLAN to to build “one of the biggest villages in Herefordshire” to house thousands of migrant workers has been refused by councillors.

Strawberry giant S&A Davies had planned to build 192 caravans and 313 metal “accommodation pods” at Arrow Fisheries, part of Brierley Court Farm, near Leominster. More than 2,000 migrant workers are currently living in a temporary campsite on another part of the farm.

But members of the northern area planning sub-committee were unhappy with the size of the development and asked for more communication between planning officers and the applicant.

Councillor Roger Hunt criticised the “massive development” and said the footpath leading from the site to Leominster would not be able to cope with that many people.

Leominster Councillor June French said the company had not demonstrated the need to drop “a campus in the countryside”.

“Leominster is not against people coming here to work but not at any price,” said Coun French.

Coun Keith Grumbley said it was clear S&A needed to provide decent accommodation for workers and that he would like to see planning officers working more closely with the company.

Coun Sebastian Bowen said: “Perhaps S&A should sit down with planning officers because this is an enormous development that would be one of the biggest villages in Herefordshire,” he said.

Speaking after the meeting, S&A’s director of welfare Jan-Willem Naerebout said: “While we are obviously disappointed with the committee’s decision, we feel that there were a lot of positives that we could take from the meeting.

“The councillors gave extremely constructive comments about our application and we are confident that the issues they raised can be overcome.

“We are determined to reflect the views of councillors, officers and the public in any applications we submit in the future. We will now go away, re-assess our plans and find an acceptable solution.

“We are committed to providing high-quality accommodation for our staff, without whose hard work we would not be able to grow produce for the British public.

“If we cannot provide suitable facilities, we cannot carry on with our business and continue to contribute to the local economy.

“I am confident that if we take on board the views of local people, we will be able to develop plans that are good for local communities, good for the environment, good for our staff and good for the business.” Meanwhile, S&A Davies is to hold a series of public exhibitions outlining plans to develop both the Marden and Brierley Court sites.

The company aims to reduce the overall number of polytunnels, identify the suitable positions for remaining tunnels and introduce a sustainable water system among other developments.

The first of the exhibitions, which will allow the public to meet members of the S&A team and give feedback on the plans, takes place next Wednesday and Thursday (May 21 and 22) in a marquee at Brierley Court Farm.

The next exhibition is at Marden Community Hall on May 28 and 29. All will take place between 3.30pm and 7.30pm.