PEOPLE living close to a planned 250-home estate in Highworth say they are 'gobsmacked' by Swindon Borough Council's decision to approve the scheme.

Even the members of the council’s planning committee, which gave outline consent to the plan by Gladman Developments, did so with visible reluctance.

The fears of neighbours and councillors focused not just on the narrowness and danger presented on Shrivenham Road, but the impact on schools and GP’s surgeries.

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CRAIG TOWNSEND: "House prices are going up because of the demand for homes. There’s not enough homes to go around and even rental prices are going up. People need to stop moaning, let the council do what what it needs to do so there are enough homes to go around. Too many people are squeezed into rented commendation, never able to get off the starting line because they give all their money to somebody else."

MARK NONBODY: "Maybe think about another hospital? Why has this town that is the size of a city and still growing still got one hospital?"

MAVIS HALE: "Join the club. They don’t care, they don’t live there. They didn’t consider us when they built Abbey Meads and as we are the only left turn until a crossroads we are a rat run. Now with the roadworks as well we have lorries and all sorts. The speeders think they’re Lewis Hamilton.

JUSTIN HUNTER: "People who live in homes that were once fields, complain that they don't want homes built on fields."

EMMA BULL: "The rest of the town's infrastructure needs to grow with the amount of houses going up. Please please hurry up with the Aldi and the schools will need to expand too. I am all for this if the rest of the town develops too."

KIMBERLEY TRIBE: "We've had the same in Shrivenham and Watchfield. It's happening everywhere. You can't stop it."

ANDREW LITTLE: "Why are they gobsmacked? Never in doubt where SBC's planners are concerned. They never take into account what the local people think. Waste of time even trying to object. What a lot of rubbish: 'They gave the consent with visible reluctance and resignation'. If that was the case why did they give the permission then?"

VICTORIA PACKFORD: "Neighbours gobsmacked? What, the neighbours that bought their new build houses on the exact same type of land opposite? Shocker."

MATT WHITE: "This development is absolutely bonkers. The sewage farm that runs Highworth is already above max capacity and there's no way the road can cope, it hasn't changed since the 80s when I was at school down there and it was bad then."

JAMES WAGHORN: "Swindon needs jobs, not houses."

DAVID NOTLEY-JONES: "Well done SBC, listening to people's views seems not to count. I hope my council tax doesn't increase. I'd like to see how the local infrastructure copes, as well as the environment and pollution levels."

FREDERICK VAIL: "We need the infrastructure to cope with all the planned building in Highworth – another surgery and a dentist would help."

TRACY GALE: "They have done this to Blunsdon, without thought of schools, roads and GP surgeries. The B4029 in Blunsdon is just a rat run and the bypass built was rubbish. No one listens, it's just developers getting richer."

SUSAN BASSETT: "People need housing and this is the future, no more quiet places unless you are stinking rich unfortunately."

MARIA JULIE HARRISON-MOSS: "And which doctors surgery are all these people going to use? Shrivenham Road has traffic problems now at school times."

PAM PERRETT: "It would nice if we had council houses built."

BRIAN McCULLOCH: "Yes, great, build more homes. Obviously needed to keep up with population. But also build more schools and doctor surgeries to accommodate. Including recreation facilities, car parking and most likely now, a Highworth bypass for non-town traffic to use to stem the already crowded traffic on the few roads in and out of the town."