A community is fighting to keep their beloved woods after they were listed for auction by a developer.
Martlesham has come together in a fight to save part of Portal Woods, west of Suffolk Police Headquarters off Main Road, after it was listed for auction.
After hundreds of homeowners called for the woods to be saved, East Suffolk Council has acted to ensure its auction is postponed as they look to raise funds to purchase the land.
The section of the land was listed on Rightmove for £50,000, ahead of a public auction at Nottingham Racecourse on April 23.
However, the council managed to step in and postpone the sale of the land before the auction.
Martlesham councillor Mark Packard said: "East Suffolk Council acted swiftly to make sure Portal Woods in Martlesham were not sold at auction.
"The woods are used by large numbers of residents and at a recent parish council meeting over 100 residents made clear that they wanted the woods saved for the community.
"There is time now for funds to be raised by the parish council so that a possible agreement to purchase the woods can be made with the owner."
Martlesham Parish Council took to social media saying: "Following our successful nomination to list Portal Woodlands as an asset of community value, we can confirm that the land’s listing on the auction site has now been postponed."
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Listing the land as an asset of community value postpones the sale of the land, giving the council time to build a bid of their own.
The parish council is set to hold an 'extraordinary' meeting on Wednesday to discuss their next steps in bidding for the land.
Around 10 acres of the woods were up for sale, with scope for potential future development and a range of alternative uses.
The land is currently owned by developers Grainger PLC who were responsible for building large parts of Martlesham Heath.
Portal Woods has been looked after by the Portal Woodlands Conservation Group since 1999
The group has spent the last 27 years planting trees and hedges, conserving 2 bronze-age burial mounds, repairing Second World War structures, maintaining pathways, and creating wildlife habitats.
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