VILLAGERS have today promised a 'sustained campaign' in protest against hundreds of homes planned for the Shotley peninsula. More than 300 homes are planned at the HMS Ganges site and permission has already been granted to build 150 homes at the Shotley marina.

VILLAGERS have today promised a 'sustained campaign' in protest against hundreds of homes planned for the Shotley peninsula.

More than 300 homes are planned at the HMS Ganges site and permission has already been granted to build 150 homes at the Shotley marina.

Woolverstone villagers have begun a protest that has so far seen scarecrows in their gardens, a petition, and a poster campaign.

Parish councillor Simon Ross-Pearce said: "This week we will be having a 'say no to the 60 per cent traffic increase' poster campaign.

"Next week we will focus on the village as a conservation area.

"We are planning a sustained campaign and we will carry on as it takes to get our message across."

Woolverstone residents are so concerned that the controversial development of the site will increase traffic to such a degree they have carried out their own survey of vehicle movements.

Mr Ross-Pearce said: "We have calculated there will be just over 9,000 vehicle movements through our village, an increase of just under 60 per cent if the development goes ahead."

Mr Ross-Pearce said Woolverstone, which has 200 residents, will bear the brunt of the increases destroying the quality of life for villagers.

He said: "This will have a significant impact on the village is the development goes ahead. They want to build 325 on the HMS Ganges site and 150 homes at the Shotley marina site.

"That's a total of 475 homes. We think that is too many."

The 46-year-old, who lives on the B1456, said he was worried already for the safety of children getting on and off the school bus in the village.

He said: "Woolverstone is a conservation area protected by an act of parliament and Babergh District Council has a duty to protect it.

"The traffic will further divide the village. It is quite a hazardous road already at times of peak traffic flow.

"We believe the increase in traffic will significantly harm the conservation area."

Mr Ross-Pearce said he believed the road was incorrectly classified and the numbers of vehicles allowed to use the road was already artificially high.

The findings of the villager's survey will be presented to Babergh District Council representatives at a public meeting to be held at Holbrook High School in Ipswich at 7pm on October 19.

There will also be a public meeting with the area's MP Tim Yeo at 4pm on Saturday October 16 at Berners' Hall in Woolverstone.