TRAFFIC issues, an already ‘under pressure’ GP surgery and the loss of the remains of a Roman settlement have all been raised by residents objecting to plans for 283 houses in an Oxfordshire village.

Consultation finished on Tuesday on an application to Vale of White Horse District Council for land off Kennington Road in Kennington, which will also include a play area, public open space and a retail unit.

It follows the approval of a 240-house estate in nearby Radley on land also off Kennington Road, by the council last month.

More than 50 residents have commented on the Kennington proposal, with many stating local roads would become a 'rat run' and the additional traffic wpoould impact an already busy A34.

Radley Parish Council has officially objected to the 11-hectare development accusing developer Redrow Homes of acting in a 'cavalier' and 'non-transparent' manner. Neighbouring authority Kennington Parish Council, meanwhile, stated it would leave the decision for the Vale to determine, though also highlighted issues with an ‘inadequate’ sewage network that it said needed to be resolved before the development began.

Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG) has also said it is worried about how local surgeries would cope with an estimated 700 new patients. In its official comment, OCCG said Kennington Health Centre, which forms part of the Botley Medical Practice, was already ‘under pressure’ and finding it difficult to keep pace with ‘rising demands’, adding: “We clearly seek to avoid this position becoming exacerbated.”

It is asking for £278,532 from the developer to these meet additional needs.

Concern over the impact on historic remains found at the site has also been raised. A trial excavation in 2015 revealed hundreds of fragments of pottery and other items from a Roman settlement at the site in the first century AD.

An archaeological report submitted by the developer, however, said a ‘comprehensive archaeological evaluation’ of the Kennington site had enabled them to ‘clearly define’ where the proposed development would impact upon buried archaeological remains and that ‘suitable mitigation’ would be put in place.

A decision on the application is expected by the end of the month.