'Wholly unsafe': Traffic fears over 102-home plan for land opposite village school near Shrewsbury

The scheme, planned for the village of Ford, is the first put forward by Shropshire Homes' "community-focused" sister company SH Partnerships (SHP).

SHP said the project will be delivered in conjunction with Housing Plus Group and will be "designed to meet the diverse requirements of the local community".

If it goes ahead, the four-hectare site to the east of Butt Lane will provide 72 homes available for social, affordable or intermediate rent and 30 for affordable home ownership.

As part of the planning application, SHP stated that it would also provide a new extended parking area and a drop-off zone for Trinity C of E Primary School, which is next to the site.

But the plans have not been wholeheartedly welcomed by the community, with 36 residents lodging objections to the proposals during the first three weeks of the consultation.

As well as raising fears about the scale of the development and the impact on local services, residents have been urging Shropshire Council to consider their highway safety concerns.

Several objectors have shared photographs with the local authority, which reportedly show heavy traffic along Butt Lane and its junction with the busy A458.

One, Mr Johnson, wrote: "The proposed access to the development would be located on Butt Lane, directly opposite Trinity Primary School.

"This is already a well-known traffic pinch point and, in my view, is wholly unsafe for further development. Butt Lane is the main (and effectively only) access route into and out of the village.

"It is already heavily congested, particularly during school drop-off and pick-up times, when children and parents are regularly crossing the road. Outside of these times, traffic often backs up from the A458, causing delays and difficult manoeuvres.

"The addition of traffic from 102 new dwellings, together with construction vehicles, would significantly increase the risk to pedestrians, especially schoolchildren."

Another, Mrs Bailey wrote: "I have witnessed several accidents from my own house. The proposed development will bring a huge increase in traffic travelling in all directions at this crossroads."

A Mrs Price added: "The junction of Butt Lane to the A458 does not meet current highway standards and is already very congested.

"The access point for the proposed new development is directly opposite the school entrance, creating safety concerns for children, and would potentially send hundreds of new residents and dozens of extra cars onto road and pavement which is already below standard."

Consultation on the plans are open until December 26, with the full proposal available to view online on Shropshire Council's planning portal using reference number 25/04301/FUL.

• You can find out more about planning applications and planned roadworks where you live by visiting publicnoticeportal.uk