Neighbours fuming as new £300m eco-village dubbed 'Hellborne' approved

In the stretch of land between Fareham and Knowle, 6,000 of the most eco-friendly UK properties ever built will be constructed.

The Welborne project, which has been described as an “English garden village”, has been in development for 17 years.

The major development will essentially create a town between Southampton and Portsmouth, planners have said.

However, residents in both villages have raised concerns that the project will destroy green spaces around their homes.

Funding had already been secured to build 1,160 homes, however, Fareham Borough Council now says it is “all systems go” after they received extra money to fund the full 6,000 properties.

The project developer agreed to underwrite 95 per cent of the costs behind the £100 upgrades to Junction 10 of the M27 - with the improvements now allowing the scheme to go ahead.

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Announcing the plans, Fareham Borough Council said: “Fareham borough council is delighted to confirm that it’s ‘all systems go’ for Welborne Garden Village, following confirmation that funding to deliver critical infrastructure is now in place.

“The recent announcement confirming the M27 Junction 10 improvements means all 6,000 new homes at Welborne can be built.”

Leader of Fareham Borough Council, Councillor Simon Martin, said: “This is terrific news for the Borough. Fareham Borough Council is set housing targets by Government, so it is really important for us to deliver the number of homes set out in the Council’s Local Plans.

"Without the motorway improvements, Welborne would only be able to bring forward 1160 new homes and the Council would need to find space for the additional 4840 homes elsewhere in the Borough."

Residents have claimed that thirty acres of trees and hedges will need to be removed to make space for the 6,000 houses.

Over the years, many objections have been raised but locals have said they have been ignored by developers who are “destroying” the green space.

They also worry that the influx of people will put a burden on local service. Wickham Surgery has fears there could be a “worrying situation” as they prepare to take on residents from the eco-homes as patients.

In a statement, the surgery urged the Hampshire and Isle of Wight integrated care board to expand the NHS boundary to prevent “further endangering” the practice.

Loraine Rappe, who chairs the Knowle Residents' Association, previously said: “It is definitely going ahead, there's no stopping it.

“All we are saying is that it is a shame that they have started destroying what was already there, unnecessarily.”

The first Welborne homes are expected to be delivered by the end of the year.