A HORSFORTH councillor is vowing to keep up her fight against plans to build on local green-belt sites.

Cllr Dawn Collins (Con, Horsforth) made the comments following well-attended public meetings at St Margaret’s Church and Greenacre Hall, where she sought residents’ views.

The site allocations plan being drawn up by Leeds City Council, that will dictate the location and scale of new housing up until 2028, would allow development to take place on ten Greenbelt sites in the area.

Coun Collins is especially concerned about proposals for 717 homes on the Strawberry Picking Fields, a 127-homes scheme for New York Lane, and land behind Layton Lane – which could get 93 homes.

She said: “In total the council is planning to build on ten green-belt sites in Horsforth ward, which includes large parts of Rawdon, with some 1,386 new homes proposed.

“Horsforth and Rawdon are both unique settlements with their own historic boundaries and in my view these proposals will merge the two.

“The last thing I want to see is Horsforth and Rawdon becoming part of an urban sprawl. New homes have to be built but surely not at the expense of the Greenbelt.

“The largest of the sites is the popular Strawberry Picking Fields and all the fields between them and Rawdon Crematorium, just off the A65.

“Some 717 houses are proposed for this site which, added to the Clariant site already under development nearby, could have real implications for key local services such as roads, schools, dentists and doctors.

“I am determined to fight against these plans and the unjustifiable housing target of 70,000 Leeds has set.

“I hope the council sees sense and thinks again about these potentially damaging proposals.”

Last week Leeds City Council announced it would be reviewing the ‘assumptions’ behind its local development framework, which may see its housing target reduced.

This followed the release of an Office for National Statistics projection which estimated Leeds would only need 44,500 new homes up to 2028.