Campaigners fight to save orchard

Eight homes could be built on the land at Bawdrip

Environmental campaigners say an orchard site should be saved because of its historic importance.

The field on the outskirts of Bawdrip, near Bridgwater, Somerset, has been the subject of a planning inquiry, which is due to be published soon.

The site has been an apple orchard since the 16th Century and is thought to be the oldest in the country.

A housing estate could be built on the land which is thought to have once been a Saxon village.

The orchard has already been earmarked for development in planning policies from Sedgemoor District Council.

Proposed planning guidelines recommend allowing up to eight homes for Greenfield Lane, leaving only a strip of the ancient orchard.

Donald Rayner, from the Council for the Protection of Rural England, thinks at least part of the site should be saved.

"We are confident the planners have enough information to show how bizarre development on this site would be.

"We should also remember that the original plan for this area was for eight houses, which could be contained away from the orchard."