Back off our Beeches Bellway

Local residents are concerned by Bellway Homes felling trees on the old Rugby College site off Lower Hillmorton Road. The property development company did not notify local residents before it started work and has not responded to Rugby Borough Council's calls to discuss the planning conditions imposed on the site.

Residents have been in touch with local councillor Sue Roodhouse (Lib Dem, Eastlands) who said "I am not happy at the way Bellway Homes and the Council have gone about this. Local residents have been ignored and I am extremely concerned about the fate of the mature beech and oak trees on the site. Local residents and councillors should have been informed prior to work starting. Bellway should have followed their own guidance and held a meeting to discuss with residents how this sensitive site should be redeveloped. Trees take years to grow but can be chopped down in minutes. Rugby Borough Council should stop cozying up to major developers and get tough at enforcing planning conditions".

Bellway's annual report for 2014 said they believed in

"Behaving responsibly and operating a sustainable business that considers and addresses the social, economic and environmental issues that concern our stakeholders makes eminently good business sense. We remain committed to improving our environmental credentials and will continue to report progress annually".

Rugby residents may feel that they are falling short of these goals.

Last year Bellway made a profit of £246 million and its chief executive, Ted Ayres, had a salary package worth £1,450,000.