Shropshire residents hit out at plans for penis-shaped estate

Campaigners have hit out at plans for a new housing estate in Telford, with some saying they are unsure what is most inappropriate – the proposal itself, or the fact it is shaped like a penis.

Council documents for the 250-home plan reveal a phallic shape, leaving locals wondering, they say, whether the design is deliberate.

Critics of the proposal suggest size really does matter, saying the estate would be too big and put a strain on local infrastructure.

Some have stated they are even thinking of a risque campaign that would label the project a “flop”. Meanwhile, Telford and Wrekin Council said responses to public consultation would be reviewed in due course.

The proposed development would form part of the Lawley West project, which the authority said was a key part of its plans to grow housing supply under the Telford Land Deal.

Outline planning permission is due in the autumn.

For some residents, though, that has stretched credulity.

One, who did not want to be named, said: “I can’t believe somebody didn’t look at that [design] and snigger, because we’ve all cottoned on.”

Another resident, Antony Iles, said the shape was “as absurd as the plans themselves”.

Others have labelled the design ridiculous, saying they were considering adding the shape to a campaign t-shirt under the judgment “flop”.

Alongside the more lighthearted approach, though, remain concerns about increased traffic and demand on local services.

The estate would include 635 private and 97 on-street car parking spaces, as well as a parking area close to the junction of Arleston Lane, Pepper Mill and Glendale to help ease congestion.

Mr Iles lives with his wife and two daughters on Yew Tree Moor, which overlooks the green space where the homes are planned.

“Because the top road of Pepper Mill is going to be very busy, people will use this as a rat run to get to this estate,” he told BBC Radio Shropshire.

“My girls do ride their bikes up and down this road. It isn’t a main road, it’s brick-cobbled road so it’s not designed to be a through road.”

Mr Iles also raised concerns about the impact on services such as doctors and dentists, saying: “We’ve got one doctors’ surgery, one dentist… I’ve been here 10 years and I can’t get into the dentist in Lawley.

“We’ve got a primary school on this side which is over-subscribed as it is, and they built a new primary school over the road but I know that’s now full.”

Sarah Hodgson, who lives on the same road, said that due to high demand for doctors’ appointments, people regularly flocked to the local pharmacy.

“The pharmacist is a minor celebrity, they’re queueing round the block sometimes,” she said.

“We’ve got families on the Lawley estate that for quite some time have been going to Shropshire, they’ve gone out-of-borough for school places.”

The scheme would consist of two, three and four-bedroom homes with 25% of those being classed as affordable.

A cycling and pedestrian route would be created on part of the northern section of Arleston Lane and existing woodland would be retained as part of a planned green corridor.