Today, Wednesday 29 October 2025, the Action Group and the Five Parishes Group presented their closing statements to the Highsted Park Planning Inquiry.
The closing statement from the Teynham and Highsted Community Action Group and the Five Parishes Group urges the Inspector and Secretary of State to refuse permission for the proposed Highsted Park developments. The Groups argue that the 8,400-home scheme would cause irreversible harm to the countryside, heritage assets, and local infrastructure. They cite concerns about viability, transport, landscape, water, and ecology, describing the proposal as urban sprawl unsuited to rural Kent. The submission concludes that the scheme is undeliverable, undermines the local planning process, threatens heritage sites, and would permanently destroy the area’s natural and historic character.