Rural Kent on the frontline of PM’s housebuilding battle

If you have the stomach for it, you can climb the narrow crumbling stone spiral staircase to reach the roof of St Nicholas’ Church in Rodmersham.

From the top of the Norman church you get a panoramic view of north Kent. Directly below there is an apple orchard, beyond that fields of arable farmland with the occasional house, and in the distance the town of Sittingbourne, silhouettes of Thames Estuary heavy industry visible against the sky.

This is the land where Quinn Estates developers want to build 8,400 homes, new schools and a new road.

“It’s an absolutely colossal development, it will have a devastating impact on this area,” says Monique Bonney.

She grew up in Rodmersham and after living and working across the world returned to the village. She got married in St Nicholas’ Church and has been an independent councillor for the area for 18 years.

She is not just concerned about the size of the new development – Rodmersham is currently made up of 275 homes – but how much will be affordable.

Only 760 homes, she says – about 9% of the proposed development. The developers say the level of affordable housing will be decided at a future inquiry.

There is also the question of the infrastructure. Bonney says the area has the worst GP-to-patient ratio in the country.

New medical facilities are include in the development proposal, but Bonney is sceptical this will happen.

“I think my experience of 18 years of being an independent parish councillor and a district councillor has demonstrated that the system has utterly failed and government is absolutely incompetent for trying to deliver infrastructure services to local people.”

Chris Mitchell, landlord of the local Fruiterers Arms pub, is similarly opposed: “It will no longer be a village, it will just be another part of a commute to London.”