A PLAN to recreate a village feel to Mucking through the building of nine new homes has been rejected by planning officers at Thurrock Council.

The scheme was for nine homes in three blocks of new buildings, a detached three bay car port, new crossover and associated parking located at Wharf Road.

No residents objected to the scheme (and some welcomed it as revitalising the area) and councillors were not involved in the decision but officers have given weight to concerns by Essex Council Council's heritage advisor that the development would have a detrimental impact upon the rural and isolated setting of the locality, causing harm to nearby Grade II-listed The Rectory, the Church of St John the Baptist, the former School House, Hall Farm Cottage and Hall Farm.

Leigh Nicholson, the council's assistant director of planning, transport and public protection told the applicants Barclay St James Planning the proposed development constitutes an inappropriate development in the green belt and would be harmful to its openness. He added there are no 'very special circumstances' which would clearly outweigh the harm to the green belt.

The applicants had argued that recent commercial developments in nearby building had revitalised the area and added: "Mucking is of Anglo-Saxon origin and indicates human settlement for more than a millennium and also indicates settlement by Germanic invaders which occurred at an early date.

"In the Victorian times Mucking was a flourishing village with small shops, a large rectory, and the medieval church of St John the Baptist. This has brought a small community back to the town which was pretty much derelict for the past two decades."