After celebrating in February when members of Forest Heath Council's planning committee confirmed their refusal of an updated plan for land off Oaks Drive, campaigners have now been informed that the developer behind the scheme could press ahead with the original plan for the site, approved back in 2005.

This is despite work having been halted in August last year when a belt of mature trees were illegally bulldozed.

As a result, the developer submitted a new application to which planning officers attached a number of conditions, including restrictions on work times and noise levels.

But campaigners claimed the 200ft-long factory would still tower over their bungalow homes in Vincent Close – a point backed up by councillors, who agreed that landscaping proposals submitted by the company would not safeguard the character of the area.

Christine Pearce, one of the campaigners, said: "This is a real kick in the teeth for us because we have letters saying the 2005 scheme was dead.

"That scheme relied on the mature trees providing a buffer for residents but they are no longer there because they were chopped down illegally."