Persimmon Homes are seeking planning permission to build on the green land field on Common Lane, Knottingley. We, the people of Knottingley, object to these proposals due to the damaging impact they will have on the community, resources and local wildlife. 

I've seen plentiful wildlife in this field (including Fantastic Mr Fox as I named him), the beauty of nature as the seasons change and people using it for leisure/dog walking and these proposals plan to turn it into a building estate which will put a further strain on what little facilities we still have. After we've lost our sports centre recently, now our walking areas are under threat with only a meager public right of way being kept. These plans will have a negative impact on the mental health of the community who use the area for walks and to keep active. It has been proven that nature sights and sounds have a benefit to mental health and stress relief. These plans hope to take away so much and give nothing. 

I work from home in a room overlooking that field and dread to think what the noise and disruption will be like if they go ahead. Other community members have raised the point of the additional strain this will have on the local services such as the doctors and schools which residents are already struggling to get into.

Make no mistake, these plans are a threat to our connection with the natural environment. They plan to encroach on green spaces when there is plenty of brown sites and derelict homes that could be repurposed, but they don't want to because it's not as profitable. Once again corporate greed seeks to come at a huge cost to the environment. There's reports of great crested newts in the field, a protected species which will also be under threat by these plans.

As a community we fought against building proposals previously. We need to do that again. Let's make our stand and use our voices to speak out against them.