DOZENS of objectors are expected to speak out against plans to create sports pitches and a pavilion at Darlington's South Park.

Campaigners are preparing to rally in protest at the development when Darlington Borough Council's planning committee meets to consider the scheme on Wednesday.

People living in Victoria Embankment and Bedford Street held a meeting on Friday to discuss the issue.

The campaigners have already distributed hundreds of leaflets in the neighbourhood because they believe the borough council has not informed enough people about the plans.

It is thought the council has received more than 60 objections to the proposals, which involve building a single-storey pavilion with ten changing rooms and showers, and creating a car park, five football pitches and a cricket pitch.

The Cleveland Bridge company has offered to create the facilities close to the park's Bedford Street entrance, in exchange for permission to build 95 houses on a former sports field in Geneva Lane.

Both proposals were agreed in principle by councillors at a planning meeting on July 2.

But neighbours complained that they were not properly consulted about the plans, forcing the council to reopen the consultation process.

The final decision on the scheme will be taken on Wednesday.

Last night, objectors' spokesman Martin Wilson said: "Thousands of residents who don't have gardens in all these terraced streets rely on South Park. It is their garden.

"Having football pitches there will ruin it.

"I can't find anyone who is in favour of it and now we are trying to get as many people as possible to go to the planning meeting on Wednesday at 1.30pm to show the amount of opposition, because at the moment the council don't seem to realise."

Resident Paul Greenwood said: "There are so many people that don't know about the plans. I went around South Park the other day asking people if they knew and none of them were aware of it. When I told them, they were all opposed to it.

"The whole town should be consulted on this because it is a facility for the whole town."

Anyone wishing to attend the planning meeting should be at Darlington Town Hall for 1.20pm on Wednesday.