A PARISH council is planning to leaflet 3,500 homes to try and prevent a housing development.

The community of Eaglescliffe is being mobilised to stop the plan.

Egglescliffe Parish Council is to leaflet all 3,500 homes in its parish asking residents to send letters of protest to Stockton Borough Council which will have to decide whether to approve the proposals being made by Wimpey Homes.

The company wants to demolish a detached house in South View, Eaglescliffe, and replace it with a three-storey block of flats.

Helen Rennison, clerk to the parish council, said: "We are doing a leaflet drop - in all, 3,500 houses - letting everyone know what is proposed on this site and encouraging them to write individual letters to the planning authority with their objections to it.''

Residents and parish councillors are worried not only about the threat posed to road safety by the scheme, but the increased risk to children using the several schools in the area.

Mrs Rennison said: "It is just that the roads are far too busy there as it is. There is a one-way system. If this development went ahead, how many of the people living there would be bothered to go all the way round on the one-way system and not try to turn down the wrong way?"

The parish council says the development, which would be taller than the houses around it, would be visually intrusive, out of character with the area and would mean a loss of privacy and security for residents.

"It is a skulking monster right in the middle of our back garden. It is absolutely horrifying," said resident Joan Flint, who says parking for the flats would be on the other side of her garden hedge.

"It will ruin lives. Some people have lived here for 50 years. I have been here 29. People bought their properties for a reason; we are not overlooked and it is peaceful.''

Wimpey Homes declined to comment.