A CALL for £60,000 from developers towards a new village hall in Marcham, near Abingdon, should be refused, a council planning officer has recommended.

Vale of White Horse District Council’s Stuart Walker said not enough information was available to approve the cash.

Developer JA Pye (Oxford) was told to put more than £400,000 towards the community as a condition of the Vale giving permission for 54 homes at Willow Farm, Packhorse Lane, in May.

Marcham Parish Council wants £60,000 of the money to be put towards a new village hall.

Our top stories

The developer said the cash bid did not meet national legal tests but the parish council said similar developments had got village hall cash.

In a report to Vale planning committee members, Mr Walker said: “The parish’s plan for a new hall is at a relatively early stage.

“There is no detailed project plan and no detailed project costs have been undertaken.

“Consequently it is not possible to calculate what would be a fair and reasonable contribution related in scale and kind to the development.”

The committee will meet to discuss the village hall issue on Monday from 6.30pm at The Beacon, Portway, Wantage.

The public can attend.

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.