TENBURY can breathe a sigh of relief after a packed meeting approved the controversial South Worcestershire Development Plan.

Councillor Tony Penn, who holds the planning portfolio on Malvern Hills District Council and represents Tenbury on the authority, believes this represents a great Christmas present for the town.

“I have no doubt that this is good news for Tenbury and we can breathe a sigh of relief,” said Coun Penn.

“The implications of rejecting the plan could have been very serious for the town and the whole of the Malvern Hills District.

“Had this plan not been agreed I have no doubt that Tenbury and the surrounding area would have been much more vulnerable to higher levels of development than is envisaged.”

“Without a plan it would have been much harder to defend any applications at appeal that had been refused.”

The plan has been prepared jointly by Malvern Hills District Council, Wychavon District Council and Worcester City Council.

Had it not been approved at a special meeting, attended by more than 100 people on Monday, it would have left Malvern Hills District Council out on a limb.

“We had been advised that we would virtually have to start from scratch and this could have taken between two and three years,” said Coun Penn.

In the absence of a plan, developers that had applications for building development turned down could have gone to appeal leaving the council in a much weaker position.

Eric Hudson, chairman of the planning committee on Tenbury Town Council, spoke at the meeting and urged members to approve the plan.

The decision also removed the threat of Malvern Hills District Council facing a judicial review.