VILLAGERS and businesses in Dunster – as well as visitors to the historic tourist honeypot – are to be asked their views on the future of a controversial paving scheme which sparked local and national outrage.

Somerset County Council’s decision to replace ancient cobbles in West Street with blue lias slabs earlier this year led to a groundswell of criticism, with organisations including English Heritage, the Campaign to Protect Rural England and the Exmoor Society adding their voices to the opposition.

In July the council formally agreed to implement a revised scheme – at an estimated cost of around £100,000.

But this week it announced it was first launching a consultation and offering four alternatives – to keep the footway as it is, to ‘stress’ the blue lias to darken it, to replace it with reclaimed Pennant paving stone, or to replace it with Brecon Grey, which was laid in Dunster’s High Street in a similar improvement scheme more than four years ago.

More than 750 homes and businesses in the village will receive a survey through their door, as well as an invitation to view two metre by one metre samples of the three different materials, which will be on show in Dunster Steep car park.

Information boards will also be on display, along with a questionnaire return box, in the Exmoor National Park visitor centre in Dunster from next Friday (October 9) to the following Tuesday (October 13).

And the council is also holding a public drop-in event on October 14 in Dunster Tithe Barn from 1pm to 7.30pm, where Cllr David Fothergill, cabinet member for highways and transport, and council officers will be available to answer questions and where samples of the materials will be on show.