COMMUNITY leaders in Stogumber are launching a bid to save one of the last green spaces close to the village centre from development - by buying it.

The parish council is due to make a final decision on Monday on whether it will bid for an eight-acre field at Station Road, which goes under the hammer the following day.

Councillors have already won approval from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to borrow money from the Public Works Loan Board, part of the Treasury.

And in a parish survey, 82 per cent of residents who responded said they were in favour of buying the land - even though it could put an extra £20 to £30 a year on Council Tax bills for an average Band D property.

Council chairman Julian Spicer told the Free Press this week that the field would be vital to the creation of new community facilities - possibly a village car park and a new graveyard.

The land, which lies between Butt's Cottage and Archer's Grove at one end and Quantock View at the other, extends south towards Wood Lane.

It was owned by retired solicitor Joan May, who died in her nineties last year, and is now being sold as part of her estate.

Cllr Spicer said the field was of strategic importance to the village because it was one of the last undeveloped pieces of land - other than private gardens and orchards - close to the centre.

It is currently classed as agricultural land but Cllr Spicer it was possible that planning permission could be granted for some kind of development on the area closest to Station Road, as it could be regarded as 'infill' between the existing group of houses.

"The main reason for the council buying the field would be to ensure that any future development of the field is controlled by local residents to meet the needs of the community, rather than by a speculator or developer," said Cllr Spicer.

He said that, in the short term, the council would investigate two potential uses - firstly a car park with vehicular access from close to the current field gate along a track to the end nearest the village hall, with pedestrian access down a ramp opposite the hall.

In addition, part of the land could provide the village with a new graveyard as the existing churchyard is almost full.

"In the long term, the village could decide on other uses for areas of the field," said Cllr Spicer.

"These might include a larger village hall, allotments, business premises or affordable housing."

To offset some of the cost, the owners of five houses in the Archer's Grove area are willing to buy strips of land to extend their gardens or create paddocks or orchards.

And if its bid is successful, the council may consider selling the southern part of the field for agricultural use.

Cllr Spicer said the field was being offered at auction in Taunton with a guide price of around £50,000 - probably an underestimate.

But he said although the authority was not prepared to reveal at this stage its top price, it had set a "prudent maximum".

"In the last couple of years Stogumber has had two new housing developments - one on a beautiful orchard.

"This field is in a crucial location and we won't get a better location in terms of accessibility and being close to the village hall and school.

"We do need a car park and we will need a graveyard."

With a population of around 700 - including children - in the parish and 320 Council Tax households, the council believes it has secured a mandate to attempt to buy the land.

Out of 160 responses to the survey, 131 were in favour of the land purchase, with 29 against,

"We have followed all the correct procedures and done things properly," said Cllr Spicer.

"We believe there is a clear consensus to protect this land from inappropriate development and secure it for much needed community facilities.

"We just hope that other potential bidders - from the parish and beyond - will recognise the strength of support from residents and will not compete against the council's attempt to secure this land for the long-term benefit of the community."