PEOPLE living in a village near Worcester have been offered some reassurance about the future of a local landmark.

An anonymous letter distributed in Callow End this week had raised fears about possible development at Stanbrook Abbey.

It described an application on behalf of the abbey's Benedictine community, which is hoping to move to Yorkshire, to include the abbey grounds in the settlement area, opening the way for housing development.

"These developments are happening in villages all over England. Where there were green fields there are now satellite towns," said the letter.

But what it did not say was that the application was made a year ago and was rejected by Malvern Hills District Council.

The council's Local Plan, which is now coming to the end of its second period of consultation, does not include the abbey grounds within the Callow End settlement boundary.

People who want to support the council's position and oppose new development in the abbey's walled garden or on the field in front of it have until noon on Friday to have their say.

An independent inspector will consider the proposal, along with many others rejected by the council, at an enquiry this summer, but it could be another year before his findings are published.

Senior planning officer Simon Jones said he thought it unlikely that the inspector would decide the Stanbrook Abbey sites were needed for development.

"The local authority has resisted the development of these sites," he said. Because of the amount of brown field land we already have in Malvern, we are not in a position where we have to allocate large areas of land in the open countryside."

District councillor Tom Wells said it was vital to protect the Abbey and associated land from any development.

"Many residents have already made it clear that they support the council's position and it would be helpful if others made their feelings known," he said.