THE FIRST show homes at a controversial new housing estate have opened to visitors.

Bellway Homes has already welcomed visitors to the model homes at ‘Grove Meadows’ west of the A338, north of Grove.

Bellway is building the first 133 homes of 824 planned for the ‘Monk’s Farm’ site. The company said its portion of the estate, begun last year, would take approximately three years to complete, but the first owners would move in this year.

Grove Parish Council has objected to the scheme on a number of grounds, mainly that with no new roads to connecting the existing village to new development, the new homes would be separated from the rest of Grove.