MASSIVE expansion of villages in Oxfordshire’s countryside is an issue weighing on the minds of hundreds of residents.

A campaign has been launched in Kingston Bagpuize after a barrage of applications, which could see the village almost double in size.

A 50-home development on land south of Faringdon Road proposed by Pye Homes was approved last year and a bid from St John’s College for permission for 63 homes and 45 extra-care units for elderly people was submitted in December.

Taylor Wimpey has also recently announced plans for 98 homes south of the A420, and villagers fear a further 100 homes could be built on nearby land.

Resident David Warr, a member of Kingston Bagpuize with Southmoor Village Action said: “When you have a settlement which is around 800 homes and more than 300 are proposed for development, people do start to get concerned.

“There’s been no democratic process which asks if the village should become a town, we haven’t agreed to that.”

He said he feared councils were being forced to approve housing plans in the face of huge potential payouts if they lose appeals against their decisions.

Mr Warr said: “The question we need to ask ourselves is should we really be dealing with planning applications on the basis of fear?”