A group labelled as “vandals” for planting vegetables in a new development’s village green have hit back after it “suffered from an absence of maintenance”.

Last week, the Graven Hill Village Development Company (GHVDC) wrote to its residents calling out "unauthorised and inappropriate” work.

The planting of vegetables on the village green of the development in Ambrosden, near Bicester, was described as “vandalising” an area of wildflowers.

Since then, the Graven Hill community gardening group behind the vegetable planting have hit back at the developers saying the area had been “neglected”.

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The development is described as "the UK's largest self-build and custom-build project", taking up 188 hectares of former Ministry of Defence land.

A statement from the gardening group said: “We are looking to give some of the neglected wildflower beds in the shared green a new lease of life for the benefit of all who call Graven Hill home.

“These beds were sown years ago with wildflowers, but they have since been outcompeted by grass and broadleaved plants such as crabgrass, thistle, plantain and dandelions.

“While every plant has its place, we feel these communal spaces that have suffered from an absence of maintenance could instead be turned into thriving biodiversity hotspots while providing fresh fruit and vegetables grown locally for the community.

“In addition, we wished to draw attention to the fact that these beds have not been well looked after, despite the topic of landscape maintenance having been raised on multiple occasions by several individuals directly with GHVDC, leading to a sense of frustration among some residents in Graven Hill.”

The group confirmed they would stop their work after being told developers would consider closing the village green if it continued.

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A spokesperson added: “We had only just started when our activities were spotted and came to a rather sudden halt following the letter issued from GHVDC.

“While there have been a few members of the community who have been opposed to the project aims and methods, the reception has been overwhelmingly positive.

Oxford Mail: Graven Hill Graven Hill (Image: Graven Hill Village Development Company)"In the face of the climate crisis and an era of increasing food insecurity, I believe that the benefit of our project is immediately obvious to most people.

"Of course, we will abide by the letter issued by GHVDC as we do not wish to see the closure of the green but are very happy to engage constructively with them to transform some of the unloved areas into thriving hubs for the community and nearby wildlife."

In a letter obtained by the Oxford Mail, GHVDC said: “We strongly condemn these actions and will take all appropriate steps to deal with this matter.

“The village green is an amenity space for all residents to enjoy, and whilst designated for communal use this does not allow unapproved works to be carried out in these areas.

“GHVDC has opened these areas in advance of their handover to the council.

"However, if use of these areas to abused even if by a few individuals then we will have no alternative but to close these areas until they are transferred.

“Clearly this is not something that we would wish to do.

“We are committed to preserving the integrity of Graven Hill’s green spaces and ensuring that they remain accessible to all residents.”