Coun John Wilmott, who represents Hucknall North on Ashfield District Council, says too many houses are now being built on popular leisure and recreation areas because of Government pressures to build thousands of new homes across Ashfield.

He also fears many new housing estates are being constructed too close to existing properties and resulting in a loss of privacy for residents.

Said Coun Wilmott: "This has been a pet subject of mine for a long time now and is something I feel very strongly about. We have been selling off areas of green space close to existing houses for a while now and it is not appropriate.

"Loss of privacy for residents is a major concern and this is something I have picked up talking to constituents. We need to protect areas where people go for walks and to enjoy leisure time and not build houses on them. We need to stand up against development."

And his views have been echoed by Ashfield Council leader Jason Zadrozny, who told Chad it was important to make the most of existing brownfield sites.

"We are told by Government that we have to build a certain amount of homes in the district each year and the best chance of doing that is to be creative with what we have," said Coun Zadrozny.

"We have to make the most of derelict factories and buildings. We are confident that we can meet the housing demand over the next 10-15 years without having to expand out of our urban framework and into the surrounding fields."