THE DEADLINE is looming for residents to have their say on plans for ‘Pinewood Pods’.

A planning application was submitted in January for Pinewood Village Hall, with the aim to provide ‘pods’ for those who are homeless in the area.

The proposal is to change the village hall into seven studio flats and three mobile homes for the homeless, with cycle parking, bin store enclosure and a storage shed.

The pods would operate similarly to bed and breakfast accommodation, offering short length stays of no longer than six months before residents are moved to a more permanent location.

But the plans previously came under scrutiny at a recent Whitehill Town Council planning sub committee meeting, with both residents and councillors raising concerns. These surrounded the site’s over-development, loss of community space, economic impacts to One Stop and the Post Office, parking issues and lack of a “proper” consultation.

*Residents have until February 4 to have their say, by heading to planningpublicaccess.easthants.gov.uk/online-applications/ and searching for reference 58366/001.