CONCERNS have been raised that Halstead will not reap the financial benefits of the Oak Road development.

292 homes are set to be built on the site off Oak Road, but the site’s location lies just outside the boundary line of Halstead.

Subsequently, residents in the new homes will pay council tax, the main source of income for local governments, to Greenstead Green.

This is despite the likelihood that residents in the new development will be primarily using Halstead amenities.

Halstead Residents’ Association chairman, Martin Day, said: “This is not a good situation for the residents of Halstead.

“Despite Halstead’s already stretched infrastructure having to cope with this not insubstantial development, because it lies just outside of Halstead’s boundary line, it seems little if any ongoing financial benefits in terms of council tax will derive to our town.

“For our part we would ask Braintree District Council to please re-visit this issue and seek a way to address the apparent unfairness of the situation.”

A Braintree District Council spokesperson said: “Council tax comes in a number of elements with the majority of the money not ringfenced to a specific area.

“A small part of council tax, about two per cent, goes to parish or town councils.

“Given the current boundaries, if these homes are built, the properties would pay the Greenstead Green precept which would go to the parish council rather than the Town Council.

“However boundaries of parish and town councils in our district will N be reviewed in 2017/2018.”