BROADWAY parish councillors have condemned a decision giving the go-ahead for plans to redevelop the village's former Gordon Russell furniture works site.

Wychavon District Council approved a scheme that includes housing, parking spaces, a new tourist information centre and a mini-market.

The backing was given despite the opposition of the parish council which claimed the decision has "apparently been taken in direct contravention of the wishes of the majority of opinion in the village".

A statement issued by the parish council said: "This decision represents, to many villagers, a clear breach of faith with the Government's expressed view for more consultation at parish level in key decisions affecting local communities."

The 4.5 acre site, at The Green, has lain idle since more than a century of furniture-making came to an end two years ago, with workers made redundant following a drop in orders.

Gill Collin, development control manager with Wychavon District Council, said the scheme submitted by Chase Homes and Steelcase Plc included provision for 76 one to five-bedroomed homes.

Sheltered accommodation and affordable housing were part of the plans, together with grade II listed buildings fronting on to High Street to be used for retail, offices or community purposes, members of the council's planning committee heard last Thursday. Mrs Collin said: "They're proposing to provide - in the curved store in Back Lane - a heritage museum for the Gordon Russell Trust and larger offices for the tourist information centre in Broadway."

Broadway's parish councillors, however, claimed: "The central objective of Wychavon's Development Guide to promote a 'sustainable mixed-use development' has been largely ignored."

Their statement went on: "Not only is there a lack of commitment to commercial development which could provide employment but the problem is further compounded by the inclusion of a substantial amount of sheltered accommodation."