Large numbers of residents in a South Norfolk village are expect to attend a meeting tonight to oppose controversial plans that would see caravans sited on a meadow.

Members of Wreningham Parish Council are due to discuss plans for the field next to the village hall on Mill Lane.

The meadow was bought at auction last year for £35,250 having been advertised as 'ideal for haymaking, pony paddock or those looking for 'The Good Life'.'

Last September South Norfolk Council approved plans for it to be used as a paddock and the building of a stable on the condition that it was used solely to accommodate horses owned by the applicant and his immediate family.

Now new plans have been submitted for the building to be used as a 'day room' that would include a kitchen, dining room, bathroom and laundry. They are also seeking permission for standing for a mobile home, two touring caravans and construction of three concrete pads.

The proposals have sparked objections from villagers amid concerns about what has already been built on the land.

One of the objectors John Bligh, who lives in Mill Lane, said: 'There is a strong resentment that the lack of action by or ineffectual nature of South Norfolk District Council in this matter is setting a precedent.'

In an objection submitted to the district council, David Reeve, of Church Road, said: 'A mobile home plus caravans and associated vehicles is going to be a blot on the village landscape and is completely inappropriate in the rural environment that most of us sought when we moved here.'

Another objector Valerie Keel, of Wymondham Road, states: 'The meadow and the adjacent fields along Mill Lane are of particular environmental interest with many species of flowers, plants and animals and I, as resident, feel it should be preserved in perpetuity.'

District councillor Phil Hardy, who will be at tonight's meeting, said: 'Enforcement officers have been down to the site and what has been built is a stable and is in line with the approved plans. There has subsequently been another application submitted. It is a live application and it will be assessed in line with local and national policy and guidance. Lots of people from the local area will play a part in that. They can have their say or they can email me and I can raise issues on their behalf.

'It will be assessed as any other planning application would be. People from the travelling community are human beings and they have a right to have their applications assessed fairly and in line with due process.'