Plans for five homes in an east Suffolk town have been refused due to the harm they would pose to the surrounding area.

East Suffolk Council has rejected proposals for properties on undeveloped agricultural land in Beech Way, Woodbridge. 

Applicant James Kingston-Smith first put forward plans for five two-storey homes in 2022. 

A planning statement said: "The proposed development and its new landscaping has also been designed to avoid any significant impact on the listed buildings at Kingston Hall and Barn or their setting. 

"It is proposed to create a buffer zone between the listed buildings and the development site in which existing trees and planning will be retained and supplemented as screening and where biodiversity loss can be mitigated and enhanced."

However, planners at East Suffolk Council voiced concerns at the impact of the development on Kingston Hall. 

An officer's delegated report stated the homes "would result in unjustifiable harm" to the Grade II-listed hall. 

Planners at the council also said the application posed a "completed disregard" to the site's current open meadow state.