THORNWOOD residents are being called to a public meeting on Sunday to discuss the future of the village.

The meeting is the first step to creating a village design statement that will define what villagers want to see in the coming years. As well as allowing people to say what they want, the statement could also give some control over any new housing in the area.

North Weald parish council vice-chairman Cyril Hawkins said this could prove vital with the threats of massive housing development in the region.

Mr Hawkins admits knowing very little about what design statements can achieve, but it is thought issues like house design and village needs, such as shops and facilities, could be outlined.

A representative from the Essex Rural Development Centre will be at the meeting at Thornwood village hall, Weald Hall Lane, between 10am and noon to talk about the design statements, along with district council planning officer John Preston and Epping Forest Countrycare manager Paul Hewitt.

Mr Hawkins said: "With the threat of all the development in this area we have a chance to plan what a village design statement is and find out more about it. We want to get the villagers into the hall to listen to what the experts say and find out if there is any advantage to having a design statement."

He added: "This is the first meeting about something none of us really knows a tremendous amount about. We have heard it's a worthwhile thing to have, it's quite powerful and we want to see how much support we have in the village."

North Weald parish councillors also want to look into creating design statements for Hastingwood and North Weald.