A CONTROVERSIAL plan for a four storey house that neighbours fear will tower over them has been given the go-ahead despite their opposition.

Thirteen neighbours of the site in Eleven Acre Rise in Loughton wrote to the district council with their objections to the six-bedroom home which they say is too large and will rob them of light.

A previous plan for a building on the site, which sits on the top of a hill, was withdrawn and Kevin O'Connor, who lives next door to the site said that developers were trying to pull the wool over the eyes of those who complained.

He said: “Four storeys creates a feeling of total enclosure and domination. The elevated terrace will overlook our garden and the proposed hedge on side on side boundary is overbearing.”

Another of his neighbours said: “The preceding plan for the proposed building was far too big and overbearing and the new plans appear to have done nothing to remedy this.

“In fact it now appears that the front of the building has moved forward towards the road emphasising the unsuitability for a traditional cul-de-sac such as Eleven Acre Rise.

“The structure's sheer bulk could be seen to effectively split the road in half – a case of a vast overbearing building towering over the rest of the road's medium-sized homes either side of it, dominating the Loughton landscape.”

Loughton Town Council and the Loughton Residents Association also added their objections but planning officers, in a report to councillors, said that previous concerns over the building’s size had been overcome.

They added: “It is an unusual and innovative scheme for this street. This in itself does not mean it is unsuitable.”