More than 250 packed into the small Cornwall Centre in Clements Mead to hear about West Berkshire Council’s plans to build around 400 new homes at four greenfield sites across the area.

West Berkshire Council has published proposals to build 285 homes at Pincents Hill, 61 at Stonehams Farm, 29 off Sulham Hill and 30 in land of Long Lane and Blackthorn Close to meet its legal obligation to build 10,500 new dwellings across the region by 2026.

But the plans met universal outrage at the meeting organised by West Berkshire Council’s Birch Copse councillor Emma Webster, with neighbours complaining about the loss of areas of natural beauty, traffic chaos, not enough school and GP places and flood risks.

Thunderous applause greeted Tilehurst Parish Council’s chairman Jean Gardener’s scathing attack on West Berkshire Council when she vowed to fight the plans for all four sites. She said: “Each site will have problems of its own.

“Our first objection will be any changes to the settlement boundary. That was put there in order to protect all the residents of Tilehurst from increasing population. We felt we were big enough. We will be defending that as much as we can.

“We know the highways are unable to cope with any more traffic. They cannot or won’t maintain them and they certainly don’t do much for us here in Tilehurst.”

Veteran campaigners from the Save Pincents Hill Campaign three years ago joined the crowds to help mobilise neighbours to send in objection letters to the plans.

Campaign founder Joan Lawrie said: “The answer is to get up and be counted. Let the council know you don’t want it.”

Cllr Webster reminded neighbours that objections have to show the sites are unsustainable and urged them to use some of the reasons which successfully protected Pincents Hill.

She said: “Hopefully by working together and using the reasons we used before we can get these kicked out.”

A new website has been set up to give advice and information about objecting to the plans at www.lovetilehurst.co.uk.

The plans can be viewed on West Berkshire’s website at www.westberks.gov.uk/hsapreferredoptions and responses can be submitted until Friday, September 12.