A community has vented its fury amid claims a council has ordered a farmer to sell land against his will to help build 10,000 homes.

Michael Owen, of Berwick Manor Farm in Stone Street, Lympne, lashed out at Folkestone and Hythe District Council in the parish council newsletter today over its handling of the matter.

The authority plans to buy up hundreds of acres of his land to build a secondary school, the dairy farmer claims.

However, Folkestone and Hythe council has denied serving a compulsory purchase order, adding there is "no indication" the powers will be used.

Folkestone and Hythe council and developer Cozumel Estates are behind plans to build Otterpool Park, a garden town set to be built on land around Folkestone Racecourse and Westenhanger.

A preview of Lympne Parish Council’s newsletter, available on its website, contains an excerpt of Mr Owen’s column.

He said: “On May 21 Folkestone and Hythe District Council published a newsletter in which there was no mention whatsoever that they are taking several hundreds of acres of good grade-two land.

“Never a letter to the owners or a phone call.

“They want to build a secondary school on land they don’t own which means pulling some houses etc down.

“(The council) own 370 acres, do those first.

“We elect councillors, it would be nice if some of them stuck up for the electors.

“Let democracy reign. They think we will get used to thirty to forty more thousand population plus two cars per house,” he writes.

The parish council said in the newsletter it is not opposed to controlled building but gave Folkestone and Hythe council a dressing down over its handling of the matter.

It says it was not notified of the order and claims it found out while editing Mr Owen's monthly column.

“Finding out about additional development proposals in this manner does not sit well with what should be an open, honest and transparent partnership between our community and the district council,” the letter explains.

The revelation has fuelled anger throughout the community claims parish councillor Rob Auger.

He said: “Everybody is extremely angry that this is happening out of the blue.

“Residents of the village have not been told of any action.

“The local farmer who wanted to give his farm to his grandchildren has been told to sell. He has lived there for generations.

“People are angry with our council for not informing them about all of this, but how can we if the district council doesn’t tell us anything?”

Folkestone and Hythe council however refuted the claims made by the parish council.

A spokesman said: "We have not served a compulsory purchase notice on Berwick Farm.

"Cabinet agreed that compulsory purchase orders could be used as an option and as a matter of last resort.

"At the moment there is no indication that these powers will need to be used."