So many people wanted to attend a meeting about the proposed development of two new schools that organisers had to shut the doors and turn people away when the hall reached capacity.

The meeting of Boxley Parish Council's environment committee was to discuss the application from Bowmer and Kirkland to build Bearsted Primary and Snowfield Academy on land off Bearsted Road in Maidstone.

The parish council had invited villagers along to give their views, but had to turn around 35 people away when more than the 175 capacity of the Grove Green Community Centre turned up.

Those who did squeeze in heard Helen Whately MP reveal that the applicants were re-thinking the scheme and were expected soon to submit a revised application, with entry to the schools coming via the existing Kent Medical Campus roundabout, rather than directly from Bearsted Road.

Such a change if it were to happen, would allay some fears of increased congestion on Bearsted Road, caused by both the extra school traffic and parents parking in the street at drop-off times.

However, it would still leave a number of local concerns unanswered: the safety of children walking to school along roads with narrow or no pavements, the safety of the pupils with the schools positioned right next to the Cygnet Hospital, a facility for those with mental health problems, and the fate of the Gidds Pond Cottages residents who would lose their parking spaces and have still not been told where they would go.

Two applications were under consideration - one for the schools, and one from the Kent Medical Centre seeking to move the location of a dedicated nature reserve, supposed to be at Pope's Field, in order to make way for the schools.

Mrs Whately told the meeting there had been an agreement in principle to shift the access.

Cllr Wendy Hinder stressed that if the applicants did submit an amendment to the plan, it would be important for resident to respond promptly, especially if a pedestrian entry from Bearsted Road was still proposed.

Many at the meeting remained opposed to the prospect of the schools at all, saying they were not needed locally. There were also concerns that building the schools on the land designated as a nature reserve would interrupt the migration of wildlife along the green corridor from the North Downs to Vinters Valley Nature Reserve.

The parish council unanimously voted to object to the plans and subsequently produced seven pages of reasons why the scheme should be refused.

Cllr Wendy Hinder said: “The applicant must think people are stupid. There are three schools, with a fourth one being built, within a mile of this site do they really think they can used flawed methodology to hoodwink people into thinking there won’t be huge traffic problems caused by parents driving primary school children to school? "

"Residents already experience problems with the three schools that exist and they are acutely aware of the chaos, congestion and bad and inconsiderate parking caused at school drop off and pick up times, add to that a third and then a fourth and a fifth school and goodness knows how anyone is going to cope."

If approved, the new schools would be run by the Leigh Academies Trust.