A HIGHLY contentious plan to site a £1m sewerage plant in a picturesque Winchester village has been refused.

County council chiefs rejected a planning application from Southern Water to put a wastewater treatment plant in Avington.

It was rejected on the grounds that it was harmful to a conservation area and that it was in the setting of a Grade 1-listed church.

Southern Water's proposals to improve the village's sewerage system involved siting a new treatment unit in Avington House car park. At present, sewerage from the village only has primary screening before flows are recycled back into the River Itchen.

Objectors to the scheme said they were not against the idea of the plant, rather its positioning next to the listed church. Residents also objected to the size of the plant, saying it was far too big for the village.

Penny Flemons, of Itchen Valley Parish Council, said: "It's much bigger than it needs to be.

"A million pounds is not wisely spent when it only serves 15 houses.

"It's not solving the problem, it's just a trade-off between the River Itchen and Avington.

"It will make very little difference - sewerage will still be bypassing the system."

Cllr Jackie Porter, county councillor for the Itchen Valley, said: "Residents don't understand why a village with 68 residents recorded in the Doomsday Book, and with just 72 a millennium later, could ever need a plant serving 114 users.

"I'm afraid this issue has not been addressed."

Richard Read, head of planning and development at Hampshire County Council, said: "Southern Water are required to plan for everyone in the village to go on mains drainage.

"This is a conservation area and in the setting of a listed building, but it's about making development acceptable rather than stopping it."

He said the current situation of putting untreated sewage into the River Itchen was "totally unacceptable".

He added the Environment Agency could prosecute Southern Water if it did not address the problem.

John Spence, wastewater and environment strategy manager for Southern Water, said: "We are disappointed Hampshire County Council decided not to support this scheme, as we believed the site at Avington House car park was the best environmental option for delivering improved wastewater treatment.

"We will be seeking talks with Hampshire County Council's planners to help review our options for alternative sites, and we will keep residents updated on our progress."