Major moves are being considered to add protection to the greenbelt, which campaigners fear is under imminent threat from developers.

At present, rules state that developers could build on greenbelt land if they can demonstrate housing needs will only be met by doing so.

New guidance from the government, published on Monday, October 6, reaffirmed how councils could use their local plan to safeguard their area against urban sprawl.

It said that housing need did not justify the harm done to the greenbelt by inappropriate development - 57 per cent of Elmbridge is designated greenbelt land.

The proposal to build Drake Park, 1,000 homes, a primary school, medical centre, shop and restaurant, on the green belt in a 147 acre site off Molesey Road, has caused concern about both the loss of green belt and the impact on infrastructure for those that live in the area.

David Tipping, from the Cobham Conservation and Heritage Trust, said: "In the eyes of the Cobham Conservation and Heritage Trust the greenbelt must only be considered for any form of development as a very last resort.

"It's amazing that thousands of people would love to come and live in the south-east, because it is like living in the countryside, it must be retained in its present form. Cobham is a village and long may it remain so."

A motion to reconsider its approach to housing developments was approved at full council last week.

Due to the changes in Government policy, the core strategy adopted by the council in 2011 needs to be adapted for local authorities to meet the need for new homes in their area.

Councillor Andrew Kelly, portfolio holder for regulatory affairs and planning policy, said: "Elmbridge Council has worked hard over the past few years to put in place plans to guide future development in the borough. However, changes to Government policy mean that we need to reconsider how we plan for new housing development.

"There are significant pressures across the country to provide new homes and we need to think again about how many homes we need and where these can and can’t go."

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: "Local people don't want to lose their countryside to urban sprawl, or the vital green lungs around their towns and cities to unnecessary development."

Brandon Lewis, Housing and Planning Minister, said: "We have put Local Plans at the heart of the reformed, planning system, so councils and local people can now decide where development should and shouldn't go."

The council voted at a meeting on Wednesday, October 1, to find out how many homes are needed and identify where these new homes can and cannot go, to reconsider the evidence on which the current approach to housing development is based.

Work will stop on settlement investment and development plans while this work takes place.