THE developer of a Whitenap development of over 1,000 homes have come under fire.

Ashfield Partnership, who have released the masterplan outlining the new community, didn’t pay enough postage on their letters resulting in many residents having to pick up the cost.

People who wanted a say on the plans were asked to either view online or request a hardcopy. But residents are not happy after being asked to collect their hard copies from the local post office due to insufficient paid postage.

Councillor Nick King-Adams who was contacted by a resident, said: “I had a call from a resident today from Royal Mail telling her she had to pay £1.50 as the postage had been under paid. She called and spoke to a lady who said ‘sorry but that’s not my problem’. Incidentally the feedback form was not enclosed!”

Cllr Nick King-Adams said: “I think it is fair to say that this consultation could have been better organised.”

Simon Coles, director for Tetra Tech Planning and contracted by Ashfield Partnership, said he was aware that there had been an issue with postage despite the company having weighed and measured the envelopes.

He said: “We now know that incorrect postage stamps were affixed to 33 letters to local residents, which unfortunately resulted in a Royal Mail surcharge. We thank those affected for telling us about this and we acted swiftly to remedy the situation by sending postage stamps equal to the value of the surcharge to all those affected.”