BICESTER has been confirmed of one of the sites shortlisted by the Government for an eco-town.

And, as predicted, a proposal for 15,000 homes at Weston Otmoor has been rejected.

It will mean celebrations for pressure group Weston Front and its supporters and dismay for villagers who live near the successful site north-west of Bicester.

Cherwell District Council offered 345 hectares of farmland at North West Bicester as an alternative to the Weston-on-the-Green proposal.

The decision over which sites were given the green light was announced in Parliament this morning.

Plans for the site — the equivalent of 383 football pitches — is expected to house 10,000 people and could include a monorail, three schools and green businesses.

There is also a proposal for a bio-mass plant and forest area which could produce enough energy for homes and businesses at the eco-site as well as a large area of Bicester.

Residents would be encouraged to work on site and the council hopes to attract new businesses, possibly green organisations — to create up to 5,000 jobs.

There could be two primary schools and one secondary school, state-of-the-art homes and shops.

Cherwell's proposal does not include motoring restrictions, but the layout would be designed to encourage walking, cycling or public transport use.

But councillors Catherine and Andrew Fulljames, who represent the villages affected, condemned the move.

They said: “This is a bad day for Bicester.

“Our real complaint is the whole thing has been dealt with in an underhand way with no consultation with local people barring and invited few.

“We feel very strongly that our electorate is opposed to this eco development “They are building 5,000 homes on a site with a rail embankment going through it — it does seem amazingly stupid because there is going to be this side and that side.”

The other successful bids, which will still have to go through the planning process, were named as Rackheath, Norfolk, Whitehill Bordon, East Hampshire and the China Clay Community scheme, near St Austell, Cornwall.

The eco-town project was intended to meet housing needs and tackle climate change, with as many as 10 environmentally-friendly settlements built by 2020, but has been dogged by controversy and opposition from local communities.