Last August, Wiltshire Councillors threw out a planning application to build 300 homes on farmland on the edge of Melksham. The council's own planning officers were recommending that the planning application by strategic land developer Catesby Estates for the homes at Snarlton Farm be approved. But in February the Planning Inspectorate informed Wiltshire Council that it would not be determining the application. Last week the housing secretary announced that planning permission would be granted, saying Wiltshire has a "significant shortfall" in its five-year housing land supply. "Melksham has shouldered, and continues to shoulder, its fair share of housing development in recent years."