A PLAN by a farmer and his wife to diversify their dairy farm by setting up a caravan site has upset residents in a North Yorkshire hamlet.

Stephen and Nichola Whitaker called a public meeting for the 15 families in Whenby, near Easingwold, to explain their plans.

But the residents fear the 30-pitch park will swamp Whenby's population.

Mrs Whitaker said: "We wanted to be up-front about our plan and I did get quite a lot of support.

"Ours is a small farm of 123 acres and we milk a herd of 100 cows, but we do need to diversify. The field is four acres, with a big hedge around it. It is well-hidden."

She said that their sons, aged 14 and 11, were the only children in Whenby and if they were unable to carry on the farm in later years, there would be no young families left in the village.

Mrs Whitaker said she and her husband believed that tourism offered the best chance of an alternative enterprise for their farm.

She also said Whenby had farm traffic using its lanes and that there were ample passing-places.

One opponent of the scheme, Paul Benson, said: "We do not think the site can be screened from the direction of Skewsby. It will be outside Whenby, opposite Skewsby Lane End, in open countryside."

He said the residents' main concern was the narrow lanes around Whenby and the effect the scheme could have on the local sewerage system. The plan will go before Hambleton District Council.