A BRIEF video film shot by student Rebecca Renton helped to stop work on the site of a fiercely opposed refuse collection station yesterday.

Her footage showed bats, a protected species, flying in and out of woods that had been due to be felled.

Workers arrived to begin the felling at 7.30am at Stainton Grove, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, but held back after talks with police.

It was later arranged for a bat expert to visit at dusk last night and give advice before a decision is made today on whether the Durham County Council scheme can start.

Sergeant Bob Danby, who stood by with six other police officers, said: "We would like to have the film and woods studied by a wildlife expert before saying whether felling should be permitted. I cannot allow the work to start before getting proper advice.

"The presence of some bats does not necessarily mean the work must be banned, but we have to be absolutely sure before giving the go-ahead."

Miss Renton, 20, who lives at Stainton Grove and is a drama student at Lancaster University, used a video camera with night vision to record the bats in flight at dusk on Sunday.

She said: "We knew there were bats in there but some officials disputed this. Now that we have this evidence on film, they will have to believe us."

There are about 800 trees in the wood and the county council says most need to be felled before the station is built to process all of Teesdale's refuse.

Tony Cooke, chairman of the Stainton Grove action group fighting the scheme, said: "We have said all along that felling would be illegal because of the bats. Thanks to the video evidence, they will have to pay attention now."

Mr Cooke asked 62 residents, mainly women and children, to circle the woods in case an attempt was made to start felling.

Residents of Stainton Grove, which has 130 houses, fear the station will cause a health risk. They also say the woods are used as a playground for their children and should be preserved.

Mr Cooke said: "It should not be built here - whether or not our evidence about the bats is accepted."

A county council spokes-man said it was trying to arrange a meeting between residents, police, the waste management company and Teesdale District Council in the hope of making progress with the scheme, which, he pointed out, already had planning approval.