TOWN hall bosses have moved reassure residents that work on the proposed Ryder Cup golf course at Hulton Park cannot begin without council agreement.

It comes after fears were raised over information given to members of the planning committee ahead of making the decision.

The panel was told that, were Hulton Park not selected to host the prestigious tournament, developers Peel would have to “immediately cease” any site preparation or other work related to the project.

The property giant would also be obliged to return any affected area of the site to its previous condition “so far as reasonably practicable”.

This led to concerns Peel could move on to the site well ahead of the Ryder Cup venue decision being made, should the Communities Secretary give final approval to the scheme.

But town hall bosses have assured residents Peel will not be able to move on to the site to do any preparatory work — such as further drilling — without its consent.

They have urged anyone with concerns to refer to officer Alex Allen’s report, which states: “The development hereby approved shall not be commenced until a phasing scheme has been submitted to and approved in writing by the local planning authority.

The phasing scheme shall identify the proposed phasing of the development hereby approved, including definition of any site.”

It adds that any change to the phased scheme, once agreed upon, would have to be agreed in writing by the council.

Sandra Hesketh, secretary of campaign group Hulton Estate Area Residents Together (HEART) said: “We've still got this chance, our local MP Chris Green, and Yasmin Qureshi have both requested the Secretary of State to call it in for a public inquiry.

"So that's the next stage.

"Peel are talking about more drilling, not taking trees off or the loss of soil, there’s still a lot they have to do.

"When you look at the responses from the authorities, the Coal Authority wants a lot more drilling to be done, the whole area is is littered with mines.

The Environment Agency wants more work done. There are a lot of hoops Peel have got to go through, it’s a very complex site."

She continued: “This is not the end, it’s still part of the process that needs to be completed. The Secretary of State might say he wants a public inquiry, he might question how this could be special circumstances.

Or he could decide we need more and just rubber stamp it, we don’t know.”