Organisers say they have been overwhelmed with support for a family friendly protest aimed at preserving the character of Welwyn Garden City.

Campaign groups Keep the G in WGC, WGC Heritage Trust and the WGC Society have organised the event for April 23 fom 1.45-3.15pm in the town centre, with the aim of highlighting residents' concerns about the over-development of WGC.

Martin Norman, founder of Keep the G in WGC said: “We have been overwhelmed with the support for this protest. We ask all Welwyn Garden City’s residents to come together on April 23 to show how much we care about this town and the changes they need to make to protect WGC for future generations."

Organisers say the protest will be focusing on the threat to the heritage and character of the town from high density, high rise and badly designed tower blocks, that are not in keeping with the town’s character, setting and Garden City ethos, including what they claim is the unfair allocation of homes in the Local Plan, the lack of vision for the town centre, and the lack of social housing to provide much-needed homes for local people.

They are also concerned by the impact of these proposed new developments on the town's infrastructure, including health and wellbeing, GP surgeries, schools, parking and traffic.

Marchers are asked to meet on the Campus roundabout at 1.45pm, and from there it will proceed down Parkway and Howardsgate, meeting at the Ebenezer Howard statue for a moment to recognise the impact of Howard’s vision, before proceeding to the Howard Centre for speeches. Protesters are asked to bring placards, their voices and to wear something green.

Challenging overdevelopment and inappropriate plans can be costly, especially during planning appeals, and the campaign groups have set up a donation page for those able to donate: www.keeptheginwgc.org.uk