CAMPAIGNERS fighting to protect the archaeology beneath Charles Street have praised English Heritage for taking a stand on the issue.

The organisation made a submission to West Dorset District Council (WDDC) setting out its concerns over proposals by developers Simons to scale back archaeological investigations for the second phase of the town centre development.

English Heritage says it cannot support the scheme in its current form due to the risk of substantial harm to archaeology of 'national significance' beneath the site.

It also states that if the council was minded to approve the planning application for the second phase, it would be obliged to ask the Secretary of State to call in the application for a public enquiry.

The strong stance taken by English Heritage has been welcomed by the Defend Our Rich Cultural Heritage (DORCH) group.

The group was formed when the proposed scaling back of the archaeological investigations and an online petition calling for the greater protection for the site has attracted more than 3,800 signatures.

Dorchester resident Jerry Bird said the group was encouraged by the strong stance English Heritage was taking regarding the archaeology at Charles Street.

He said: "This is great news for the DORCH camapign.

"Now that we have alerted English Heritage and the local press to the changes surreptitiously made to the archaeological strategy in the Charles Street development plans, it looks as though WDDC and Simons have a real fight on their hands.

"I cannot congratulate English Heritage enough on this matter - they are obviously determined not to back down on this issue.

"Unlike far too many government 'watchdog' organisations it seems they are no paper tiger."

Mr Bird has also drawn up a map showing the proximity of many of the towns Roman and other ancient historical features to the Charles Street site.

Dorchester town, district and county councillor Andy Canning has also backed the English Heritage stance and stressed the importance of respecting the archaeology on the site.

He said: "It's not acceptable for this area to be ripped out just for the sake of a few shops."

Simons has previously said that it hopes to find a 'mutually acceptable' way forward for the site.

Director of environment at WDDC David Evans has said that no decisions have yet been made regarding the Charles Street planning application.

He said that the letter from English Heritage contained points which the council would 'find valuable in our processing of the application'.