A roadside sign on the A12 will have to be taken down after a council said it was “intrusive” and visible from the countryside.

Housing developers Barratt Homes has had a 6 metre tall sign by the side of the road, between the A12 and Gershwin Boulevard, Witham, since June last year.

The sign has been advertising one and two-bedroom homes at the new Reflections development in Ballantyne Drive, Colchester.

After Barratt Homes lodged a planning application in November, the Highways Agency offered no objections to the sign remaining in place, as long as it did not distract drivers.

But Braintree Council said the sign broke local planning policy.

A council decision notice said: “The advertisement by reason of its siting would form an unduly prominent and intrusive feature in this area, viewable from the countryside, the A12 and residential dwellings.”

A Barratt Homes spokesman confirmed they would be taking the sign down by the end of this week.