A row between two wealthy villagers is threatening to breach the peace in a sleepy Sussex parish.

For decades, visitors have flocked to the hamlet of Houghton Bridge, near Arundel, to stay in the pretty riverside caravan park.

They sip tea on its manicured lawns, gaze at the peaceful South Downs vista or walk between the thatched cottages of the nearby village of Amberley.

But when businessman Barry Weir bought the caravan park, his plans to modernise the site angered some people.

Three years later the battle lines have been drawn between Mr Weir and James Tolson, chairman of Amberley Parish Council, who could lose his council post as a result.

Since Mr Weir took over, the caravans have been hooked up to mains electricity and put on stilts to protect them from flooding.

Mr Weir, chairman of London-based Harquail Ltd, has also been seeking permission to open the £1 million Houghton Bridge Caravan Park throughout the year.

At present, their owners can only stay at the site between April and October.

Now Mr Weir has accused Mr Tolson of misleading residents and reported him to the Standards Board for England.

The board is an independent body that investigates allegations of misconduct made against councillors.

Mr Tolson, 63, is being investigated over allegations he has a "prejudicial interest".

If found guilty, he faces a five-year ban from serving on any council.

Mr Weir pointed out Mr Tolson lived opposite the site and said: "This matter needs investigating."

The 53-year-old businessman, who moved to Amberley in 2001, said villagers had held secret meetings to scupper his modernisation plans.

Mr Tolson had written a report on behalf of the parish council objecting to the application, which were his own views.

Mr Weir said: "This has been brewing from day one.

"We get on very well with 85 per cent of parishioners in Amberley. They are a nice bunch. Unfortunately, there is a little clique."

He said Mr Tolson claimed in his report the entire council was against the development but he wanted evidence of this.

Mr Tolson, who moved to the hamlet in 1991 and has been council chairman for five years, said he didn't know which "report" the allegations referred to.

He confirmed he had written a letter of objection on behalf of the council over the application but said fellow councillors agreed with him.

The former IT manager said the caravan site was an eyesore and, if people stayed in the 14 caravans all year, it would double the size of the hamlet.

He said: "I've had nothing but full support from everyone I have spoken to about this. They're fully behind me."

Jake Garrod, a 19-year-old trainee chef at the Bridge Inn, opposite the caravan park, said letting people stay in the caravans all year would increase trade.

Feelings ran deeper among drinkers at the Black Horse pub in Amberley.

Resident Rob Albury said villagers feared the caravan modernisation was just a money-making scheme.

He said: "In this country, people get represented by their parish councillors and in Amberley they spend a lot of time trying to protect the village.

"The entire village is behind James and the council."

A spokeswoman for the Standards Board for England confirmed there was an investigation into Mr Tolson.

She said: "The allegation is he was seeking to improperly influence a decision in a matter in which there is a prejudicial interest and using his position to improperly confer or secure an advantage or disadvantage."