An order of silent Carthusian monks is embroiled in a war of words with local residents over its plans to build a £3 million 16-home luxury new home development on the 250-acre estate of its dilapidated Sussex monastery.

The monks, who all take a vow of silence and wear white robes, come from a Carthusian order first founded in 1150 by St Bruno and are one of only two English-speaking (or thinking!) Carthusian orders in the world. They first moved over from France in 1887, when the Chateau-style St Hugh's Charterhouse Monastery, was built. The male-only order has been preserved ever since, with the monks devoting all their time to prayer and meditation.

However, the lifestyle of the monks has come under threat due to the appalling state of their grade-II listed monastery, which requires urgent repairs to address severe problems of rot, damp and leaky roofing. Up until now, the order has been sustained with financial help from the mother-house in Chartreuse, while the listed-status of the building has resulted in grants of around £1.5 million from English Heritage. But now the money has run out and the monks have come up with the property plans as a way of paying for the repairs.

John Warren, spokesman for the order, said: "Basically the whole building needs a thorough overhaul and the new homes will raise £3 million to pay for it. The site near Littleworth was chosen because it is the best site on the monastery's estate, as it attaches to an existing community. It would be wrong to scatter such a development around the countryside. The local authority advised the parish council of the proposal at an early stage so residents' views were taken into account."

The monks want to sell plots for housing and create a new village green on the estate near West Grinstead in West Sussex. Although this would not take place near to the monastery in order to protect the privacy of the monks, the development site would be overlooked by the village of Littleworth, something which the residents are entirely unhappy about.

Denise Baldwin, clerk of West Grinstead parish council, said: "We're a tiny hamlet, just a pub and only around 70 residents. The general feeling is that residents do not want this development. The houses would not blend in here and they would change the nature and character of the place. The houses they want to build are extremely expensive. We feel the sort of people who could afford them are not the type of people who would contribute to the community. It's a long way from the monastery. Some people feel that the order is inconveniencing Littleworth so it doesn't inconvenience itself."

Horsham district council has turned down the planning application, which is now being considered by the Planning Inspectorate.