Four mature trees have been felled in the grounds of Cotham School, causing an outcry among residents who live nearby.

The trees, believed to be more than 100 years old and which stood about 50ft high, were near the rear entrance to the school in Cotham Road.

They included a holm oak, two sycamores and a beech.

Cotham School is currently undergoing major rebuilding work by Skanska on behalf of Bristol City Council.

It stressed the trees had been knocked down to improve access and build a wheelchair ramp at the rear of the school – with planning approval from the city council.

Cotham Road resident Alison Bull, 49, said: "I left for work in the morning as I usually do and when I got home at lunchtime, they were gone.

"I could not believe it. I was absolutely shocked.

"They were beautiful trees which attracted wildlife and helped to create a screen for the school.

"It's a devastating loss of beauty and privacy for this neighbourhood."

Roger Mortimer, from the Redland and Cotham Amenities Society, said: "We keep a close watch on planning applications and there was no mention that these trees were going to come down whatsoever.

"We were really shocked to see these trees had been felled. It's not just that they are so important from an amenity point of view, but environmentally, we must do what we can to protect tree cover."

Vassili Papastavrou from pressure group, www.BristolStreetTrees.org, said: "This is absolutely outrageous and yet another example of trees being removed unnecessarily in Bristol.

"I went to meetings on site and we were promised a 'green' building project. How wrong we were to take them seriously."

Councillor Neil Harrison (Lib Dem, Cotham), who has now taken up the residents' complaint, is demanding answers and compensation for the community.

He claimed the trees were felled without permission.

He said: "The developers had submitted a landscape diagram asking for them to go, but this had not been granted.

"The site is in a Conservation Area and you can't just rip trees out without permission or consulting with local residents.

"This is a shameful lapse in procedure.

"I am pushing for whoever is responsible to compensate our local community with the full monetary value of the lost trees.

"As a starting point, they should replace the lost trees as a matter of urgency – and with substantial semi-mature trees, not tiny little saplings."

Rob Richley, for Skanska, said: "To make way for the new entrance and access ramp, it has been necessary to remove a small number of trees. This work was included in the overall planning consent given by Bristol City Council last November.

"A condition of planning consent was that a further expert assessment of the development's implications for trees on the site be submitted. This assessment, which detailed the existing trees to be removed, was submitted to the city council on December 22. "

Skanska and its partners in the Bristol Local Education Partnership, the city council's children's department and the Government agency Partnerships for Schools, always seek to ensure that all planning conditions are complied with before any work begins, he added.

"On this occasion, a small number of trees were removed before formal written approval had been received, which was expected by March 12.

"As part of the landscaping work agreed with the city council, the trees that have been removed will be replaced with new ones nearby, and in addition many more new trees will be planted elsewhere on the site."