Plans for 23 Newton Aycliffe homes approved despite objections

The new estate is proposed for the junction of Pease Way and Horndale Avenue

Plans for 23 new homes on open land in Newton Aycliffe have been approved despite local objections.

Opponents said the estate, at the junction of Pease Way and Horndale Avenue, went against the green space ethos of the post-war new town.

Developer Adderstone Living said the site would provide "much-needed" affordable housing.

Durham County Council approved the plan on condition the developer pays £36,000 for nearby open-space provision.

Residents said the site was historically significant due to its proximity to the former home of Lord Beveridge - an architect of the welfare state and the first chairman of the Aycliffe Development Corporation.

Opponents said the New Town Aycliffe concept devised by Lord Beveridge, who lived at nearby 57 Cumby Road, sought for the site to be retained as green open space and any new development would go against that and impact the history of the town, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

One objector, Gareth Elvidge, said: "It is inconceivable that Lord Beveridge's vision for new towns and the green spaces within them is being destroyed by proposing to allow 23 houses to be cramped in the land historically associated with the house that was built for him during the construction of the new town."

Seven letters of objection were sent to the local authority including from Great Aycliffe Parish Council who objected over the site's "inadequate" parking.

Adderstone Living said the "under-utilised" site would consist of two, three and four-bedroom homes and would provide "much-needed" bungalows, with both affordable rent and rent-to-buy tenures on site.