COUNCILLORS have been advised to recommend plans to build sheds housing 128,000 chickens at a beauty spot.

The owners of Manor Farm, in Low Dinsdale, near Darlington, have submitted plans to Darlington Borough Council to erect three broiler units in fields next to the village.

The application has been recommended for approval by the council’s planning officers ahead of a meeting next Wednesday (March 13).

If approved, the sheds, measuring 104m by 25m and housing 42,666 chickens each, would be built metres away from the farm's existing four broiler sheds, which currently produce about one million chickens every year.

The council has received eight objection letters from residents, and the Campaign to Protect Rural England has also objected to the development, saying the smell when the sheds are cleared at the end of the breeding cycle will have a negative impact on the area, as well as the increased traffic by lorries and impact of sheds on the landscape.

The Low Dinsdale Action Group, made up of residents from the village and the surrounding area, is also campaigning against the plans, claiming the smell from the existing four sheds is “appalling” and leaves them with no choice but to keep windows shut and not hang washing out on certain days.

However the report states the sheds would not have any negative impact on the appearance of the site and would not cause any harm to nearby listed buildings.

The plans have been recommended for approval, subject to a number of conditions. If these are followed, the report states: “The development would not give rise to conditions that would prejudice the amenities of nearby residents or human rights considerations nor would it adversely affect environmental protection or highway safety considerations.”

The committee will meet at 1.30pm on Wednesday (March 13) in Darlington town hall.