THERE were jubilant scenes in a usually-peaceful council committee room, after controversial plans for almost 270 new houses in a village were firmly rejected.

During a meeting on Wednesday (July 8), Darlington Borough Council's planning committee considered two separate applications for homes in Middleton St George, on the outskirts of the town.

The village has been repeatedly targeted by housing developers in recent years, despite protests from sections of the community that it is 'bursting at the seams' and lacks the infrastructure to cope with additional homes.

In January, plans for 250 homes were granted on appeal, after an inspector ruled the council's planning policies were out of date.

An outline application for up to 200 homes off High Stell, in the village, was thrown out after planners heard that the proposed access to the site would turn a quiet residential street into a busy main road.

Earlier, plans for 69 homes on a greenfield site off Middleton Lane, between Middleton St George and Middleton One Row, had been rejected, after opponents said the development would lead to a blurring of the boundary between the two villages.

Both decisions were greeted with cheers and applause from the dozens of people gathered in the public gallery at Darlington Town Hall, where there was standing room only.

It remains to be seen whether that jubilation could turn to despair if the applicants choose to appeal the council decision, perhaps sensing a precedent has been set by outcome of the appeal in January.

Committee members heard more than 450 letters of objection had been received against both applications, while more than 1,000 people signed a petition calling for an end to over-development in the village.

Alistair Willis, on behalf of Gentoo Group Limited, the applicant in the 69-home Middleton Lane proposal, said the group was confident refusal would be overturned on appeal.

Doris Jones, ward and parish councillor for the village, highlighted the impact over-population has had on education in the village.

She said: "If a single further house is built in Middleton St George, children will have nowhere to go to school.

"Parents are already having to send their children to schools in Darlington and we have even heard of families turning to Cleveland for their children's education.

"That is totally unacceptable and isn't in the interests of Darlington, let alone Middleton St George."

Resident Christine Thornley spoke out against both developments and, with reference to the Middleton Lane proposal, said the "unsuitable, unsustainable" plans would "irreparably change the character of the village".