PLANS for a new housing development has been approved on the outskirts of a village near Northallerton, which will include nearly 40 per cent affordable housing.

Proposals to build a new 48-home development at Morton-on-Swale were recently approved by Hambleton District Council.

The development, by Shepherd Homes, will be situated on the western edge of the village, on the northern side of the A684.

It will include 19 affordable properties, seven of which will be three-bedroomed and the rest two-bedroomed and they would be a mix of housing available for rent and shared ownership.

The remainder of the 48 homes would be a mix of three and four-bedroomed properties for sale on the open market.

A total of eight letters of objection were sent to the council during consultation on the plans. The concerns ranged from loss of green space to queries over whether there was a demand for the housing.

Others raised the issue of the play area’s close proximity to the A684 and the potential danger to children trying to cross the busy A-road to reach the play area.

Some concerns were raised over potential contamination of the land from a former abattoir which used to be situated on the site.

One objector wrote to the council expressing concern that a proposed play area would be situated on the site of the old slaughterhouse.

The letter stated: “It would appear that the proposed child play area contains the site of an old slaughterhouse and is perhaps not the ideal area on which young children should be encouraged to play."

A site investigation was carried out by a specialist company, which did not discover any contamination in the soil samples taken. But a recommendation was made that if any contamination was found or suspected during development, that all work on the development should cease.

The officer’s report stated: “The previous use of the site as a slaughterhouse raised contamination concerns.

"However, a detailed survey has been submitted and the environmental health officer is satisfied that the soil samples tested showed no signs of contamination.”

The officer's’ report on the housing plans, which were approved this month, had proposed some slight amendments to the plans and stated it would be a “high quality” development.