Plans for a development of up to 150 houses have been backed by councillors.

Middlesbrough Council’s planning committee unanimously agreed to grant permission ‘in principle’ for the housing proposal for the 5.8 hectare piece of land, which forms part of the wider council-owned Hemlington Grange site plans.

Details including access layout and scale will be considered at the reserved matters stage further along the planning process.

A report from council officers to the committee said the Hemlington Grange South site, to the west of the B1365, “provides an opportunity to create a high quality development” and will contribute to the regeneration of the wider area.

Opportunity to enhance the environmental value of the site through the creation of green corridors, tree planting and links to surrounding areas would also available at a later stage, said officers.

Neighbours at 51 nearby homes were consulted and no comments were received. Northern Gas Networks objected on the grounds its plant, which runs along the eastern boundary of the site, could be affected by the proposed works.

The report said consideration would be given at the reserved matters stage with the proposed site layout taking into account the location of the plant. Initial assessments regarding potential impacts on traffic, ecology, environmental health and flooding have been carried out and were not found to be “harmful”, said the report.

The report concluded: “The proposed outline application for the development of the site for between 130 and 150 dwellings with all matters reserved has been assessed in relation to relevant local and national planning policies and is considered to be in accordance with their requirements.”

The Hemlington Grange site is included in Middlesbrough Council’s local plan – its long term blueprint for development which identifies areas deemed suitable for house builds. The plan identifies a need for 400 new homes each year, meaning by 2041, 7,600 new homes need to be built across the town.

Under the plan, the whole Hemlington Grange site would be developed to create a total of 1,230 dwellings – of which around 850 have already been granted full permission – and eight hectares of land for employment purposes. The plan also includes controversial proposals for new housing developments at Newham Hall and Nunthorpe Grange.

In respect of housing at Nunthorpe Grange, a failure to secure a ‘ransom strip’ of land for pedestrian access led to a proposal by Permisson Homes for 69 homes at the site being rejected by the planning committee last Thursday.

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In February, the council’s executive agreed to dispose of farmland at Newham Hall which could be developed for approximately a thousand homes.

The local authority will act as the “master developer” for the site, which means it will be financially responsible for bringing it forward for phased disposal and marketing. 

A planning application is expected to be submitted in August with the site being marketed for sale via a formal competitive tender process in April next year.