Homes are likely to be built in a North Yorkshire suburb - 30 years after they were first sanctioned.

Bovis Homes is seeking planning permission for 42 houses in Starbeck, on land off The Avenue and Diamond Place, an area which is overgrown and derelict.

The firm envisages a mix of house types, from five-bedroom to two, and suggest that 17 of the homes should fall into the "affordable" category.

Planning officers have revealed that as far back as 1972, there was a consent for up to 25 homes on the site.

But, although work started on roads and sewers, little else was done, and part of the area was given over to allotments.

In spite of 33 protests from neighbours, Harrogate Civic Society and Starbeck Residents' Association, approval is being recommended for the scheme.

First, the developers will have to agree to pay for leisure provision either on or near the site, for a link from the estate to a nearby cycleway, and for traffic calming along The Avenue, which is already heavily used as access to Harrogate's busiest road, the A59 to Knaresborough and Skipton.