PLANS for a 141-home estate near Houghton-le-Spring have been approved.

This week, councillors nodded through amended plans from Persimmon Homes Durham for land north of Coaley Lane, Newbottle.

The developer already had planning permission for 130 homes on the site, but Sunderland City Council's area development control sub-committee this week approved an extra 11 units.

A planning report, presented to councillors at Sunderland Civic Centre, said 14 three-bedroom affordable homes will be provided on the site.

Vehicles and pedestrians will access the site from Blind Lane.

However, Coun Mel Speding asked why a roundabout wasn’t considered for the estate, similar to the Miller Homes development on the former Lambton Cokeworks site.

“Blind Lane was subject to a 60mph limit,” he said.

“Shiney Row ward councillors, as you remember, campaigned long and hard to get the area reduced to a 40mph, with that was the inclusion of the roundabout into Miller Homes.

“I can’t understand now with the increase in homes, why we will be exposing traffic accessing this site from a direct right turn across oncoming traffic when it possibly should have been a roundabout.”

He added:”Simply there has been and there will be an increase of traffic on that road.”

However, council officers said the extra 11 homes would not warrant a change to the Blind Lane access.

Persimmon Homes is also building 147 properties off Coaley Lane.

The developer will carry out ecology works to Russell Wood north of the site by June. Paul Hunt, for Persimmon, said the plans would provide areas of open space and a contribution towards affordable housing, education and play space.

A request from Sunderland’s Clinical Commissioning Group for £98,400 towards health services in the area it was knocked back by planners due to lack of evidence.