Plans for 66 homes in a village near Grantham are recommended for approval when the planning committee of South Kesteven District Council meets later this month.

Larkfleet Homes seeks to build on 2.65 ha of open fields to the the south east of Corby Glen.

The site is off Bourne Road with the fire station and Charles Read Academy to the north west and Swinstead Road to the south west.

The application for full planning permission will come before councillors at the Wednesday January 20 meeting of the planning committee as due to its size, it is considered a major application.

The key issues are the principle of development, impact on the character of the area and the impact on highway safety.

A report by SKDC planning staff, prepared for the meeting, says the application site forms a current edge of settlement site.

However, it is part of a wider Local Plan allocation for residential development of 250 homes that expands from the site south east to include the adjoining fields.

The initial Larkfleet development would include access from both Swinstead Road and Bourne Road, providing an east-west link

through the site and with all dwellings accessed directly off this road or via small private drives. The 66 dwellings proposed include 30% affordable housing, with a split of house types and sizes with all market and affordable dwellings of 2, 3 and 4 bedrooms. Of the 66 dwellings proposed, all bar 14 are two storey in height,with the remaining 14 dwellings 2.5 storeys. The proposed dwellings are split as follows: Market Housing: 2x 2beds, 23x 3 beds, 21x 4 beds; Affordable Housing: 12x 2 beds, 8x 3 beds. The house types proposed vary between 68sqm (2 bed) to

133sqm (4 bed) and include 10 different house types across the site. The proposed house types include different materials of reconstituted stone to the outward facing dwellings that

front to both Bourne Road and Swinstead Road together with 9 further dwellings in the site including the corner turn dwellings, with all internal dwellings either Ibstock Melton Blend

(red multi brick) and Hanson Atherstone (buff brick).

The reconstituted stone to be used to the frontage dwellings mimics that used on a small recent development close by on Bourne Road.

The report noted the application has been amended through the application process, with a revision down from 68 dwellings to the 66 dwellings now proposed, together with amendments to the layout, landscaping and drainage to take account of comments from consultees and the case officer.

There are also Section 106 requests for £233,761 towards secondary and sixth form education and for £43,560 towards the Market Cross Surgery.

The report says public consultation led to two lettters of representation from the community reporting concerns over the impact on schools, parking within the village, and impact on traffic through the village.

However, the report says the Highway Authority is satisfied that the development can be accommodated within the existing highway network without adversely impacting upon highway safety or capacity.

The site is also 'sustainable' as it is located close to services and facilities including a Co-op, two pubs, primary school, secondary

school and GP practice. Therefore, the development meets a range of planning policies and is recommended for approval.