MORE than 200 new homes could be built on the edge of a village, under proposals being considered by council planners.

The Church Commissioners had already applied for outline planning permission to build up to 50 homes on land off Station Road, at the southern end of Coxhoe, south-east of Durham City.

Now major housebuilders Barratt David Wilson North East (BDW) have submitted proposals for 162 new homes nearby.

BDW are seeking full planning permission for a 16-acre plot adjoining the Church Commissioners’ land to the west, currently known as Bogma Hall Farm.

Both proposals are with Durham County Council and are expected to go before planning committees for final decisions in the coming months.

The Bogma Hall Farm estate would have homes with two, three and four bedrooms and be accessed off the A177.

It is a Greenfield site, though the homes would fill a gap between the edge of the village the main road running between Spennymoor and Sedgefield.

There would be around 32 homes per hectare.

Consultation with villagers took place in the church hall in May and the developers say this found “some community support” for the scheme.

In a supporting statement submitted with the planning application, Barratt Homes say the development would add to the overall quality of the surrounding area, establish a ‘strong sense of place’ and be visually attractive.

Further, they say the scheme has significant benefits and there is strong justification for granting planning consent.

The project would create around 43 construction jobs and bring the council a £1.4m New Homes Bonus and an extra £235,000 a year in council tax.

One parent has expressed concern that Coxhoe Primary School is “already at breaking point” and parking around the school, to the north of the site, is “absolute chaos”.

The council says the school has ten spare places but the new estate would bring an extra 40 pupils, so is asking BDW for a £273,000 contribution to the costs of expanding the school to cope.

The Church Commissioners are supporting the BDW scheme.

Public consultation on the BDW proposals runs until Tuesday, September 19, online at durham.gov.uk/planning, using the reference DM/14/02041/FPA.

Consultation on the Church Commissioners’ plans has closed but further details can be found on the same website, with the reference DM/14/00338/OUT.