A new 81-home development at Stainburn is set to go ahead.

Genesis Homes has the green light to develop part of land near Stainburn Hall Farm which has been identified for 130 new houses in Allerdale Council’s recently-adopted local plan, provided it signs an agreement to make four of the homes affordable, contribute £15,525 towards highways work and give details of how it will manage public open spaces and surface water drainage.

The project was considered by the council’s development panel on Tuesday after it was referred by Janet King, ward councillor for Stainburn and Clifton, due to concerns over a lack of local services, limited play areas for children, the proposed housing layout and the environmental impact.

Other local residents worried about the impact on nearby roads which they already felt needed to be improved.

But Councillor Andrew Semple, who moved approval of the officer’s recommendation to allow planning and building control manager Simon Sharp to grant permission once the agreement was signed, said: “The overriding thing for me is I’ve listened to the objectors but it seems to be a development that the area needs.”

Councillor Elaine Lynch seconded Coun Semple’s motion and said she was comfortable with the county council recommendations for the speed limit to be reduced to 40mph on part of Stainburn Road and a crossing to be created.

The motion was amended to include a requirement for hedgehog holes as suggested by Councillor Janet Farebrother.

A written statement from developer Genesis Homes claimed the plans would result in investment of £15million in the local area – about a third of which of would be on local labour – and employ more than 100 people.

They said: “This is a high-quality housing scheme and we welcome the officer’s recommendation for approval, having worked tirelessly over the past six months to meet the objectives of the district with this flagship housing development.”

Objector Ian Massey had asked the panel to consider the implications of 130 homes on the site, not just the 81 proposed in the planning application, as that was how many had been allocated in the council’s local plan.

He had concerns about the road, wildlife and the potential impact on electricity or water supplies and suggested councillors should arrange a site visit.

The lack of services was also raised by local resident Janice Lee, who was concerned by the increase in traffic on Moor Road, which she said was “an accident waiting to happen."

A motion from Councillor Alan Smith to defer a decision and ask Cumbria County Council to look again at improvements to nearby roads failed as the vote ended 5-5 and chair Malcolm Grainger had the casting vote against.

Mr Sharp advised councillors that the local infrastructure had already been examined during the production of the Allerdale Local Plan (Part 2), which was approved by full council at a virtual meeting last week.