PLANS for a major housing development in a market town will be examined next week.

Persimmon Homes (Yorkshire) Limited wants to build 84 houses and a car park to serve Easingwold Primary School, on land near Prospect Farm, Easingwold.

The scheme includes 17 house types, including apartments and one, two, three and four-bedroom houses.

They would be two to three storeys high, and 21 of them will be affordable housing.

The site lies mainly outside the development limits of Easingwold, and has been used for an animal feed plant.

Easingwold Town Council does not support the plans, and North Yorkshire County Council said there would be a shortfall of places at the primary school if the houses were built.

Its officials said a contribution of £137,000 from Persimmon will be needed to help provide 16 school places.

The proposals have been criticised by the Hambleton branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England. The group said it was an example of a "could-be-anywhere" development unrelated to the town.

Selby and York Primary Care Trust said that dentists' facilities in Easingwold would not have space to cope with the rise in population.

Three letters were received by Hambleton District Council from people living nearby, who said the scheme would lead to more traffic and put pressure on schools and health services.

However, they also said that the proposed estate looked attractive and would be an improvement on the buildings on the site.

The council's planning officer Tim Wood said the plans should be refused permission because the site is outside the town's development limits.

He said: "The scheme shows a range of house types and sizes, including large three-storey properties that are of a different scale to any of the surroundings. The height and mass of the buildings will have an impact beyond the boundary of the site."

He also recommended that a decision should be deferred until May 5 because Persimmon is preparing extra information in support of the scheme.

Hambleton district councillors will carry out a site visit on Monday and will discuss the plans at the Civic Centre, Northallerton, on Thursday.