A DEVELOPER has unveiled plans for a multi-million pound hotel and leisure complex on the outskirts of a North-East market town.

The proposed 120-room hotel and golf complex at Humbleton Camp, near Barnard Castle, County Durham, promises to be one of the biggest in the region.

The developers say that the complex could provide hundreds of jobs and revitalise the local economy.

It will include an 18-hole golf course, a spa, a leisure club and holiday lodges.

The complex, if approved, would be built on the site of a former army camp by developer Primula Ltd.

Primula will appoint the Club Domaine Group to run the complex once it is finished. The company manages three sites in Cornwall and one in Scotland.

A Primula spokesman said: "We're really excited about this project.

"The company has aimed for something that is top of the market, and we really think it will benefit local people.

"The Club Domaine Group has a history of working on leisure complexes and has a policy of using local people and local businesses wherever possible.

"It's thought that when the development is completed it will employ in excess of 200 people and will bring millions of pounds into the local economy.

"We will try and recruit as locally as possible."

Plans for the hotel are due to be submitted to Teesdale District Council. If permission is given, Primula hopes work can start next year.

Darlington company Nivens Architects has been appointed to design the hotel and leisure complex.

Primula is carrying out environmental and highway surveys on the site and said the development will be carried out as sensitively as possible.

It is hoped old farm buildings can be incorporated into the golf complex.

An exhibition to allow the public a chance to view plans and give comments is to be held in Barnard Castle.

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