COUNCILLORS at the north end of Darlington have issued a plea for a new housing estate to receive full services from the local authority.

The Harrowgate Farm estate has been under construction for more than four years, with the last property built 18 months ago.

However, the estate has yet to be "adopted" by Darlington Borough Council - meaning that responsibility for services such as roads, pavements and sewers remains with the developers.

And last night, it emerged that the adoption may not happen for up to three months.

The area's three ward councillors have urged the authority to speed up the adoption procedure.

Councillors Liz Hart, John Vasey and Emma Vasey-Smith also called for the estate's roads to be given a 20mph speed limit as soon as possible - a feature which had previously been promised.

Councillor Vasey said: "Residents have had to wait too long for the estate's adoption.

"Currently, if a street light is out for example, they contact the council, which then has to speak to the developer, which can take too long.

"Residents pay council tax like everyone else and deserve the same level of service."

He added: "I would also hope that we will not have to wait long for the estate to be formally made into a 20mph zone.

"With the traffic-calming in place to make the roads safer for residents, all that is needed now are the signs telling everyone to keep below 20mph across Harrowgate Farm estate."

Last night, however, a council spokeswoman insisted that all efforts were being made, but the matter may not be concluded until well into the New Year.

She said: "The developer looks after the estate at the moment and so all the services should be delivered.

"We are in the process of adopting the estate and it should be completed within the next few months."

She added: "We are looking at a 20mph limit for the estate and the road infrastructure is suitable for that to happen."