A decision on whether a controversial housing development can go-ahead will be made next week after last month's was delayed due to a council cyber attack.

More than 20 residents have objected to the plans for land at Bowthorn Farm in Cleator Moor.

At Copeland's last planning panel a decision was made to defer the meeting to a later date, as many of the objectors were not aware the meeting was taking place, claiming they had not been notified.

Planning panel chairman Michael McVeigh admitted the council "have had problems with the web" due to the cyber attack and councillor Joan Hully suggested the meeting was deferred, when all objectors would be able to speak.

The land is currently used for agricultural purposes and lies in open countryside.

Residents' concerns include inadequate access to the site; the volume of traffic impacting on highway safety; and the development setting a precedent for other larger scale schemes.

There has been one letter of support for the proposal. As the application is only at outline stage, there are no detailed plans about the houses but the applicant does indicate the site can accommodate up to eight homes.

Copeland Council has been unable to process planning applications and land searches during the period since the attack.

People have also experienced a delay in calls being answered by the Customer Service Team, and access to the council's website has been limited.

Councillors sitting on the planning panel are recommended to approve the plans in outline when they meet on Wednesday.

In a council report it says: "This site lies on the edge of Cleator Moor and is well related to existing residential development.

"The appearance, layout, scale, access, materials and landscaping of the development and its impacts will be considered during future reserved matters application."

The town council has also objected.

It says the development is in an area of land that has been mined for coal, access to the site is dangerous, the footway is too narrow and there is a potential increase in flooding due to capacity issues in the Nor Beck.