Developers behind a project that could see more than 450 homes built in Carlisle are moving forward with plans to submit a new planning application.

Persimmon Homes are pushing on with plans for a major housing development off Orton Road in Carlisle.

The site, located on land at New House Farm, was designated for development in the City Council’s Carlisle District Local Plan 2015-2030.

Outline planning permission was granted in 2018 for 480 homes, with the developers asking the city council if an environmental assessment will be required ahead of submitting a new application for planning permission.

If such an assessment is needed, Persimmon must submit it as part of its next application. Included in the proposals is a 30 per cent affordable homes provision.

Carlisle City Council's member for the area Councillor James Bainbridge hopes the plan will benefit local residents.

“I’m not surprised that the site has attracted renewed interest from developers," he said. "The land involved already has a degree of outline permission from 2017, before either myself or my fellow ward councillors were elected.

“With any upcoming application I will be actively seeking that planning contributions to local services – called ‘section 106 agreements’ – are sought that can benefit the wider community in the ward. In many cases, residents in the west of Carlisle still have to travel by car to reach local services and facilities such as a GP or dentist.

“For example in terms of doing a weekly shop, a resident in Sandsfield and Morton West still has to get in their car, whereas a resident in Belah, as well as having a purpose-built GP facility on their doorstep, is practically falling over supermarkets. As these developments come forward, community services in the west of the city need to be levelled up as well.”

A spokesman for Persimmon Homes Lancashire said: “We are in the very early stages of preparing a new planning application for the land known as Newhouse Farm, Newby West, Carlisle.

“As our proposed scheme would be for more than 150 units, we need to establish whether an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is required and are therefore seeking a ‘screening opinion’ from the Local Planning Authority."