Plan for housing estate near entry to national park

More than 150 homes could be built at the gateway to a popular national park.

Gleeson Homes is looking to build a 165-house development on the outskirts of Oxenholme, one of the main entry points to the Lake District via train and from the M6 via the A65.

Documents submitted to Westmorland and Furness Council show the development would be off the A65 Burton Road, on greenfield land between the train tracks on the edge of the hamlet and Brow Head Farm.

Those behind the scheme said a detailed layout was still being prepared and they requested if the Liberal Democrat-led authority required what is known as an environmental impact assessment (EIA).

EIAs provide planning authorities with details of the likely environmental effects of a project, so they can take it into account when deciding whether to approve or deny them.

They are used for larger developments, including for those with more than 150 homes, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Writing to the council on behalf of Gleeson Homes, director of chartered planners at McDonald Wilkinson Tonge, Harry Tonge, said he believed an EIA was not required, due to the development being "unlikely to result in significant effects on the environment".

He added the site had a low flood risk, although small areas were at "potential risk from surface water flooding".

The council's decision is pending.

Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram and listen to Radio Cumbria on BBC Sounds.