PLANS for a new village of 4,000 homes near Green Hammerton have been submitted.

Developer Oakgate Group is proposing to build a new community around Cattal railway station and, following two public consultations, an outline planning application has been submitted to Harrogate Borough Council.

The new neighbourhood would be called Maltkiln Village.

A spokesman for the developer said a new settlement of at least 3,000 homes is needed as part of Harrogate’s Local Plan and the council would prefer the development to be built near Cattal.

The new village would include two primary schools, shops, a village hall and a doctors’ surgery. Two new roundabouts would replace crossroads on the A59 near the site and there would also be improvements to Cattal station, including two new car parks.

Richard France, managing director of Oakgate Group, which is based in Wetherby, said: “Maltkiln Village represents the best and most sustainable location for Harrogate Borough Council’s proposed new settlement.

“As a result of consultation, we have made a number of amendments to the proposals. The site boundary has also been extended to allow for more defined communities around the main village centre, while maintaining a sensible distance from existing villages such as Green Hammerton, Kirk Hammerton, Whixley and Cattal.

“I’d like to thank members of the community for participating in the public consultation and helping to shape the design for the site.”

He added that 4.5 hectares of the 263-hectare site would be dedicated to providing office and workspaces.

And he said a number of people had requested more bungalows and housing that residents could downsize to, and that this will be considered at a later stage of the application.

If planning permission is granted, construction work is expected to start at the site in late 2020 and the first homes would be completed in 2022.