A FRESH development bid has been launched with developers aiming to bring 39 homes to the town.

Developer Cabotlane Ltd, which is based in Sible Hedingham is looking for permission to build a new development in Halstead.

The 39 home bid was validated by the council on April 27 and looks to build the home on land off Oak Road.

It is the latest in a number of applications sent to Braintree Council to build homes in Halstead with bids for a total of 201 homes on Mount Hill and a further 200 on Bournebridge Hill raising fears over overdevelopment amongst residents.

Previous developments have seen residents raise concerns over the potential impact on the town's services.

Bids at the southern end of the town, which are placed out of the Halstead Town Council boundary, have also raised concerns with any new residents paying tax to Greenstead Green but using services in Halstead.

Oak Road itself has also been the subject of numerous development bids in recent years, such as a application to build up to 300 homes back in 2017 or a further 50 homes in 2018.

One resident said: "I am aware of the need for additional housing in England, however Halstead seems to have a disproportionate number of new houses being built in the area with further applications for land off the A131 near to the Oak Road junction will add to further urbanisation of the town.

"There is already added pressure on local services and amenities.

"Adding further dwellings to the area without increasing the infrastructure should not be allowed.

"During busy times even during local down it can take around one minute per car to get out of Oak Road onto the A131.

"Whilst this may not seem a long time it is in driving terms and additional vehicles using Oak Road when the St Andrews Gate and Oakwood Hills developments are finished will make this issue worse without adding additional vehicles from a new development.

"I believe that Halstead has already been developed to the maximum that a small town should expect and that the addition of these further dwellings will be detrimental to the local area.

But Cabotlane have outlined a number of reasons they feel the application should go ahead.

They say the 39 homes will contribute to Braintree Council's five year "housing land supply deficit" and the "the application site is located in a sustainable position, being immediately adjacent to the urban area of Halstead, one of the district’s main towns."

They added that the development would generate construction jobs and claimed "the site would not have a detrimental impact in respect to flood risk and drainage, transport and access, heritage, ecology, landscape, noise utilities, contamination or air quality."

Cabotlane Ltd said: "Overall, and on balance, when considering the economic, social and environmental elements of sustainable development as identified in the NPPF, it is concluded that the benefits of granting permission for the residential development of this site, which will deliver a boost to housing supply within the district, outweigh any limited adverse impacts.

"It is respectively requested that planning be granted in accordance with the presumption in favour of sustainable development, as set out in paragraph 11 of the NPPF."