Broadland District Council has approved plans for 63 homes on the former Langley School site in Thorpe St Andrew, completing Berliet Ltd's Pinebanks development, which will deliver 543 homes across four sites.

The Langley South parcel had been the only section of the wider scheme to be refused when councillors met in January to consider all four sites together.

While they approved the other three - Pinebanks (260 homes), Langley North (90) and Griffin Lane (130) - officers' concerns over the risk of damage at an ancient woodland on the Langley South site led them to recommend refusal, a view the committee accepted at the time.

Firefighters at Pinebanks during a blaze in 2014 (Image: Archant)

Officers had recommended refusal again this week, again pointing to the need to protect the woodland, and arguing that its dense tree canopy would leave many of the proposed homes in heavy shade for much of the day.

Locals had also raised objections over the height of the height of some of the buildings, with one tower block initially designed to be six storeys high.

Although the revised plans cut the six-storey block down to four floors, many residents argued the changes did not go far enough.

One objector told the committee: "A reduction from an extreme height to a slightly lesser height is not a success - it is still a failure to meet local standards."

An aerial view of the whole site (Image: Google Maps)

Another said: "There's potential for a really nice development here. Don't just approve it as is and leave a blot on this lovely landscape."

The Langley South scheme has been substantially scaled back since it was first proposed, with an original target of 175 homes reduced to 70, and then cut again to 63 ahead of Wednesday's vote.

Councillors ultimately voted seven to two to overrule their officers, citing the need to prioritise brownfield development and address a shortfall in housing supply.

Liberal Democrat councillor Paul Auber said the site was precisely the kind of development the council should be supporting.

"We've seen far too many builders building outside the settlement zone," he said.

"Now we've got an opportunity to support one that's within it, in a well-supported area."

© Eastern Daily Press