A SEATON mother has said she has faced 'many sleepless nights' over a planning application for 180 new homes which are planned for directly opposite her house - as she urges councillors to 'stand up for Seaton' when the application is decided on next week.

Emily Ashbridge, who has lived in Seaton all her life, is among the residents in the village objecting to plans that Story Homes have submitted for 180 new homes on land off Seaton Road.

She currently lives on Seaton Road alongside her partner and daughter, with her home located directly opposite one of two new junctions the estate will introduce.

Cumberland councillors will meet at a planning committee next Thursday, April 25 to decide on the plans, with Emily urging the members to 'do what's morally right' on the day.

An officer's report says that 299 objections had been raised against the site on the land at Year Rise northeast of Calva Farm, though the application has been recommended for approval by council officers.

Speaking about the application, Emily said: "We have seen a massive increase in traffic since we moved here in 2020. When we moved here it was still kind of Covid restrictions. We are finding it increasingly hard to get on and off our drive, we find a lot of speeding... even just walking up to the village with the pram can be quite terrifying at times, because the pavement isn't very wide.

"That's sort of our biggest concern but then, that aside, there is also concerns about the schools, access to the shops... it's just getting ridiculous."

Emily has said she does not feel very hopeful about the decision, after saying she was 'quite shocked' to see an application for 99 homes in low Seaton approved by Cumberland Council, but she has urged councillors to think of the people of Seaton.

She said: "I appreciate that there is is a need for new housing and that they have got targets to meet, but they have got to do the right thing for the people of Seaton and for the people that live here and have to live in a community, and send their children to school.

"They have got to look at it from our point of view and do what's morally right and not what's meeting targets." 

The application for 180 new dwellings and associated landscaping and infrastructure on land at Year Rise northeast of Calva Farm was first put forward by Story Homes Ltd in December 2022. 

The development proposal encompasses a mixture of housing types, including nine bungalows, nine terraces, 66 semi-detached, and 96 detached dwellings. If given the green light, the proposal will bring the provision for 18 'affordable homes'. 

A spokesperson for Story Homes, said: “Our proposals have been carefully considered to address concerns relating to infrastructure capacity and highway safety, and we have worked collaboratively with the relevant authorities to design proposals that will mitigate such concerns and deliver benefits to the local community.

“Following a thorough consultation period and engagement with authority bodies relating to highways, education and utilities, no concerns have been raised by statutory authorities regarding an adverse impact on existing infrastructure on this site, which has been allocated for residential development within the Council’s adopted Local Plan.

“The proposed scheme would deliver highway improvements on Seaton Road and would make an important contribution towards housing delivery, including the provision of 18 new affordable homes for local people. Areas of public open space, including an equipped area of play, would also be delivered on-site and would be accessible to the local community. Other benefits would include new landscaped areas which will offer ecological and biodiversity enhancement, electric vehicle charging points to each home, as well as sustaining and creating hundreds of jobs for local people.”