A village's 800-strong population could increase by 50 per cent if Bradford Council's plans for a new housing development go ahead.

Planners have published a draft document detailing proposals to build 150 new homes on fields next to Airedale General Hospital in Eastburn.

The site has been designated for housing on Bradford's unitary development plan and now the authority is giving local folk six weeks to have their say about the scheme.

The proposed green field site lies between Skipton Road and Main Road, Eastburn, in the south, and Lyon Road, an unmade dirt track, to the north. Most of it is pasture land and the site also includes Eastburn House, a Grade II listed building.

Councillor Eric Dawson (Cons, Craven) is rallying opposition to the plan and has called on Bradford Council to extend the consultation period.

"Six weeks is not long enough. I have to consult the parish council and the public need time to digest the details.

"About 800 voters live in this village and another 400 people could come to live here. Villagers must have a say in this," he said.

He stressed there would be pressure on Eastburn junior school and nearby Steeton junior school and provision would need to be made to accommodate new pupils which the development would bring into the area.

A spokesman for Bradford Council said the site was suitable for 150 homes including some sheltered houses.

"One of the key elements to the development was the provision of pedestrian and cycle links and there would be plans for a footpath to link with Main Road, Eastburn," he said.

It is proposed that the site is accessed by a new roundabout from Main Road, and Green Lane, which bisects the site, would have to be closed to traffic but a link would be retained for pedestrians, horses and cyclists.

And about three quarters of an acre would be set aside for a children's play area and one and a half acres for outdoor sport.

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