Community leaders will vote next week on the first phase of plans which would see more than 1,000 new homes and a primary school built in a growing town.

More than 220 acres of farmland will be used for the project, which will include a relief road, while 30% of the housing will be classified as affordable.

Maldon District Council will consider approving the proposals, which also include a care home and shops, by Countryside Properties (UK) Ltd for the first 160 homes in Maypole Road, Heybridge, at a planning committee meeting on April 7.

It would be the first phase of North Heybridge Garden Suburb, a mix-use development of up to 1,138 homes on the site.

A planning statement said: “The development of this site can offer a significant number of benefits to Heybridge that not only help to deliver the quantum of housing set out in within the development plan, but also create a high-quality residential environment, new community and leisure facilities and extensive hard and soft infrastructure that will benefit the population within the wider catchment area.”

The application up for approval next week will be the biggest of the three sites allocated.

In addition to the 160 houses, the application is also seeking permission for their appearance, landscaping, layout and scale, as well as vehicle access.

A relief road between Broad Street Green Road and Langford Road has been proposed as part of the wider scheme.

One of the parcels of land on which the first phase of houses would be built is located between the relief road and a spine road to the north and south.

According to the report, a 120-bed care home will be part of the wider scheme, along with a primary school and early years childcare facility.

Retail, commercial and community buildings, gas and electricity sub-stations, footpath and cycle links, on-site drainage and open space are also being proposed, but are not part of Phase One.

North Heybridge Garden Suburb would be built on a strategic site in the submitted Local Development Plan, according to the report.

No statutory consultees have objected to the proposals, although Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group noted the original outline application promised a financial contribution of £430,000 to local healthcare from the developer.