A decision on plans for 70 homes in Stowupland have been deferred as a result of progress with neighbourhood plans.

Mid Suffolk District Council’s development control committee B met on Wednesday, January 30 to discuss an application by Gladman Developments Ltd to build 70 homes on land south of Gipping Road.

But the committee has deferred the decision as the examination stage of Stowupland’s neighbourhood plan was completed shortly before the meeting, meaning the planning reports presented to the committee needed to be redrawn to give the plan more weight.

Neighbourhood plans are put together by parish and town councils alongside the district to outline areas suitable and not suitable for development in a community.

As the stages of a neighbourhood plan progress, more weight must be given to the emerging plans when making decisions on planning applications.

It is not yet clear when the application will return to the committee.

Stowupland Parish Council had formally objected to the application as the land was not allocated for development in the emerging neighbourhood plan, as well as concerns over the detrimental impact to the village character, development of high quality agricultural land and access via the A1120.