A planning application for up to 140 homes and a shop to be built in Barkway has been deferred by North Herts Council's Planning Committee, pending a report from Herts Ecology.

During a meeting on Tuesday night, the controversial plans were discussed, with objectors and supporters putting their cases to the committee.

The applicant is seeking outline planning permission for up to 140 homes on land between Royston Road and Cambridge Road, with all matters reserved except access.

Newsells Park Stud manager Julian Dollar said: "The land surrounding BK3 is our best land for rearing young horses. This is ancient pasture, being originally old parkland that has been grassed for centuries.

"This is why the land immediately around BK3 was selected to become a stud farm 100 years ago and why we continue to focus our efforts on raising foals in this small corner of the stud.

"The building of 140 houses at BK3 would have a massive, detrimental affect on our ability to utilise this land, as it simply would no longer be safe to do so. Horses are fight or flight animals.

"A housing development like BK3 and all its associated noises and disturbances, built immediately adjacent to our best grazing is inevitably going to pose a massive safety risk - to the safety of our horses, particularly the foals, where no amount of buffering, as set out in the committee report, is ever going to mitigate.

"Equally, we can't afford to risk the welfare of our horses by grazing them in the paddocks adjacent to public rights of way."

He went on to say that without the appropriate grazing available, there's potential for the stud to close, putting around 40 jobs at risk.

The site was earmarked in North Herts Council's Local Plan, which is set to be adopted after a lengthy process which saw the housing need requirement for the district reduce from 14,000 homes over the plan period to 11,600.

In the final Local Plan report, Inspector Simon Berkeley said of the site: "Overall, I consider it unnecessary for soundness to delete Site BK3 or to amend Barkway’s position in the settlement hierarchy. The main modification identifying it as a settlement for growth therefore remains justified, effective and necessary."

In support, David Fletcher, for the applicant, said: "This application is an allocated site within the Local Plan.

"As I think most people here would acknowledge there's an acute need for housing in North Herts. At a Local Plan stage there are a lot of difficult decisions made about what sites to allocate. It's very important to note in this regard that this is one of the few remaining sites that's not within the Green Belt.

"The impact of the stud was considered in detail by the Planning Inspector within his report.

"We recognise the parish council has been strongly objecting to the scheme, and understand they would want to have continued engagement in the event that the planning application is granted. I wanted to put on record from our perspective that we are committed to that continued engagement."

The council moved to defer a decision on the plans due to concerns around sewage works and required upgrades. Concerns had been raised with regards to the impact on the River Quin.

Further details from consultee Herts Ecology are to be sought ahead of the decision.