Thousands of more homes will become available in the Leicester area over the next 15 years after a huge new planning project was given the go-ahead by local councillors.

Councillors gave their backing to the biggest planning proposal ever submitted to Charnwood Borough Council with a vote of seven to five in favour of the multi-million-pound project that could be completed by 2029.

The £445 million scheme covering 800 acres will see 4,500 new houses being built on what is currently farmland sitting on Leicester’s north-east boundary, close to Hamilton.

The proposals have met with some vocal opposition, and over 100 residents were at the Loughborough Town Hall meeting when the decision to allow the project to go ahead was made. There were many concerns, but there also seems to be plenty of support in the local area, particularly from those who believe there is a need for more housing.

Councillors decided to go along with the recommendation for approval from officers of the council, paving the way for around 15,000 people potentially to live on the site. There are also plans for new schools, parks and business areas, along with a new road that supporters claim will alleviate current problems with congestion.

The developers of the project, the Pochin Trust and the Commercial Estates Group, claim the development will lead to million of pounds in investment from the private sector and will help Charnwood Borough Council to meet targets set by central government regarding the provision of housing land. The developers’ agent, Nick Thompson, described the project as creating a completely new, ‘fully functioning’ community.

The homes look set to be built over a number of phases spanning the next 15 years and will create the biggest single housing development in the whole of Leicestershire. The project was first tabled in 2008.

There is currently a judicial review under way, however, as a result of the size of the scheme, and there has been criticism that Charnwood’s planning committee should have held back on a decision until the government inspector’s report had been received. This report is likely to be released early in 2015.

A decision on the development, which would sit on farmland surround Thurmaston, Barkby Thorpe and Barkby, was deferred by councillors at a meeting in October 2014 as a result of last-minute submissions being made. All parties seem to agree that housing will be built on the land, but there continue to be murmurings about how big the final project should actually be.