Arguments between residents, councillors and planning officers about parts of the Wellingborough North Sustainable Urban Extension (Sue) carried on well into the night after concerns with a legal report.

After more than two hours of discussion it was agreed that the document, which outlines the planning process behind the building of 3,000 new homes in Upper Redhill, would be carried forward.

However, the report must still be ratified at a full council meeting, where details of the document could be changed to make sure the development fulfils commitments to affordable housing and provision of infrastructure.

Cllr Graham Lawman, who sits on the development committee which talked about the plans, said: "For my part the concerns were that the wording was loose in certain areas.

"We didn't want to give too much opportunity for developers to interpret parts of the report. We want to make sure the end result is a policy that achieves something for the residents of the town."

Disagreements at the meeting on Wednesday centred on issues such as the amount of space between estates and villages and when infrastructure such as schools and health facilities would be built.

For example, the report said that "most development should be below the ridgeline when viewed from Little Harrowden", causing concerns that some development would be visible from the village.

Cllr Lawman also raised concerns that the number of homes that would be classed as affordable would only e 20 per cent.

The Core Spatial Strategy (CSS), which sets out the growth plans for Northamptonshire, insists on a 30 per cent affordable homes target for the whole area.

Residents affected by the development also raised their concerns.

Richard Lovett said: "You must consider what is in the best interests of the people affected by this development." Susan Suttle said: I am beginning to feel like a second- class citizen."