PLANS to build up to 65 new homes on part of an RAF airfield near Selby have been unveiled.

The proposal, submitted to Selby District Council, aims to show that the land at RAF Church Fenton is suitable for a residential development and describes how the layout would work.

The authority is due to make a decision on the outline planning application, put forward by Tej Properties Ltd, in the summer.

The company said it would transform a “disused and derelict” and could help the area meet its housing targets.

A report drawn up by the developers said most of the buildings at the air base have been unused since 1992 – when it was closed, before being given a reprieve three years later as a home for the Yorkshire University Air Squadron following the closure of RAF Finningley – and are now in “a state of disrepair”.

The development would be built between an existing residential estate and the operational part of the air base, and the properties would be mainly family housing.

The report said the development would improve the area as it was sensitively planned, was well designed and fitted in well with its surroundings Tej Properties said its scheme would help knit Church Fenton together in terms of housing and would also provide extra open space for the village’s current residents. It also said that, while some buildings with “no architectural significance” would be demolished, others could be retained for future development to ensure “the historical use of the site will be maintained for future generations”.

The firm also said it had enlisted consultants to carry out an assessment of potential sites which would allow the council to achieve its targets for the number of new homes to be built over the next five years, and the findings had indicated the district only had enough land to meet housing supply needs for just over two-and-a-half years “at best”.