A NORTH Yorkshire council is one of only four in the country to receive Government approval for part of its local development plan.

Hambleton District Council's core strategy, part of its Local Development Framework (LDF), was declared sound by a Government inspector who made minor amendments and retained the policies drawn up by the council.

The strategy, the first in the North to gain approval, will guide all future developments in Hambleton until 2021.

It contains the council's vision, objectives and policies on key issues and covers the scale and distribution of housing and employment developments as well as targets for affordable housing.

Steve Quartermain, director of planning and environmental services, said: "It is very important that the vision for Hambleton is one that the local community could sign up to - we listened to their views and included them when we mapped out the strategy."

Councillor John Fletcher, cabinet member for planning, said: "To be one of the first councils in the country to have its core strategy accepted by the Government is a tribute to the hard work put into preparing it and we can all be justifiably proud."

The strategy will be adopted in April, then a second LDF document on development policies will be examined this summer.