A MODERN 'eco-house' has been given the green light by councillors.

Blackburn with Darwen Council Planning Committee approved the four-storey home with four bedroom and a balcony.

The scheme - on land near 'Ashdale' in Astley Bank, Darwen - was backed by borough regeneration boss Cllr Phil Riley and Liberal Democrat Cllr Paul Browne.

It was opposed by Conservative committee members after all three Darwen South Tory councillors objected over flooding and access fears.

The approved application permits the demolition of an existing timber workshop and its replacement by the new split level ' contemporary eco-house' with high levels of energy saving insulation, high performance solar controlled glazing and a state-of-the-art mechanical ventilation/heat recovery system.

Cllr Riley said: "It feels like the sort of house that we should be encouraging in the borough. It clearly has a whole series of environmentally-acceptable features."

Cllr Browne: "I think this is a damn good idea and hopefully the first of many."