A school expansion plan near Coalville has been approved despite existing parking concerns.

Hugglescote Community Primary School is to get a new building to help meet growing pupil numbers.

The school has space for 525 pupils, with 468 currently on its register. However, Leicestershire County Council, as the local education authority, believes it will have a deficit of spaces for local children by January next year, in part due to new housing developments in the area. The authority said it needs to increase capacity by 105 places, to 630, by that time.

A new teaching block will be built in the school's grounds to meet the additional need. The single-storey building would be built on an area which comprises part of the playground and a covered reading area. These would be relocated to the south of the new block. The new teaching space would have three classrooms in it. Four new parking spaces are also proposed at the school.

The scheme was unanimously approved by councillors sitting on Leicestershire County Council's planning committee. The decision came despite concerns from residents that the increase in students at the school will increase the school-run problems with which they are already plagued.

One neighbour to the site spoke at the committee meeting. He claimed residents in the area are often "trapped in or out of [their] own driveways" and have to "plan [their] days on the basis of escape". He said this was "not entertaining" for those impacted.

The resident questioned the conclusion by the council's highways department that there was "ample parking" in the area. He said: "This can only be the case if [the department] is accepting illegal or discourteous parking".

He also raised the case of his 84-year-old mother who also lives nearby. She is often trapped in her close in the week, he said, and also on weekends if the school is hosting an event.

He accepted the expansion was likely to be passed as recommended by planning officers, but said he wanted to see more traffic enforcement – such as more double yellow lines – in the area to combat the additional strain he believes the scheme will put on residents.

Many on the committee expressed sympathy with the struggles of those living in the area when it comes to inconsiderate parking. Councillor for the area Keith Merrie said he often receives complaints about this, adding the police have previously been out to the school because of it.

He said he "thinks it is time" the council introduced new traffic regulation orders in the area to ease the problem for residents. However, the committee was advised this was not a matter for the planning committee to decide, it would need to be initiated by the highways teams.

Criticism was also levelled at the travel plans for the scheme, which had been put forward by the council itself as the education authority. Councillor Phil King said he "could not dispute" the need for the additional school places, but added he was "concerned" the travel plan did not contain "sufficient information".

Had the plan been completed in advance of the meeting, he felt it could have helped to alleviate residents' concerns. Planning officers said "ideally" the information would have been available before the committee met, but these details were often ironed out after approval was granted with a condition added to the approval to ensure the plans could not proceed without them being signed off on by the authority.