Government grant to fund affordable Somerset homes

A £1.5 million government grant will help pay for the building of 16 new low-cost homes in Somerset.

Taunton-based developer Strongvox Homes will build the houses before they are purchased by Sedgemoor District Council and its unitary successor.

They will be offered to local residents at social housing rent levels.

Duncan Harvey, from the council, said he was "delighted to report such a positive outcome from our collective efforts".

The housing development manager at Homes in Sedgemoor revealed they had been working with Nether Stowey Parish Council to "bring genuinely affordable, high-quality homes to the village".

"We will be organising a future drop-in session so that potential applicants can find out more about what is available and register their interest," he added.

"This is a great opportunity for people to live affordably within a community in a place to which they have a strong connection."

Strongvox Homes was granted permission in October 2020 to build 109 new houses on the Cricketer Farm brownfield site on the A39 Cannington Road in Nether Stowey, near the Quantock Hills area of outstanding natural beauty, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The council later granted a request by the developer to remove all affordable housing planned from the site in April 2022, after the company claimed the development was no longer viable.

Government agency Homes England has since provided £1.5m to deliver 16 new low-cost homes within the site.

It will come on top of £180,000 from the EDF housing mitigation fund, which was set up ahead of construction beginning on the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.

The properties will comprise six two-bedroom flats, six two-bedroom houses, three three-bedroom houses and a further three-bedroom house which is suitable for wheelchair users.

The first four properties are expected to be completed and ready for occupation by the summer, with a further six due to be finished by October and the remainder by October 2024.

Anyone wishing to rent one of the properties must be registered with Homefinder Somerset.

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