Hinkley Point C to fund £1m Bridgwater regeneration project

An extra £1m will be provided for a major regeneration project in Bridgwater as part of the Hinkley Point C construction project.

EDF Energy said it would introduce measures to mitigate the increase in workers in the area, including funding a new health care training centre.

About 8,600 workers will be needed for the construction programme at the new nuclear power station.

An extra £225,000 has been secured for local tourism and community projects.

This will be in return for allowing EDF Energy to house its workers at the Pontins holiday camp in Brean for the next three years, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

A number of existing camp sites have been asked to expand or extend their temporary use for Hinkley workers.

Somerset West and Taunton Council secured the early release of £1m towards delivering a "training centre of excellence in health and social care" in Bridgwater.

The centre will be constructed within the town's former community hospital, which has been vacant since 2014, with an "annexe" site delivered at The Seahouse Centre on Stephenson Road in Minehead.

The project has been awarded £19.7m from the government's levelling up fund.

Somerset County Council's executive committee accepted the funding in late-February and initiated the process of purchasing the site.

The district council's planning committee met in Taunton on Thursday to agree two new legal agreements surrounding the site - the first of which concerned the release of £1m towards the Bridgwater facility.

The other agreement sought to create an "appropriate mitigation fund and associated measures" to support local businesses.

The holiday park is expected to house some 900 workers until December 2025, though, as with other agreements surrounding the power station, that could be extended if there are any further delays in the construction programme.

Power generation at Hinkley Point C is currently expected to start in June 2027- two years later than originally planned.

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