Residents of the Orchard Grove housing development in Taunton will have to wait until around 1,000 homes are built and occupied before local shops and community facilities become available.
Orchard Grove, situated between Wellington Road (A38) in Comeytrowe and Honiton Road in the nearby village of Trull, is a large-scale development by the Orchard Grove Consortium, which includes Taylor Wimpey, Bovis Homes, Linden Homes, and LiveWest. Upon completion, it will comprise approximately 2,000 homes.
So far, the site has seen the delivery of a new primary school and a ‘park and bus’ facility. Construction is also underway on commercial space and a 68-bed care home near the western entrance. However, residents seeking retail or community services will have to be patient.
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Somerset Council recently approved plans for an additional 209 homes around Egremont Road, near the area reserved for a ‘local centre’ that could eventually house shops and community amenities. Yet, senior planning officer Simon Fox has indicated the local centre is unlikely to materialize until roughly 1,000 homes are occupied. He pointed out that the current population and passing traffic are insufficient to sustain such services.
Fox explained to the council’s planning committee: “At the moment, there aren’t enough chimney pots on the site to bring forward the local centre. It’s effectively a cul-de-sac site, so there aren’t enough residents to make any service or shop viable.”
Though the outline planning permission for Orchard Grove stipulates a legal commitment to provide land for community facilities, the timing depends on the scale of development. Approval of the latest housing plans will bring the total to about 750-800 homes, with conversations about the local centre expected to start once another couple of hundred homes are occupied.
Councillor Gwilym Wren voiced concerns about the responsibility for developing the local centre, calling it a “chicken and egg” problem. Simon Fox replied that while the current consortium specialises in home-building, the local centre would likely be developed later by a specialist operator experienced in managing such facilities.
Councillor Habib Farbahi, representing the Comeytrowe and Trull area, promised to continue advocating alongside local MP Gideon Amos for a secondary school and health hub within the estate to reduce travel times for residents. However, Fox confirmed that no new secondary school in Taunton is expected before 2030, meaning existing schools will continue to face pressure.
Echoing concerns about community infrastructure, Councillor Norman Cavill urged lessons be learned from Monkton Heathfield’s experience, where shops were delayed and only recently introduced through private enterprise. He emphasized the importance of securing community facilities early to ensure residents' wellbeing and called for stronger commitments from developers.
With the estate expanding steadily, the hope remains that local amenities will soon follow, but for now, residents and councillors alike are relying on goodwill and future negotiations to fill the gaps.