Somerset is set to welcome up to 580 new council homes by April 2030, marking a significant investment in affordable housing. This initiative, outlined in Somerset Council and Homes in Somerset’s new housing development strategy, builds on recent successes like the 54-home Rainbow Way project in Minehead and eight new flats at the Oxford Inn site in Taunton.
However, despite this ambitious plan, the distribution of new council homes is uneven across the county. Most new developments are concentrated in towns along the M5 corridor, leaving many rural communities without new housing unless additional land or funding becomes available.
Currently, Somerset Council oversees approximately 10,000 council homes, with around 6,000 managed directly and 4,000 by Homes in Somerset, an arm’s-length company wholly owned by the council. There are plans to transition all housing management responsibilities to Homes in Somerset amid concerns from trade unions about potential higher costs and poorer tenant outcomes.
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New council homes are being delivered through two main methods: direct construction by the council on its own land, as seen with the Oxford Inn site, or purchase from commercial developers, such as the planned Cricketer Farm project in Nether Stowey.
Funding for these new homes comes from rents paid by existing council tenants and external borrowing. Importantly, this housing fund operates separately from the council’s broader capital budget, which finances schools, roads, and major regeneration schemes like Celebration Mile.
During an April 9 meeting of the council’s Adults and Health Scrutiny Committee, chair Councillor Gill Slocombe emphasized the importance of providing diverse housing types to reduce anti-social behaviour and long-term care costs. She voiced concerns about the predominance of flats for elderly residents, highlighting problems she has witnessed in her Bridgwater West division. Slocombe advocated for more “homes for life” built to national space standards, ideally bungalows, which could lower social care expenses over time.
Of the 580 homes targeted by 2030, 98 have already been completed or are near completion, including Seaward Way and Penlea House in Bridgwater. Future schemes tied to larger developments include 48 homes planned at Brymore Way in Cannington (awaiting planning approval), 23 at Cricketer Farm in Nether Stowey, and nine on the Grove estate near Somerton.
Further development under the North Taunton Woolaway regeneration scheme is ongoing but later phases are uncertain and may be delayed beyond 2030 or be altered significantly.
Concerns have been raised about the uneven geographic allocation of new homes. Councillor Ewan Cameron criticized the East of Somerset, particularly the former Mendip area, for having just three developments totaling only 27 new homes, representing a mere 5% of the planned investment. Councillor Sarah Wakefield explained this imbalance stems from past policies, particularly the sale of council homes following the ‘right to buy’ reforms decades ago, leaving many affordable homes in the east and south managed by registered providers rather than the council itself.
Wakefield added that with Homes in Somerset now operational, the council can start building across the entire county for the first time in years.
Meanwhile, Councillor Tom Power, representing Wincanton and Bruton, voiced strong support for expanding council housing in the eastern parts of Somerset. He stressed the urgent need for affordable homes among young people in his area, where market prices are high and out of reach for many.
The council’s executive committee is expected to formally approve the housing development strategy later this year, setting the stage for a significant boost in Somerset’s social housing stock.