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Planning Shortage Identified in Somerset West and Taunton

February 2022

Somerset West and Taunton Council could face speculative housing applications and planning appeals as it is unable to prove it can provide sufficient deliverable housing in the area.

Planning magazine, an independent guide for planning professionals, has identified that the council does not have enough housing land to meet its housing delivery target for the next five years.

According to its own data the council can only meet 4.7-years of its five-year target. Any council unable to demonstrate a deliverable five-year housing supply risks having to allow development in areas it has not allocated for housing as relevant local plan policies are deemed out of date.

This shortage of housing provides an opportunity for developers and landowners to identify sites for homes, which might not previously have been considered, and which will help meet this pressing need for housing.

The council has produced a planning document aimed at improving housing design in the district and it has set up an independently managed Quality Review Panel to advise on projects.

The council anticipates 8,500 new homes plus associated employment and community facilities will be provided by three urban extensions by 2028.

“The pressure for change and the need to build more homes to address the growing pressures of
local housing need is felt across the district,” the council concedes in a report about its Quality Review Panel.

However this does not alter the fact that it cannot demonstrate the necessary five-year housing land supply.

Therefore if you have land within Somerset West and Taunton and would like advice on whether it is suitable for development please contact the experienced team at the Development Land and Planning Department at Greenslade Taylor Hunt.

They can advise on the best course to bring your land to market by yourself or with help from a developer or land promoter. Call 01823 334466 or email landplanning.taunton@gth.net for an initial chat.





 

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