Sixty new homes will be coming to Bruton despite fears that the designs will put pedestrians at risk.

The Acorn Property Group put forward outline plans in early-2019 to deliver 60 new homes south of Brewham Road, at the eastern edge of the town.

Following years of legal delays, a decision on the plans was pushed back by Somerset Council in July after councillors raised concerns about road safety issues in this part of the town.

The council’s planning committee south (which handles major applications within the former South Somerset area) has now given its backing to the proposals, despite many feeling these concerns have not been addressed.

Access to the new homes will be from the southern side of Brewham Road, with a separate pedestrian access being provided onto Darkey Lane, providing a safe walking route to the town’s railway station.

Acorn did secure outline planning permission from South Somerset District Council in November 2019 – leading locals to brand councillors as “having no common sense” in light of fears about rising traffic.

READ MORE: Somerset Council delays decision on Bruton 125 homes plan

 

However, the legal agreements surrounding the site were not signed off by the time Natural England issued its legal advice on phosphates in August 2020 – meaning the plans have to be redetermined with the new mitigation measures included.

To offset the phosphates generated by the new homes, the developers will purchase phosphate credits from the fallowing of land at Manor Farm in Prestleigh, near Shepton Mallet – with a package treatment plan being installed by Albion Water as an additional measure.

Following the decision to defer in July, the council’s highways team carried out a road safety audit on Brewham Road, leading to negotiations with Acorn over measures which could be implemented to make the access safer.

To this end, a 1.2-metre wide pavement will be delivered between the new access and the A359 Frome Road, with traffic calming measures being installed to slow the flow of passing cars.

Local residents Lesley Hutchinson objected to these measures when the committee met in Yeovil on Tuesday morning (November 26).

She said: “If you approve the 1.2m proposed footpath, you will be breaching the government’s guidelines. Footpaths should be two metres wide.

“These plans create an illusion of safety, and the footpath will routinely be used by HGVs.

“You must take decisions exercising the level of care that a reasonable person would take. You have a duty to protect people from harm, and approving these plans will put people in danger.”

Ewan Jones, who sits on Bruton Town Council, agreed: “You are considering safety to drivers but not safety to pedestrians and cyclists.

“This application should be rejected, and it should only be brought back when it has safer access proposals.”

Councillor Lucy Trimnell (whose Wincanton and Bruton division includes the site) said that “nothing had changed” since the plans were last debated in July.

She elaborated: “I’m concerned that our need to meet our housing obligations is going to override everything else; what works on paper doesn’t always work in practice.

“A lorry approaching the A359 from the Brewham direction will have to mount the pavement to get around the corner. This is not the right place at all.”

Councillor Sue Osborne (Ilminster) added: “I am not confident that this will not make things worse.

“I have a matter of conscience on this. I don’t think I could live with myself if this didn’t deliver what it says on the tin.

“Only last month, we had a developer coming to us pleading poverty on a site in Tintinhull, saying they couldn’t afford the affordable housing. There are no guarantees.”

Other councillors, however, were more sympathetic to the plans, arguing the need for local housing outweighed the potential traffic concerns.

Councillor Peter Seib (Brympton) said: “I’m a little surprised that we’ve got such a restrictive footpath, but this road will be a lot safer after the work has been done. I do feel our hands are tied on this.”

Councillor Oliver Patrick (Coker) concurred: “This is a matter of conscience – we need to think of the people who will benefit from these new homes.

Over the summer, 63 people applied for one social rented home in Bruton on Homefinder.

“I do think this road safety scheme will be an improvement to local residents.”

After around 90 minutes debate, the committee voted to approve the plans by six votes to two, with two abstentions.

A reserved matters application, specifying the detailed design and layout of the new homes, is expected to come forward in the new year.

A decision on a neighbouring development of 65 homes and a new medical centre has been deferred until a future meeting of the committee.