THERE were joyous scenes in Bridgwater as the new EDF Sedgemoor Campus off Bath Road officially opened on time and on budget on Friday.

MP Ian Liddell-Grainger cut the ribbon and was joined by key figures from EDF, construction firm Lang O'Rourke, HOST, Somerset County Council, Sedgemoor District Council and Bridgwater Town Council.

The Sedgemoor Campus will accommodate 986 Hinkley C workers who will be able to stay in one of the Travelodge-style rooms for £25 a night, or even £20 if they are staying for a long period.

The Campus also has two bars, a gym and meeting spaces for the workers, and there are state-of-the-art sports pitches which will be shared with the local community.

The Sedgemoor Campus boasts 29 accommodation blocks, each offering en-suite rooms for 34 workers.

HOST general manager Paul Warburton said: "It is great to see these facilities operational on what was the Bridgwater Cellophane site.

"Our team has expertise managing university campuses and holiday parks so we are used to dealing with this quantity of people.

"Of the 370 people HOST are employing, 180 of them come from right here in Sydenham."

One of those is Kady Finka, who decided she wanted a change of career from being a pre-school teacher and went along to one of the employment drop-ins held at the Sydenham Community Centre.

"The people there from EDF and HOST were really friendly and I was really pleased to get the job," Kady said.

She is now employed as a 'Team Member Level 2, front of house, food and beverage'.

"I can walk to work in seven minutes from my home in Fairfax Road," Kady said.

"A lot of us can, I know a lot of people on the team here and we all work together really well as we know each other from the community.

"When I told Sedgemoor District Council leader Duncan McGinty that he welled up and say that is exactly what he wanted to happen here."

Cllr McGinty said it was wonderful to see the facilities opened, and said he hoped it would help alleviate some of the pressure on the housing market in Sedgemoor.

Cllr David Hall, Somerset County Council cabinet member said: "I started my working life at the Cellophane Factory in 1972, and it is good to see the site back in use.

"Hinkley has been a catalyst for growth here and it is important we secure that legacy and make sure Somerset continues to prosper."

An EDF spokesman said the campus would be in use until Hinkley C was operational, and there were ongoing negotiations over what would happen to the site afterwards.