WORK on 120 homes near Somerset’s planned gigafactory is expected to begin very shortly after land for the new development was formally acquired.

Gladman Developments secured outline planning permission from Sedgemoor District Council in May 2022 to construct the homes on Woolavington Road in Puriton, located at the south-western entrance of the Gravity enterprise zone near Bridgwater.

Redrow Homes subsequently acquired what has become dubbed the Polden Orchards site, with Somerset Council granting a reserved matters application (which governs the design and detailed layout of the new homes) in April 2023.

The Flintshire-based developer has now completed its acquisition of the 18-acre site, meaning construction can begin early in the new year – with the first homes being made available for residents by the autumn of 2024.

The Polden Orchards site lies at the corner of Woolavington Road and Enterprise Way, which was constructed to link the Gravity site to the A39 Bath Road at a cost of £10.3m.

Access will be from Woolavington Road, with residents being able to walk and cycle to the new gigafactory and associated development using the existing cycle lanes around the roundabout and the new route between Puriton and Woolavington, which was approved in May.

The council eventually intends to create an unbroken cycle route between the Gravity site and the town centre over the M5, as part of its Bridgwater local cycling and walking infrastructure plan (LCWIP), which was published in mid-2022.

The new properties within the Polden Orchards site will range from one-bedroom flats to four-bedroom houses, with 30 per cent of the new homes being affordable – the equivalent of 36 properties.

Bridgwater Mercury: Revised plans for the 120 homes on the Polden Orchards site.Revised plans for the 120 homes on the Polden Orchards site. (Image: Redrow Homes)

Redrow has also pledged to invest more than £1m in local infrastructure, including new green spaces within the site and bus stop links to connect the village to Bridgwater town centre.

Sian Smith, sales director for Redrow South West, said: “We’re thrilled to announce that we have acquired land to bring much-needed, new homes to Puriton.

“Here at Redrow South West, we aspire to create sustainable, thriving communities at each of our developments by building high-quality homes and investing in the surrounding area – and this development will be no different.

“Although early days, we expect this development will be incredibly popular with first-time buyers, young professionals and families, and we encourage prospective buyers to register their interest now to be among the first to hear when plots at this fantastic new development become available.”

The outline permission included a condition that the £5.3m upgrade to the nearby Dunball roundabout (which links the village to Bridgwater via junction 23 of the M5) must be completed before all the new homes are occupied.

Preliminary work on the roundabout was carried out on the roundabout in February, with vegetation being cleared, but subsequent work on the project has been delayed due to inflationary pressures – with the council expected to announce an updated project timeline by late-November.

Redrow Homes is also expected to deliver a large number of homes in the Taunton area over the coming years, with major developments planned within both the Staplegrove and Monkton Heathfield urban extensions.

Phase one of the Staplegrove urban extension – which will eventually comprise more than 1,600 homes – was given the green light by Somerset West and Taunton Council in November 2022, following the approval of new wetlands to the north in September the same year.

A decision on phase two of the Monkton Heathfield urban extension of more than 1,200 homes (which will be delivered jointly with Persimmon Homes South West) is expected to be taken in the spring of 2024 – around the same time that construction work on the Polden Orchards site is expected to begin.