Tiverton to get new affordable homes

They'll be built to the Passivhaus standard

A development of 70 new affordable homes are to be built in Tiverton.

The properties will go up between Braid Park and Tiverton Golf Club, following approval at Mid Devon District Council’s planning committee on Wednesday [5 October].

They will all be built to the super-efficient Passivhaus standard, with solar panels, air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points.

The site forms part of the Tiverton Eastern Urban Extension for hundreds of new homes, with the affordable homes a requirement under the terms of another development nearby. Mid Devon was subsequently given the area of land along with responsibility for building the houses.

They will be a mix of apartments, terraced, semi-detached, townhouses and detached units.

As the properties will be classed as affordable, most will be capped at 80 per cent of local market rent. Eight are also proposed as ‘social rent’ – no more than 50–60 per cent of local rates.

“Residents will be taken from the district council’s housing needs waiting list,” an officer said, while she did not believe they would be eligible for right-to-buy

Members of the committee heard how the development will also feature an attenuation pond [which helps manage water run-off], on-site public open space and a children’s play area, as well as walking and cycling routes integrated into a wider network.

Recommending approval, a council report said: “Comprehensive consideration has been given to the overall design, scale and layout of the proposal. The scheme provides well integrated landscape and public open space, providing biodiversity net gain.

“The development can be accommodated without an unacceptable impact on the highway network with necessary infrastructure able to be delivered in a predictable, timely and effective manner.”

Councillor Les Cruwys (Lib Dem, Cranmore) concluded: “It’s the final bit in that area up there. It completes it all. Hopefully the ones that do live up there can get back to some sort of normal life because they’re having problems still with the [vehicles] rolling past the golf course.

“So yes, let’s get on with it. Get it completed, get the site finished, let the site mature and hopefully we won’t regret what we’ve done up there.”