DETAILS of a proposed new housing estate in a West Somerset village have been submitted for planning approval to allow Magna Housing to start the development.

The 27-home estate which Magna wants to build off Shurton Lane, Stogursey, will comprise pre-fabricated, or ‘modular’, carbon net zero houses and flats.

The development was approved in 2021 by a Government planning inspector on appeal after the former Somerset West and Taunton Council had refused permission.

The site was then bought in 2022 by Magna, which said it already had a strong presence in the village.

Magna said 18 of the new properties would be ‘affordable homes’, of which 12 were for social rent, six shared ownership, and the remaining nine for the open market.

They ranged from one to four bedrooms and included six flats and two bungalows.

Planning agent Nigel Jacobs, of Bournemouth-based Intelligent Land, said: “As part of Magna’s ‘Right Homes, Right Quality, Right Place’ agenda, they are seeking to develop a range of sites to deliver additional affordable homes over the next decade.

“A significant proportion of these will be constructed using modular house types developed in partnership with Rollalong, a Dorset-based off-site manufacturer.

“Modern methods of construction (MMC) are important to Magna and to Homes England as a funding partner.

“Almost 90 per cent of new homes in the UK are still being built using traditional methods of construction, in other words with almost all work being undertaken on site.

“MMC housing accounts for the remaining 10 per cent.

“Magna Housing has a clear aim to be at the forefront of development and delivery of MMC housing.

“Magna and Rollalong Ltd are leading the way in the delivery of MMC housing in Dorset already.”

Mr Jacobs said MMC offered faster construction times with an entire dwelling manufactured in a matter of days without interruptions caused by weather or site delays.

It also gave improved overall delivery because homes could effectively be ‘ordered’ for a site, with a ‘production line’ of properties being created.

Choice of homes was broadened with MMC because, while such housing was not to everybody’s taste or the solution for every site, it added to the choice of homes on the market and did not compete with traditional products.

Mr Jacobs said MMC reduced pressure on planning authorities and was important in seeing sites developed quickly once consent was granted, while the ‘production line’ approach had the ability to supply ready-built dwellings for windfall sites.

He said there was also greater adaptability as a wide range of designs, styles, materials, and finishes meant suitability for all types of sites.

There was also the bonus of consistency of build-quality with the more standardised production processes.

Mr Jacobs said Magna held a community engagement event in the village in September last year where there was some support for the development.

He said: “There was support for the proposal in offering opportunities for people to move back to the village, and that a large proportion would be affordable housing.”