A PUBLIC inquiry will be held in the new year to decide the fate of 315 new homes on the edge Rockwell Green.

Gladman Developments put forward plans in October 2023 for 315 new homes and a convenience store at the village’s western edge, between Exeter Road and the railway line.

After Somerset Council failed to come to a decision after more than a year, the Congleton-based developer has lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate – with a public inquiry to settle the issue expected to be staged in March 2025.

The site lies on the northern edge of Exeter Road, directly opposite the Monument View housing development and a proposed 72-bed care home.

The new homes will be accessed from a new junction near the entrance to Monument View, with the new homes wrapping around the Pitt Farm Park Homes site to the east.

A new convenience store to serve the new homes will be provided near Exeter Road, with existing footpaths running through the site being enhanced to provide a link to other village services via the Dobree Park estate.

Of the 315 homes planned for the site (ranging from one-bedroom flats to four-bedroom houses), 25 per cent are expected to be affordable – the equivalent of 79 properties.

If permission is secured, Gladman will provide nearly £3m towards local education – comprising just over £719,000 for nursery and early years provision, nearly £805,500 for primary school places, almost £1.3m for secondary school place and almost £147,000 for special needs provision.

Nearly £188,000 will also be provided towards improving local health services, which will be used to enhance or expand either Wellington Medical Centre or the Luson Surgery.

To offset the impact of the new homes, a new waste water treatment plant will be constructed at the north-western corner of the site near the railway line.

Attenuation ponds will also be provided throughout the site, especially on the northern edge, to reduce the risk of localised flooding.

A spokesman for Gladman Developments said: “While it is acknowledged that the appeal proposal results in a degree of harm to landscape character, this is comparable to that from the development of any greenfield site.

“We will demonstrate that the appeal site represents a suitable and sustainable location for the quantum and nature of the development proposed.

“It will be demonstrated that the conflict with the council’s development plan should not weigh heavily against the proposal.”

Neither the Gladman site or the Monument View development site were allocated for residential development within the Taunton Deane Core Strategy.

The Planning Inspectorate has confirmed that the fate of the plans will be settled by a six-day public inquiry, which is expected to get under way on March 11, 2025.

The inspector will conduct a site visit as part of the inquiry and will publish their final ruling by the late-spring.

To make a formal representation, or request to speak as part of the inquiry, visit www.acp.planninginspectorate.gov.uk and quote case reference number 3354865 by December 31.