RESIDENTS of Midsomer Norton have shared their views on the housing crisis with concerns over “NIMBYISM” and younger people continuing to struggle to buy their own homes.
Some also claim green-belt development is damaging to wildlife life with more house-building on the horizon since the new Labour Government has increased targets for councils across the country.
Bath and North East Somerset Council (B&NES) leader Kevin Guy has been critical of the government’s decision to double housing targets for local authorities, having described the new targets as “unrealistic”, and says planning reform is needed.
Tim Seviour, 75, from Midsomer Norton, believes more should be done to tackle housing issues affecting younger people. He said: “I believe they’re missing the obvious because the age group that are going to be the most seriously affected in not being able to afford housing are the 20-year-olds, up to 30 or 35.
“You see new houses coming up, starting at around £300,000. They’re not targeting the main people who I think they should do, which is the younger generation.
“I believe that, if they don’t address that, then there’s going to be some social issues, because children are going to think nobody thinks about us, we’re not in the mix.”
Nick Smith, 34, a Midsomer Norton father who owns properties in the buy to let market, said: “I am of the mindset that the only way to solve the housing problem we currently have is to build more houses. I’m against the kind of NIMBYISM of not wanting stuff to be built in their area.
“I would happily have more houses built so that when my kids grow up they have somewhere to live.
“The over-regulation of buy to let means there’s going to be a lot of buy to let supply. So many landlords are selling up, but I think it’s economic policy and government policies that are leading to that problem. Personally, I think we need more houses.”
Provisional figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that private rents have increased by 8.4 per cent in the 12 months up to September 2024, and house prices are up 2.8 per cent in the 12 months up to August 2024.
Housing association Curo submitted a planning application for the demolition of two social houses in Orchard Vale in order to build a further 54 homes on land behind them. The plan was rejected by B&NES in August but a planning appeal will now be heard.
Residents of the proposed homes would pay tax to Somerset Council, despite using services from B&NES, an arrangement that has not gone well with everyone, including Helena Yuille. She said: “If it did come to us, we’d be able to get more GPs, more dentists, and better roads, etcetera.”
Resident Emma Peggler opposes large scale housing developments. She added: “I’m all for sites that are already being used, but I’m not so keen on using the green belt and our fields - I do worry about wildlife.”