Residents of Castle Cary have urged for new homes to be scrapped over concerns about an unexploded bomb within the site.

The Yarlington housing association was granted permission on appeal in April 2019 to build 27 new homes on the Foxes Run site in Castle Cary.

Abri – which replaced Yarlington as part of a merger in late-2020 – has been accused by local residents of not providing enough affordable housing within the site via the community infrastructure levy (CIL).

But residents have also expressed fears of unexploded Second World War ordnance within the site – fears which the developer has sought to dispel.

The development site lies between Bridgewater Buildings and the existing homes on Remalard Court, at the southern edge of the town.

Abri was alleged to have begun initial work on the site in late-April 2022, after the three-year limit on planning permission had expired – with South Somerset District Council stating in October 2022 that it was awaiting legal advice on the status of the site.

Castle Cary was targeted by the Luftwaffe on September 3, 1942, with a bomber wrecking a goods train at the town's railway station, demolishing the signal box, killing a signalman, and destroying the Station Hotel.

Local history book Somerset Within Living Memory (which was published by the Somerset Federation of Women's Institutes in 1992) records that five bombs were also dropped near South Cary Lane – with one of them landing within the development site and the army failing to remove it due to the marshy condition of the land.

Castle Cary residents have raised fresh concerns about the bomb on social media, using the hashtag #whataboutthebomb – with Abri responding that it would take every possible precaution in bringing forward the new homes.

Christopher Bartlett, Abri's head of projects and programmes, said: "We take the safety of our customers, colleagues and the general public very seriously. We always undertake thorough checks of land before we begin developing new homes.

"We are taking the matter of a reported unexploded Second World War bomb on the Foxes Run development site extremely seriously and the claims have been thoroughly investigated.

"We employed a professional unexploded ordnance (UXO) expert, who carried out a desktop survey and found no historic record of a UXO.

"A full risk assessment is in place and a watching brief will be undertaken by a chosen specialist in the unlikely event that a UXO is found."

A spokesman for Somerset Council added: "There are proper procedures to be followed if any unexploded munitions are found: these will be put in place by the appropriate authority if necessary."

In addition to the alleged bomb threats, residents have complained about the the lack of community infrastructure levy (CIL) being charged on the development.

CIL was created in 2010 and is designed to provide funding for local infrastructure projects such as roads, schools and doctors' surgeries.

CIL funding from a given Somerset site can be spent anywhere within the county – unlike Section 106 funding, which is restricted to the area closest to the development site.

Councillor Henry Hobhouse, who represents the Castle Cary division, said: "The CIL liability for the 24 market rate homes is clear, while the three social rented homes are only exempt from CIL if the liable party is an officially registered social housing provider.

"Yarlington Homes, the landowner, applicant, and CIL liable party, does not hold the status of a recognised social housing provider nor operates as a not-for-profit entity. As a development company, it fails to qualify for social housing relief.

"If there were an intention to alter the balance of open market to social rented housing, a new planning permission would be required.

"This change would fundamentally alter the nature of the development and hence necessitate fresh approval from the planning authority."

Mr Bartlett said his company would honour the original legal agreement surrounding the site – and would strive to deliver additional affordable homes on top of the minimum commitment.

He said: "At Abri we believe everyone has the right to a quality, safe and warm home; that's why we're committed to delivering more affordable homes where they're needed most.

"A Section 106 agreement was completed for our Foxes Run development in Castle Cary by way of a unilateral undertaking agreed between Yarlington Homes (part of the Abri Group), and South Somerset District Council (as it was at the time) in January 2019.

"We have planning permission to provide 27 homes, of which three must be affordable housing. The 24 other homes are not stated as affordable housing in the unilateral undertaking, but it is our intention is to develop the whole site for affordable housing.

"We do not need to resubmit planning for this, as long as we are not requesting to alter the original three affordable homes.

"The CIL relief is based on the intention of the final tenures all being affordable and owned by a registered provider. Yarlington Homes applied for the CIL relief through the council, and will be transferring ownership of the properties to the Abri Group, a registered provider, through an inter-company agreement."

The council has confirmed that the development was exempt from CIL due to this commitment to provide additional affordable housing.

A spokesman said: "The delivery of affordable housing benefits from a mandatory exemption from a developer's requirement to pay CIL.

"Where housing associations are able to cross-fund or secure Homes England grant, they can provide additional affordable housing over and above the level required in the legal agreement that accompanied the original planning permission.

"Where this occurs, the additional affordable housing benefits from the same mandatory CIL exemption.

"In this case, the properties are proposed to be managed by Abri, which is the successor to South Somerset District Council's stock transfer registered provider.

"The Section 106 legal agreement that secures the original affordable housing does not preclude housing associations or others from acquiring the open market dwellings and managing them to provide more rental or shared ownership housing.

"Where a housing association does deliver additional affordable housing, this does not require a new planning application to be submitted as the use of a house whether as affordable housing or market housing remains in the same use class."