AN official opening took place on Wednesday (January 14) for Minehead’s new social housing development, in Rainbow Way.

Somerset Council housing portfolio holder Cllr Federica Smith-Roberts cut a ribbon before she and other guests toured the 54-home development off Seaward Way.

Classic Builders began work on the £9.5 million development under the former Somerset West and Taunton Council (SWT) in January, 2022, and was originally scheduled to have been finished in the autumn of 2023 after SWT became part of the unitary Somerset Council.

Cllr Smith-Roberts, who also served on SWT, said she was delighted to open the first new council development in the town in more than 30 years.

She said: “I am passionate about social housing and it is great that we are able to do this in Somerset.

“We have got other properties we are looking to build over the next year or so.”

The energy-efficient council homes are managed by Homes in Somerset, formerly Homes in Sedgemoor, the council’s arms length housing organisation which manages more than 4,000 properties across the county.

The development is a mix of 21 houses and 33 flats offering one, two, three, and four-bedroom accommodation.

The council has stressed that 90 per cent of the tenants already lived in Minehead parish, while the remainder had strong local connections through working in the town or having family there.

The properties were built to be carbon neutral, using solar panels, air source heat pumps, and special insulating bricks to reduce energy bills for residents.

The council said all of the properties were now occupied after being made available on its online Homefinder service for bids to be made by prospective tenants.

It emphasised the ‘local connections’ of tenants after rumours refugees had been offered them when a man who had lived in Minehead all of his life was rejected.