Revised proposals for 200 new homes near one of Somerset’s busiest railway stations have been teased to the public.

Wyke Farms and Hopkins Development put forward outline plans to develop land on the A371 Ansford Hill in Castle Cary – one of the last undeveloped green spaces between the station and the town centre.

South Somerset District Council refused the plans in May 2020, but this decision was overturned by the Planning Inspectorate in May 2022 following a lengthy public inquiry.

Revised plans for the same number of homes in what has now been christened the ‘Station Green’ development were recently published online – with a reserved matters application expected to be submitted to Somerset Council in the coming months.

The Station Green proposals entail a single vehicular access onto Ansford Hill at the south, with the new homes fanning out in a crescent arrangement around public open space to the east.

There will be two pedestrian access points from the development onto an existing footpath which links the railway station (via a footbridge) to Ansford Hill – with the developer proposing to resurface this link as part of the construction.

Of the 200 homes intended for the site, 70 will be affordable, comprising 56 social rent and 14 shared ownership properties – meeting the council’s target of 35 per cent affordable housing for any new development of ten homes or more within the former South Somerset area.

A spokesman said: “As part of the creation of Station Green, existing vegetation will be retained, including the single mature oak tree and the ‘zig-zag’ of hedge and trees dividing the two fields.

“The outline planning permission requires new highways and pedestrian access to Ansford Hill, the existing footpath along the Ansford Hill frontage with the site to be widened and re-surfaced, the existing public right of way from Ansford Hill to the railway station to be re-surfaced, and connections to be made from the site to the public right of way.

“Another nearby development, Wayside Farm, is required to provide an improved pedestrian crossing at the junction of Station Road and Ansford Hill near the south west corner of the site.”

In line with the outline planning permission secured at appeal, the developer will make a number of financial contributions to services in Ansford and Castle Cary – including more than £1m towards new primary school places, and £150,000 for changing facilities at the Donald Pither Memorial Ground.

Due to the timing of the appeal decision (and the new application), the development will have to include additional mitigation to prevent any net increase in phosphates on the Somerset Levels and Moors (which includes the River Brue catchment area in which Castle Cary sits).

As part of the outline legal agreement with the council, this mitigation will take the form of “off-site land use change and fallowing of farmland” elsewhere in the catchment.

The spokesman said: “The Station Green development will respect and enhance the existing character of Castle Cary and Ansford.

“From ready-equipped play areas to open recreational, green spaces, with good access to local facilities, it is designed with the whole family in mind.”

To give your feedback on the Station Green proposals, visit www.station-green.com.

A reserved matters application covering the development is expected to be submitted to Somerset Council shortly after Christmas.