Somerset Council Delivers First Council Houses in West Somerset for a Generation
Somerset Council is delivering the first new council houses in West Somerset in decades. All 54 homes at the Rainbow Way site off Seaward Way in Minehead are being allocated to residents with a strong local connection, either current residents or those with family ties to the area. The scheme is now in the final stages and has recently been nominated for a major award recognising outstanding construction projects across the South West.
Recent political debate at Full Councill focused on concerns raised, questioning the impact of government-funded migration schemes on local housing availability. It was argued that Somerset residents should be prioritised for social and affordable (Council) housing and called for assurances that future development would meet local needs without reducing housing for local people.
However, Somerset Council’s housing schemes explicitly exclude applicants without a local connection, ensuring local prioritisation. It’s false to suggest that affordable or new Council homes in Somerset aren’t for local people, or that they’re being diverted to refugees or asylum seekers.
In fact:
• Somerset has relatively few asylum seekers. As of December 2024, only 297 asylum seekers are supported in Somerset, which is just 0.05% of our population of 581,145.
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