The Coalition Government's Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) on 14th September 2010 confirmed its plans to invest millions of pounds within a year in new and affordable housing in Radstock, following the withdrawal of Norton Radstock Regenertion's preferred partner,

Bellway. Bellway were not the first developer to walk away from the Radstock development, Beazer Homes pulled out too. The comprehensive, big hit development of the Radstock railway lands is just looking like too big a project to be tackled in one bite.

The investment was supposed to mean the HCA could work with landowner, the Norton Radstock Regeneration Company (NRR) to select yet another preferred developer, agree terms and begin building work as part of a project to deliver more than 200 homes and improve roads around the important site. The partners had to find a new developer as soon as possible following the news that investment in the site had been agreed.

Colin Molton, the then HCA Director with Responsibility for Investment in the South West, said: "Our investment signifies a major step forward for the regeneration of Radstock, which has a great need for high quality, affordable housing and is a priority area for us. I am delighted that we have found a way to continue to invest in this important

project for Radstock, despite the fact that our initial development partner has decided to step aside. We are doing everything possible to ensure that a new developer partner is in place and we are able to start working on this much-needed development as soon as possible."

The withdrawal of Bellway must have come as a bit of a shock to NRR, whose Chair, the former Lib-Dem politician, Cate LeGrice Mack, was pictured in the Royal Town Planning Institute's Spring 2010 bulletin receiving a presentation for moving the project forward. The caption to a photo explained the project had a history of frustrated initiatives for the regeneration of the complex brownfield site, with a close and critical relationship with a too-long- neglected town centre. Glowingly, it continued, this has now given way to a partnership-guided Master Plan based on a 'vision' driven by the Norton Radstock Regeneration Company, its consultants, LDA Design, and Bellway Homes, the developer.

Following the bad news about Bellway, it was rumoured that Linden Homes would soon step into the breach with a new scheme. This has yet to happen, but that does not stop Central and Local Government putting more cash on the table.

In June 2011, the HCA announced £800,000 for a new road to help implement the scheme. The money was to be given to B&NES and roadworks were to start in October 2011 and be completed in April 2012. This was confirmed by B&NES at the time.

The HCA also said at the time: "The existing highway infrastructure has been identified as adversely impacting on the town centre for some time; it impedes accessibility to employment, retail and other facilities, which can have an adverse impact on the local economy. That's why these improvements are important for the area and we are very pleased that the Council (B&NES) has announced that work is due to start on this project."

In autumn 2012, B&NES Council said in response to local consultation, the Council made significant changes to design of the proposed road network. This has

resulted in the need for the planning application to be updated to reflect the changes. The Council anticipates submitting an updated planning application in April 2013. This application for outline planning consent will include the detail of the road scheme and pave the way for

reserved matters applications for the housing and town centre development. Subject to the outline planning consent being secured, work on the road network upgrade would begin in Autumn 2013. Given the record of little happening on this project, it cannot be

assumed anything will happen this Autumn.

B&NES Lib-Dem Councillor, Paul Crossley, the Leader of Council, has taken a place on the NRR Board as a sign of the B&NES' Lib-Dem Cabinet's commitment to getting the regeneration of the town going. There will be an information event in Spring 2013 prior to the outline planning consent application being submitted.

Yes, another event about the future of Radstock's

former railway lands. They have been held every few years since Autumn 1989 when it was announced that Marcroft Engineering's railway wagon repair factory was to close, because BR had decided that the bills for maintaining the branch west of Hapsford were too high for a single, low volume customer. As a freight branch, it was no longer cost-effective. Regeneration was not the top of the agenda then, but the big idea was a planned,

combined steam-based heritage/commuter railway.

More has been written about this project and more money wasted on it than could have ever been imagined at that time. All the money spent on consultants, planning, land acquisition and PR could have been avoided, if everyone had listened to Tony Isherwood, one of Radstock's newsagents at the time. He tried to persuade B&NES that the best thing to do was simply tidy up the land in the heart of Radstock and mow the grass on it half a dozen times a year, while

everyone waited for the private sector to eventually come forward with an economically viable scheme. As for the railway land outside the town centre, nature could regenerate that, free of charge, and it could continue to be used as an informal path by dogwalkers etc.

Bright new shining B&NES, just formed by the the break-up of Avon and the merger of Wansdyke and Bath Councils, was positive it could do better and in the last days of the John Major Government was granted £3 million for the Radstock railway lands and creating a big building project on the Welton Vale. They had six years to spend the money. The money was spent, but no regeneration resulted.

The railway route outside the NRR site was taken over by Sustrans and incorporated into the National Cyclepath network. Maximum safe use of even this is prevented by NRR's big blue hoardings!