A scheme to remove ‘defective’ post-war housing in a small Somerset village can now begin following the approval of district councillors.

Somerset West and Taunton Council has been working on various schemes to remove Woolaway homes from across the district, which were built after the Second World War but were discontinued after the mid-1980s.

The council’s planning committee voted on July 21 to move forward with the next phase of its North Taunton Woolaway Regeneration Programme, which will eventually deliver 228 high-quality council houses and a community centre in the Priorswood area of Taunton.

The full council has now given its backing to a smaller-scale project of the same ilk in the village of Oake, enabling a better quality of life for tenants with lower energy costs in the future.

Woolaway properties resemble other homes in appearance but are constructed from concrete frames and panels, rather than more traditional materials.

The government designated such homes as defective under the Housing Defects Act 1984, after research found that the homes could “suffer deterioration”.

The homes remain safe to live in, but since the 1984 Act no further homes of this construction can be built.

The council’s executive committee unveiled plans on July 20 to refurbished ten of the 12 Woolaway homes on Oake Acres in Oake, with the remaining two being demolished to make for four new-build properties.

The homes will be vacated in four stages, with existing tenants being temporarily rehoused – similar to what the council will be doing with the replacement of council houses on Coleridge Drive and Wordsworth Drive

Council leader Federica Smith-Roberts spoke in favour of the proposals when the full council convened in Taunton on September 6.

She said: “This is about having social housing within a rural location and all the benefits this brings.

“We’ve been told before that we’re Taunton-centric as a council, and actually here we’re showing that we need social housing within our rural areas.

“By doing this we will be able to not only house more individuals by bringing these homes back into use, but by spending the money that we are, they will be carbon-neutral.

“We hope we will be able to house local people in the surrounding area in these homes. For me, it’s a real positive.”

Councillor Dave Mansell – whose Upper Tone division on Somerset County Council includes Oake – welcomed the scheme, including the use of heat pumps to reduce energy bills.

He said: “I’m pleased to see the heat demand comes down in these properties with the standard of insulations.

“The inclusion of heat pumps and solar panels is also important – there’s a lot of good things here.”

Councillor Roger Habgood added: “Thankfully, the council’s promise has been kept. We need to make sure these are delivered sooner rather than later.”

The council will announce a formal start date for the Woolaway scheme in the coming weeks.