A flagship regeneration scheme in Frome could lead to a significant financial loss for taxpayers after concerns were raised about its viability.

Mendip District Council has partnered with the Acorn Property Group to redevelop the Saxonvale site, delivering a mixture of housing, commercial outlets, community facilities and open green space near the River Frome.

Formal plans for the scheme were submitted to the council in May 2019 and have been through various round of public consultation, with large numbers of residents raising objections.

Now campaigners have raised concerns about how viable the development is, claiming taxpayers could lose out to the tune of hundreds of thousands of pounds if the plans are approved.

Here's everything you need to know about where things stand with the Saxonvale scheme – and what could happen next:

What is the Saxonvale regeneration scheme?

The Saxonvale site is a brownfield site comprising disused industrial buildings and associated infrastructure which lies between the River Frome and the town's Marks and Spencer store.

The site, which was once home to Notts Industries, lay empty and overgrown for a decade before it was purchased for £6.3M by the then-Conservative council in August 2018.

The plans for the site include the delivery of up to 300 homes, with many of the former industrial buildings being retained and renovated as community or commercial space – including the 'western warehouse', which is set to become an arts and heritage centre.

After the local elections in May 2019, the new Liberal Democrat minority administration pledged to take the development forward, with a formal planning application being submitted by Acorn that month.

Council leader Ros Wyke stated during a tour of the site in December 2019 that this would be "an exemplar site", with the council wanting to "raise the bar in expectations of new development."

What are the major issues?

Since the planning application was submitted, numerous objections to it have been submitted both from individuals and statutory consultees.

Frome Town Council – which sold a parcel of land it owned near the river to the district council – has said the development does not go far enough to address traffic concerns in the town centre.

Jane Llewellyn stated in July: "Saxonvale is by far our best opportunity to create more work opportunity in Frome town centre and thus begin to address the problem of commuting out of town (and reduce car use).

"The current proposals appear to be providing for greater residential occupancy than commercial/ non-residential use, thus adding to the problem of commuting instead of beginning to address it."

Frome Chamber of Commerce has described the councils's approach as "opaque and undemocratic", arguing the development would not meet local needs for either employment land or low-cost housing.

Chamber spokesman Neil Howlett stated in August: "We are in danger of becoming a dormitory town from which people drive elsewhere to work.

"We have the ridiculous situation of businesses who want to move to Frome but cannot find premises, and businesses which want to expand but cannot do so because there are no premises for them.

"The Local Plan requires 750 new jobs in the town centre. Saxonvale is employment land. It is the only substantial site upon which those jobs can be delivered."

Somerset County Council – which is responsible for highway matters – has said the existing junction with Garsdale has "substandard visibility" and has recommended a new 20mph speed limit should be implemented.

What about the scheme's viability?

Building on brownfield sites is not always straightforward – there are often hidden costs associated with land decontamination, utilities or other matters.

In some cases, the cost of dealing with these problems creates a situation where the developer cannot make a sufficient profit in the new homes to make the development viable.

Sometimes grants are made available to deal with these problems, with Homes England and the housing infrastructure fund providing funding to 'unlock' key sites to allow more homes to be built.

In other instances, developers re-negotiate the terms of planning permission with the local authority, usually reducing the number of affordable homes to ensure it can make enough profit for the entire site to be built out.

In the case of Saxonvale, a legal agreement exists between Acorn and the council surrounding the site, known as a sale and overage agreement.

These governs the number of homes that will be delivered on-site, stating that the council will see financial benefits if the value of the land increases as a result of the development being carried out.

The council also has policies within its Local Plan stating that affordable housing must comprise at least 30 per cent of any new major development – but this can be renegotiated if there are concerns about viability.

A recent viability assessment, carried out for Acorn by JLL, ruled that only 21 per cent of the homes within the planned scheme could be affordable.

This would fall to 17.5 per cent if Homes England withdraws its offer of a £3.95M grant to aid the development.

What are campaigners claiming?

Damon Moore runs the Silk Mill Studios near the Saxonvale site, and is the co-founder of the Mayday Saxonvale campaign which opposes the council's master-plan for the site.

Mr Moore has described the Saxonvale redevelopment as "a sunk cost fallacy", calling for the Homes England grant to be withheld until the full agreement between Acorn and the council had been published.

He claimed the council had spent £9.45M on the Saxonvale site to date – of which £6.3M went on the initial purchase and £985,000 on acquiring the land near the river from the town council.

Of the remainder, £575,000 was set aside for "enabling works", with the phoenix sponsorship board (which makes confidential decisions on the council's commercial investments) approving subsequent requests for a combined total of £350,000.

Mr Moore said this amounted to the council's "paying Acorn's bills" and the council could end up losing "at least £3.45M" on the site following its official valuation by JLL at just over £6M.

He said: "Until full transparency is established and the town knows what the real situation is, losses on the Acorn scheme will continue to mount.

"Frome will have an undemocratic housing scheme with the affordable

housing quota cut by almost one third, imposed by the district council, blotting out the town's last viable employment and commercial zone and stifling the town's real growth and prosperity for years ahead."

Can we see the legal agreement between the council and Acorn?

Mr Moore is currently engaged in a protracted legal battle over the release of the legal agreement signed between the council and Acorn prior to the council's purchase of the site and their partnership being announced.

Mr Moore attempted to secure the information from the council using the Freedom of Information Act, but this was refused since the material is judged to be commercially sensitive.

He subsequently appealed this decision with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which oversees data protection law in the UK.

But Mr Moore's appeal only resulted in a redacted version of the agreement being published – with much of the most pertinent financial information continuing to be withheld.

Mr Moore, unsatisfied, has taken the decision to a tribunal, which will rule in the coming weeks over whether the full agreement should be released.

How has the council responded?

Mendip District Council has confirmed it paid £6.3M for the Saxonvale site (not including the town council-owned section), and said it had followed proper procedure with both the public consultation and the continuing discussions regarding viability.

A spokeswoman said: "The planning process will continue to be followed, and has involved a lot of public consultation and support.

"We are unable to comment on the figures Mr Moore claims due to the commercial confidentiality of the information.

"We have agreed to pay a share of the architect's costs, but any further detail on this is confidential.

"We bid for the land in a highly competitive environment, with expert professional advice, in order to deliver significant regeneration outcomes for Frome.

"We remain confident that the development remains viable, but much will depend on the outcome of the planning application and the preparation of a detailed viability assessment over time.

"The programme for the scheme cannot be prepared until the outline planning consent is granted."

What happens next?

Consultation continues on the Saxonvale proposals, with a final decision due to be taken by the council's planning board at a virtual public meeting.

The date for this has not yet been confirmed – but it is likely to be delayed further as a result of the recent Dutch N legal ruling.

The Somerset Levels and Moors are protected by the Ramsar Convention, an international law which recognises and protects areas of wetlands for future generations.

Following the Dutch N recent court case, Somerset's local authorities have been urged by Natural England to carry out tests to protect the area from further pollution by phosphates.

This means the council is unable to make immediate decisions on significant applications – including developments involving large numbers of homes or new commercial units.

Councillor Garfield Kennedy, portfolio holder for the Local Plan and policy, said: "We are committed to sustainable development and the new advice received from Natural England is of great concern.

"We know this will have significant impacts in the near future on developments in our area.

"The quality of the natural environment in the Somerset Levels and Moors must be of paramount importance if we are to deliver the commitments we made in February 2019 to tackle the climate emergency in our district.

"We must do everything within our power to protect those sites of national and international importance – for all our futures."