BRIDGWATER Town Council said it will ‘co-ordinate a response’ with the district council to EDF’s plans to increase its peak workforce at Hinkley Point C (HPC) by more than 50% once coronavirus measures are lifted.

Last week, EDF announced it aims to increase the number of workers on the HPC site from 5,600 people to 8,500 people.

It said any increase will only happen once coronavirus restrictions have been lifted and the focus of the project right now is on the safety of the local community and workforce.

But at a special town council meeting on Thursday (February 7) councillors said the changes will put ‘an inevitable pressure’ on rented accommodation.

The meeting was called by the town council’s energy spokesman Cllr Leigh Redman amid fears of lack of consultation by the energy giant.

Councillor Brian Smedley, leader of Bridgwater Town Council, said: “Despite EDF claiming that the dramatic worker uplift is not a divergence from the original DCO and that they don’t need to consult, we note that it is and that they have.

“This is due to the diligent work of town council’s nuclear energy watchdog, Cllr Redman. As a result we were able to talk directly to them.

“At this meeting we clearly ascertained that as a consequence of these changes there will be a major impact on the private rented sector in the area, which has already been under pressure through accommodation grabs and cluttered street scenes.

“The town council restated our view that we want to work with them to minimise the impact of these changes on our residents and to maximise the consequential benefit and come out of this with a legacy project.

“Our aim is to work with Sedgemoor District Council to determine an appropriate EDF community mitigation package on the lines of what we achieved the last time EDF unexpectedly changed their plans with the increased number of HGV movements when the jetty completion was delayed.

“The plans do allow for more local employment and we welcome this but people mustn’t be fooled when they hear talk of a ‘drive to work’ zone for home-based workers as this is of course a 90-minute drive and that can include Plymouth, Barnstaple, Gloucester, Swindon and Newport.”

Cllr Smedley said the council wants people to ‘see, appreciate and realise a genuine legacy project come out of it’ and will meet with SDC this week to discuss the issue further.

Councillor Leigh Redman also spoke at the meeting and the changes will put a ‘disproportionate burden’ on Bridgwater.

“The home-based numbers that are allowed in Bridgwater is currently set to 310 and EDF propose to increase this to 1,630,” Cllr Redman said.

“Just a rough calculation shows that EDF are asking for Bridgwater to absorb an increase of more than 300 per cent, that is a massive jump from current limit of 730 to 3,190 workers living in Bridgwater.

“This is not a minor increase, this is a major change and redistribution so that these changes place a disproportionate burden on Bridgwater and they want to minimise debate,

“They have indicated they think this is a non-material decision, so do not need to consult and they can increase the numbers without listening to the community, but they are choosing to engage to be nice.

“To be clear, I am not saying we should not allow the increase, I am asking EDF to hold a reasonable consultation and discuss mitigation, let Bridgwater and surrounding areas understand what is proposed and what mitigation may be needed.”

Andrew Cockcroft, senior manager for community relations, said EDF’s meeting with the town council was ‘productive’ and encouraged residents to take part in their online engagement events.

He said: “We discussed how to ensure that the town’s residents and businesses benefit fully from these new opportunities.

“The effective measures in place to mitigate impacts are also important and we remain committed to working together with the community and we remain committed to working together with the community and local authorities, including the town council, to make a lasting positive contribution.”

Councillor Gill Slocombe, leader of the Conservative group on Bridgwater Town Council, raised concerns about the increase in traffic and home working. 

She asked EDF to consider modular homes for the extra workforce that would be needed rather than relying on homes in Sedgemoor.

She said: "There is a significant opportunity to increase number of home-based workers at peak. Home-based roles could increase to almost half of the workforce (up from one third).

"Evidence suggests that non home-based workers will continue to live more locally than originally envisaged

"Evidence suggests that use of tourist accommodation will be largely unchanged although less owner occupied accommodation will be used. There is clear evidence that there has been a significant increase in new rental accommodation locally.

"Proportionally, less non home-based workers with families are expected at peak.

"During their presentation they talked a lot about the benefits of the skills needed and the local employment opportunities.

"Also the HPC Education, Skills and Employment Pipeline. Since 2011 Hinkley Point C has delivered STEM related activities and guidance to young people through our Inspire programme.

"This early activity has been further reinforced by our Young HPC programme and the HPC Jobs Service, providing a clear pathway for all demographics towards construction and now operational roles at HPC.

"I raised the point about the increase in traffic use – the other issues of home working which will greatly effect our housing need in Bridgwater especially.  

"I asked that consideration should be given for the idea of Modular homes for the extra workforce that would be needed, they should not just rely on trying to house extra people within the Sedgemoor area. 

"We are already suffering from cars left on our streets from the workforce, whilst I do understand that EDF are doing a lot of work to try and eradicate this problem.

"These are issues that effect our community and greater thought must be given to dealing with this prior to increasing the workforce and we must be heard.  

"The good thing about the EDF is that they want to consult with local people, they take the time to engage, which is vitally important in ensuring this uplift goes as smooth as possible."

EDF said residents can register to take part in online engagement events on February 9 and 11.

Visit https://www.edfenergy.com/energy/nuclear-new-build-projects/hinkley-point-c.