More than 30 new low-cost flats will be delivered on a key Bridgwater site by March 2024.

Sedgemoor District Council has attempted to redevelop Penlea House, off Rhode Lane, into low-cost housing for several years.

The council approved proposals for 33 flats on the site in January 2021, despite councillors saying the new block would look like a prison.

The authority has now confirmed building work will begin by the end of October, with the new flats available to the public by the end of March 2024.

Penlea House served as the main house on a country estate before it was acquired by the council.

The building was originally re-purposed as six large flats, but the council deemed this to be economically unsustainable due to high heating and maintenance costs.

A mixture of 33 one and two-bedroom flats will be built in a single four-storey block.

At a recent meeting, councillor Andrew Gilling said: "We are finally now in contract with our contractor. Achieving this notable milestone will now see the long-awaited start of construction, with the demolition of the current building likely to take place in October.

"We anticipate the new homes will be ready by March 2024. A formal turf-cutting event is planned to take place in October to mark the start of redevelopment."

The Penlea House scheme is one of several housing projects being pursued by the council, with around £28m being invested in delivering 144 new council houses across multiple sites.

The council announced in late August that it had spent £4.3m on the former Bigwood and Staple printworks on Church Street, allowing it to deliver 29 new low-cost properties by March 2023.

A further 15 properties will be delivered across four redundant garage sites in Bridgwater – on Chamberlin Avenue, Saxon Green, and two sites on Avalon Road – under a new contract with Rigg Construction.