PROPERTY NEWS: Part-buy and part-rent options on affordable homes

PEOPLE looking for an affordable home in West Somerset are being urged to buy rather than rent.
Magna West Somerset Housing Association said it had a number of a part-buy, part-rent properties available immediately through its development company Charter (S.W.) Ltd.
They included properties in and near West Somerset, in Stogursey, Lynton, and Bampton.
A Magna spokesman said: “You can buy part of the property and rent the remaining part.
“Your monthly outlay would typically be between £500 and £600, depending on the value of the property you part-buy and the type of mortgage you take.”
Charter (S.W.) Ltd’s core area of operation covers Somerset, Devon, and Dorset, and in addition to traditional affordable rented housing, it offers additional options to local communities in fulfilling housing needs, including shared ownership, shared-equity opportunities, and sub-market renting.
At its Lonlay Meadows development, in Farringdon Lane, Stogursey, the company is offering part-buy, part-rent on a first floor one-bedroom coach house apartment with private entrance and garage, lounge, kitchen, and bathroom for £42,000.
The outside of the property is rendered with feature wooden cladding.
It also has five new one-bedroom apartments available with private entrance and parking, open plan living room and kitchen, bathroom, central heating, and double glazing, starting at £38,000 under the same scheme.
In Lynton, two two-bedroom apartments are available at The Chapel, featuring open plan living rooms with fully-fitted kitchens and family bathrooms, central heating, double glazing, and parking, from £56,500.
The Bampton development, known as Scotts, offers a 40 per cent share in a two-bedroom apartment from £54,500.
The traditionally-built apartments on the edge of the town were carefully designed and built to a high standard by local developer Devonshire Homes and feature an open plan living room and kitchen.
Each is fully fitted with white goods, including oven/hob, washer/dryer, and refrigerator, and is carpeted throughout.
More information about the Charter homes is available by calling 0844 463 8031.
Anybody who wants to part-buy, part-rent one of the Charter homes should register at http://www.home2own.org.uk/.

• Our images show (from the top) Lonlay Meadows, Stogursey, The Chapel, Lynton, Scotts, Bampton. Images submitted.

Firefighters investigate Christmas Day blaze on Exmoor

FIVE fire engines from four towns were called to a Christmas Day house fire on Exmoor.
Crews attended the incident from Dulverton, Wiveliscombe, Williton, and Bampton.
The blaze in Brompton Regis was spotted by neighbours after smoke detectors in the The Old Waggon Works activated just before 3.20 pm this afternoon.
Owners Peter Page, who is a parish councillor, and his wife Babs, were understood to be away at the time for a family Christmas celebration.
One bedroom was almost entirely destroyed in the fire, which also spread to the loft of the house and to a downstairs utility room as firefighters used breathing apparatus to enter the property and tackle the blaze.
The whole of the groundfloor and first floor of the house suffered smoke damage, but The Post understands nobody was injured in the incident.
Six sets of breathing apparatus, two hose reel jets, and one covering jet were used in the firefighting operation.
The cause of the fire was still under investigation this evening but was beleived to have been an electrical fault.

Dulverton police team up with Devon and Cornwall officers to catch anti-social drivers

POLICE in Dulverton teamed up with their Devon and Cornwall colleagues in Bampton for a weekend of relentless activity to crack down on anti-social driving.
Operation Dodge was in response to a recent rise in reports of anti-social driving in and around the Dulverton, Tiverton, and Bampton areas.
The operation, which was carried out on Saturday and Sunday, November 22 and 23, focussed on anti-social driving, speeding, and drink drivers.
Officers gave advice to local motorists as well as using powers under Section 59 of the Police Reform Act.
Section 59 is an effecting tool for ensuring anybody driving without the expected care and attention can receive a warning notice which applies to both the driver and the vehicle and lasts for 12 months.
If, in this time, a second incident occurs - involving the driver or the vehicle - police will seize the vehicle and may prosecute the driver.
Dulverton Neighbourhood Police team Sgt Andy Whysall, said: “Operation Dodge was an excellent example of multi-agency working at its best.
“Avon and Somerset Constabulary joined forces with Devon and Cornwall to tackle the growing issue of anti-social driving across the border.
“We were able to collate and share valuable intelligence and together we hope that we were able to raise awareness of the consequences of committing driving-related offences.
“We would like to encourage local residents to continue to report any incidents of anti-social driving in their neighbourhood by calling their Safer Stronger neighbourhood policing team on 0845 456 7000.
“The message is clear - anybody driving in an anti-social manner in and around the Dulverton, Bampton, and Tiverton areas can expect to receive a fixed penalty notice or in some cases, their vehicle may be seized.”

• Our photograph shows police stopping and talking to a car driver. Photo by Avon and Somerset Constabulary.

Dulverton tenant hailed as hero for fatal blaze rescue attempt

A MAN who died in a fire which ripped through a block of four flats in Dulverton in the early hours of Tuesday has been named locally as Bob Short, who was in his 50s.
Mr Short lived in an upstairs flat in Herbert House, Dulverton, and was found dead inside it by firefighters who tackled the blaze.
Herbert House, on the corner of Amory Road and Barns Close West, provides temporary sheltered accommodation for homeless people and those with drugs and/or alcohol dependency.
It is run by Worcester-based Sanctuary Housing Association, which manages more than 70,000 properties across England and Scotland.
Mr Short had today still not been formally identified due to difficulty in locating his next of kin.
Fire service and police forensic investigators were continuing to examine the scene to try to work out what caused the fire.
Meanwhile, a second Herbert House tenant, Les Dale, aged 53, has been hailed as a hero for helping to rescue a woman and her dog, Shadow, from a ground floor flat, and for trying to save Mr Short.
Mr Dale saw flames coming through the ceiling of his downstairs flat shortly before 3 am and he rushed to a nearby relative’s house to call for the fire brigade before going back to help the woman.
A fourth occupant, a man in another upstairs flat, was rescued by Dulverton firefighters.
More than 30 firefighters were called to the incident from Dulverton, Wiveliscombe, Bampton, Tiverton, Taunton, and Bridgwater.
A spokewoman for Sanctuary Housing said alternative accommodation would be found for residents while Herbert House was repaired.

Man dies in Dulverton flats blaze

A MAN in his 50s has died in a ferocious fire which ripped through a block of flats in Dulverton during the night.
Fire and rescue crews found the man in a top floor flat at Herbert House, on the corner of Amory Road and Barns Close West after being alerted shortly before 3 am today (Tuesday, February 19).
Dulverton firefighters, who were first on the scene, managed to save a second man who was trapped in another top floor flat.
Two other people, a man and a woman with a 12-year-old dog named Shadow, were able to escape by themselves from ground floor flats.
Up to 35 fire and rescue personnel were involved in battling the blaze at its height, with crews attending from Dulverton, Wiveliscombe, Bampton, and Tiverton, together with two hydraulic platforms from Taunton and Bridgwater, a command support unit from Wiveliscombe, and an incident support unit from Taunton.
The fire quickly took hold of the 40 feet by 65 feet building and was so severe that firemen had to strip the roof of tiles in order to use a hose reel jet to reach hotspots inside.

Herbert House was converted from a former shop premises about 11 years ago, and was named after Auberon Herbert, who had owned the Pixton estate on which the housing estate was built.
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue group manager Paul Godwin confirmed ‘one person has died’ in what he described as ‘a severe fire’.
Fire investigations officers were working with police forensic teams and scenes of crime officers who began examining the site when it became daylight.
A post mortem is due to be held to determine a cause of death of the man who died, whose name has not yet been released.

Crash on remote Exmoor road leaves one person trapped

FIRE and rescue crews battled for nearly an hour to free a woman trapped in her car after a crash on an isolated stretch of road near Wimbleball Lake.
The incident happened near Leigh Barton Farm, Skilgate, and involved two vehicles.
Two fire and rescue crews attended from Dulverton and Bampton shortly after 10 am on Wednesday, January 16, and used clan lucas cutting equipment to free the casualty, who was then taken by ambulance to hospital.
A rescue tender from Taunton Fire Station was also called to the scene.

Rotary's Exmoor Moonraker teams raise £10,000 for children's hospice

NEARLY 350 walkers in 63 teams braved the elements in the annual Moonraker sponsored night walk on Exmoor to raise money for the Children’s Hospice South West and other Rotary charities.
The teams, which were drawn from across Taunton Vale, the Quantocks, West Somerset, and East Devon, walked one of three routes in poor conditions including continuous drizzle and thick fog in places, between Wimbleball Lake and Luxborough.
A team of more than 50 members of Taunton Vale Rotary Club, and the Inner Wheel, which organised the event, ensured the walkers were well-equipped, marshalled, checked on route, and fed in the middle of the night.
In addition, search and rescue facilities and four minibuses ensured all walkers were successfully returned to the base camp – with the last team finishing the course at 4.30 am.
The walkers again proved to be enthusiastic and up for the annual Moonraker Challenge, which it is anticipated will raise more than £10,000 for the Children’s Hospice South West.
The majority of the walkers were already looking forward to next year’s Moonraker event.
David Montgomery, president of Taunton Vale Rotary Club, which has members from Watchet and Wiveliscombe and several surrounding towns and villages such as Bampton and Wellington, praised the walkers for their efforts on the night and for the amount of sponsorship raised on behalf of the children’s hospice.
He also thanked all the marshals and support teams, as well as the local farmers and residents, for their help in making Moonraker a big success on the night.
This year’s winners were: The Challenge Walk (15 miles) – Crowcombe Stalkers; The Standard Walk (13 miles) – The Saints; The Short Walk (7.5 miles) – Rokin Robins.

• Our photographs show (top) the Challenge Walk winning team the Crowcombe Stalkers, (middle) The Saints team who won the Standard Walk, and (bottom) members of the Rokin Robins team who won the Short Walk. Photos submitted.