Two Rivers Housing and Eastington Community Land Trust have been granted planning permission to build 31 affordable homes.

Working together, they have secured planning permission from Stroud District Council to build a mix of flats and houses at the Homegrounds site, which will help local families find an affordable home in the area.

The new development will provide 21 homes for social rent and 10 for shared ownership, in a rural area where affordable housing is desperately needed.

Eastington Community Land Trust (ECLT) was set up by residents to help tackle the lack of affordable housing in the village. It aims to meet local housing need, while limiting further development in the parish.

The ECLT built 23 affordable homes at its Claypits site in 2020.

Terri Hibberd, development manager at Two Rivers Housing, said: "This is great news for families in Eastington, where access to affordable housing is limited. Rural areas like this are in desperate need of new homes, but it can be a difficult balance between preserving the character of the village and ensuring that there are enough places for people to live.

"Working with organisations like the ECLT helps ensure that developments like this are done with and supported by the local community, whose friends and families will ultimately benefit from the new homes we are building together."

Tom Morrison, chair of the ECLT, said: "Over the last 10 years or so, we've worked hard to ensure that Eastington remains a thriving rural community. Through projects like this one, we can meet the housing needs of local people, while protecting our green spaces and the rural character and charm of the village.

"Two Rivers Housing is the perfect partner for our second project. They are a local housing association with experience in building for rural communities and we believe their knowledge, experience and commitment to increasing the availability of affordable homes in their communities is a great fit for our second project."

Newent-based Two Rivers Housing will now look to appoint a contractor for the project and hopes to start work on site in the summer.