Council hands back £3m funding after Cheltenham housing plan scrapped

A council has been forced to return £3m of government funding after a scheme to build 200 affordable homes in Gloucestershire fell through.

Plans to redevelop a Cheltenham car park have been shelved after the developer put the site on the market.

Property builders MF Freeman said it had to '"reassess its options" in the light of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cheltenham Borough Council said it will now look at other sites for a residential development in the town.

Councillors had hoped to turn the Portland Street car park into "an impressive town centre".

Finance director Paul Jones said: "This is very disappointing for all parties. Although the council does not have ownership of the site, its officers have worked to try to support and facilitate the site."

Government funding had been secured for the development but without a site there was "no option other than to hand the money back", said Liberal Democrat Council leader Rowena Hay.

She said: "We will move onwards and upwards to find other sites, we have got lots in a pipeline."