Three new affordable houses will be built in Kings Somborne after planning permission was granted to demolish “under-used” garages in the village.

Three houses will be built on the site, owned by Aster Group, which the company said had been unoccupied for the past three years.

Sarah Durrans, regional director at Aster Group, said replacing the garages would turn “the unused piece of land into much-needed homes for local people will directly benefit three families and the wider community.”

The news follows unease in the Stockbridge community following a decision by the company to sell an affordable bungalow in the town, with residents saying there were “a considerable number of people who are in need” of such properties.

Aster says that funds from the sale will be used to build the three new houses, which will also be affordable properties. They said the site had been identified after a review of its garage sites, which saw these garages left empty.

Sarah said: “As well as building homes on land earmarked for development, we also look at ways to make the most out of the land and assets we already own, which includes looking at some of our poor performing garage sites in our regions.

“Finding development land, especially in rural areas is a challenge, so it makes sense to look at what we already have within our portfolio and to redevelop sites which our customers no longer use.

“The garages on this site have been unoccupied for over three years and the area has a bit of a reputation as a place for anti-social behaviour. Therefore, turning the unused piece of land into much-needed homes for local people will directly benefit three families and the wider community.”

Work on building the three new homes on Eldon Road is expected to begin in the summer this year.