Rackheath and Beeston Park homes progress hope near Norwich

The 3,500-home Beeston Park development, just outside Norwich, and proposals for thousands of homes around Rackheath have been talked about for years.

Permission for the Beeston Park homes, north of Old Catton and Sprowston was first granted a decade ago, but the houses have yet to be built.

And in Rackheath, plans lodged by Taylor Wimpey for almost 4,000 new homes along with two primary schools and a secondary school, have yet to come before Broadland District Council's planning committee.

Rackheath, where thousands of homes could be built (Image: Mike Page)

But Shaun Vincent, Conservative leader at Broadland, said he was optimistic there would be progress on both schemes in the months ahead.

He said: "We have got a backlog at a time when so many people need housing and there's been a struggle to overcome nutrient neutrality.

"But things are starting to move in the right direction to enable them to get going."

Shaun Vincent, leader of Broadland District Council (Image: Archant)

Part of the reason for schemes stalling is the issue of nutrient neutrality, which has prevented councils approving plans for housing in areas within the catchment area of the River Wensum and the Broads.

The government's advisory body Natural England issued a directive on nutrient neutrality a year ago, amid concerns nutrients in wastewater from homes would flow into water and make it harder for aquatic species to survive.

The nutrient neutrality directive aims to protect rivers and the Broads, but has prevented decisions over housing (Image: Mike Page)

Councils have been working on mitigation measures through a joint venture with Anglian Water.

Mr Vincent said he hoped that would be up and running in the summer.

Developers would be able to buy credits for measures such as reed beds and crop cover to be provided to trap nutrients and prevent phosphate run-off.

It would also pay for improvements to wastewater recycling and retrofitting of existing homes.