COUNCILS will now have a more direct approach in delivering large-scale Garden Communities.

Braintree Council held a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, at which councillors agreed to create a company leading the work to create the developments.

One community will to the west of Braintree, near Andrewsfield Airfield, and one west of Marks Tey, dubbed “West Tey”.

Councillors wanted to ensure if the garden communities go ahead, they are delivered with the right infrastructure.

They are working alongside Colchester Council, Essex County Council and Tendring District Council.

The company would be known as North Essex Garden Communities Limited, with each council appointing a director to its board.

The company will then build Local Delivery Vehicle companies for each proposed community, known as West of Braintree Ltd, Colchester Braintree Borders Ltd and Tendring Colchester Borders Ltd.

The four authorities will agree to provide some funding to each of the Local Delivery Vehicles.

Leader of Braintree Council, Graham Butland, said: “New communities built with garden community principles will mean holistically planned homes built with the timely delivery of infrastructure, which we believe is much better than hundreds of smaller developments dotted around the district.

"We firmly believe that garden communities are considered the best way to deliver large scale new infrastructure.

"The setting up of a company and the work associated with it is all subject to the site proceeding through the Local Plan process, however if it is to proceed then having the company set up will allow the project to proceed more quickly and with the infrastructure first approach which is required.”

Rosie Pearson, secretary for the Campaign Against Urban Sprawl in Essex, said CAUSE has always supported the principle of delivery vehicles.

However, she said the report raises many questions.

She said: "We find it astonishing that councillors are prepared to nod through decisions of this significance without asking for more time to understand the financial modelling and the structure of the delivery vehicles.

"The risks to Braintree and its residents of trying to deliver two new towns at a cost of £2.4billion are vast.

"We have done our own analysis and found the infrastructure budget misses out key requirements like rail and station car park improvement.

"It heavily under-estimates the costs of other infrastructure such as healthcare.

"If you so much as breathe near the financial model it falls over."

The issue will now go to Full Council.