A firm’s plans to recoup unexpected costs following the discovery of a Roman settlement on its development site have been approved.

Archaeological investigations of the site in Fordingbridge identified the remains of a previously unknown late Iron Age and Roman settlement.

The discoveries were made by environment consultants working on behalf of Cala Homes at land north of Station Road.

Cala Homes tabled changes to its approved plans for 198 homes on the site in light of the £900,000 cost associated with the historical finds.

The firm’s plan involved changing the open market housing mix, altering some of the car barns and car ports to enclosed garages and adding further surface car parking where needed.

There were no changes to the overall number of dwellings proposed, or alterations to the affordable housing mix or tenure.

The application to vary the approved plans went before New Forest District Council’s planning committee on Wednesday, October 9.

John Richards, land and planning director at Cala Homes, said the developer had been advised the finds were locally important and fitted an emerging pattern that late Iron Age and Roman Britain was significantly more densely populated than previously thought.

“Whilst developer-funded archaeological investigations like this have in recent years transformed our understanding of Britain’s history, these particular works have resulted in significant unforeseen additional costs in excess of £900,000 compared to an originally assumed £25,000,” Mr Richards said.

He added: “Given these increased costs, we have considered various option to seek to recoup but decided very firmly from the outset that we didn’t want to change the affordable offer, positively we are partnering with the council who will be our registered provider on this site, or to dilute the quality of the development in any way.

“It was therefore concluded the most appropriate option was to seek two minor material amendments to the scheme, which are capable of delivering additional value for Cala whilst not undermining the fundamental considerations that went into the planning balance for the development.”

The amended housing mix will see a reduction in two-bed flats and houses from 49 to 42, one less three-bed house from 80 to 79 and eight more four-bed houses from 53 to 61.

Cala Homes also confirmed 40 per cent of the properties would now have air source heat pumps, while the rest would remain gas fuelled with solar panels.

Committee member Cllr John Sleep said: “I would just like to compliment the developer on actually finding a million pound by changing a few properties and still maintaining what we already approved.

“I think it’s a very good example of cooperation between the council and the developers and no one is going to query that there is anything going on other than actually trying to recover that sort of cost on this development.”

Fordingbridge Town Council objected to the amendments having previously opposed the overall development, while there were 13 letters of objection, including from residents in Ashford Close, which borders the west of the site.

Cllr Malcolm Wade said: “Clearly the residents of Fordingbridge once again object to this and you can understand why, but it’s one of three sites in the local plan for housing.

“If we’re going to put housing developments on these sites, one of the quality like this is the sort of thing we should look for with a lot of affordable housing and a lot of positives about it.

“We need to recognise obviously residents are used to green fields are now going to have developments but it is the way of things.

“We need to build more houses and this is a site in the local plan.”

The committee unanimously approved the application to vary the existing planning permission.