Green self builders could 'avoid eco town charges'

Self build initiatives are one way to get around green living without paying service charges.

The alternative is to fork out as much as £500 a year in management costs, maintenance and the provision of services by living in the proposed Middle Quinton eco-town in south Warwickshire, reports the Birmingham Post.

John Dodds, regional director of developers St Modwen, said the aim of the levy was to negotiate cheaper council tax for people living in the environmentally-friendly community of 6,000 homes.

He told the newspaper: "We will be providing recycling, street cleaning, refuse services and street lighting. People don't mind paying for something they see the benefit of."

Mr Dodds added the service charge is "normal commercial practice".

In related news, plans for a controversial eco-town near Cambridge could be shelved after the main landowner - medical research charity the Wellcome Trust - this month refused to sell to developers.