MORE than 1,400 homes were built in the Colchester borough in one year, new figures have revealed.

Figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government for 2018-19 revealed Colchester Council delivered 1,432 homes, above the target set by the Government of 1,069.

Colchester’s population has grown from about 150,000 in 1995 to more than 192,000 last year.

The borough council was one of less than 60 per cent of local authorities in England to achieve the target leaving almost 36,000 houses unbuilt nationwide.

The annual Housing Delivery Test also shows the council has managed to exceed its requirements every year since 2016-17.

The council was expected to see 2,770 homes built since 2016-17.

By the end of 2018-19 it had seen 3,392 homes delivered.

Rosie Pearson, secretary of the Campaign Against Urban Sprawl in Essex (Cause), said Colchester often delivered the most homes in Essex.

Last year, a planning inspector backed the council’s figures showing 920 homes needed to be built a year up until 2033.

She said: “When you compare Colchester against its neighbours it delivers far more than any other place in Essex.

“Unless someone says ‘Can we slow down a bit’ it will continue.

“We are not saying don’t build houses but we need to keep it in check.”

Ms Pearson argued more needed to be done to ensure infrastructure and affordable homes were in place.

​English local authorities built 247,000 homes in 2018-19 - nine per cent more than the year before, thanks to some councils delivering above what was required of them.

Though the national totals exceed the Housing Delivery Test’s target, this falls short of the Government’s eventual aim of building 300,000 homes per year by the mid-2020s.