ALLOTMENTS will be bursting back into life at the old Cashes Green Hospital site.

The first 15 grow-your-own plots have been made available in readiness for the unique project to provide 78 new homes on the rest of the long-abandoned former NHS land near Stroud.

TV presenter Kevin McCloud's company Hab and housing group GreenSquare have joined forces with landowners the Homes and Communities Agency to deliver the entire project, which is the first of its kind in the UK.

But before building begins the allotments, which were closed in 1997 when Cashes Green Hospital was shut and mothballed for future redevelopment, were returned to the community.

Consultations held with Cashes Green residents revealed they remembered and valued the orchard trees and former allotments, Channel 4 Grand Designs host Mr McCloud said.

"It's genuinely exciting that we're now able to bring those allotments back into use many months before we even begin work on the adjacent hospital site," he said.

Hab Oakus, as the partnership behind the proposals is called, still needs planning permission from Stroud District Council for the 20 affordable homes for rent, 19 affordable homes for shared ownership and 39 properties for sale on the open market.

In the meantime Mr McCloud said it was important to return a sense of community through the allotments.

"They are social places to bring your family, spaces where people share things as well as grow food," he said.

"This is about the existing community. When the new residents move in they will have, rather than grass, spaces where they can grow things, hedges of raspberry canes and gooseberries."

New allotment holder Jan Mead is looking forward to planting and working her plot. She says her children and grandchildren will be helping her.

David Warburton from the Homes and Communities Agency said the allotments were another positive step forward.

"This shows this project has the views of the community at its core," he said.