Preparations are under way to start building 15 new low carbon homes for social rent in Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire — thanks to an innovative partnership.
Cottsway Housing Association and Cotswold District Council are working together with Helix Partnership Homes to provide the affordable homes, which will all include sustainable features such as air source heating, solar roof panels, electric vehicle charging points and enhanced insulation.
Two existing vacant properties have been demolished to make way for the new one-, two- and three-bedroom homes, and the site has been cleared ready for construction work to begin in April.
The development has been made possible with the support of £1.275m grant funding from Homes England and £580,500 developer funding secured in Section 106 contributions from Cotswold District Council, as well as a loan arrangement as part of a finance agreement between the council and Cottsway. Helix Group has also provided construction finance to ensure the homes can be completed quickly by summer 2024.
Richard Reynolds, Cottsway’s Chief Executive, said: “Reducing our environmental impact is important to us and this project delivers not only additional much-needed affordable homes, but all with sustainable low carbon features which we’re proud to be achieving. We’re also delighted that the homes will all be available for social rent, currently at around 55-60% of local market rents.
“We’re very pleased to be working with Cotswold District Council and Helix Partnership Homes to deliver this innovative project and we would like to thank Homes England for the funding support provided to help make this possible.”
Cllr Joe Harris, Leader of Cotswold District Council, commented: “I’m delighted that we have been able to enhance this scheme in partnership with Homes England and Cottsway. The Davies Road site will be the first green home scheme of its kind in the Cotswolds.
“In the face of a growing affordability crisis, we are committed to increasing the number of genuinely affordable homes across the district for local people. Working alongside providers such as Cottsway we can offer people affordable homes, that are not only high quality, but are also more sustainable than standard housing and ultimately better for the environment.
“The Davies Road site was allocated for development in the Council’s Local Plan, and our officers worked hard to ensure the development moved from a standard, mixed market development to an ‘all affordable’ scheme, with an extra grant from Homes England to take the sustainability standards a step further.”
Charlie Scherer, Director at Helix Partnership Homes, said: “We’re delighted to be starting on the important delivery phase of this development. This is a fantastic example of how our partnership philosophy has unlocked a site with complex technical challenges to provide much needed good quality and affordable homes for the local community.
“We would like to thank Cottsway, Homes England and Cotswold District council for their support to make this scheme possible.”
Michael Bradford, Senior Development Manager for Disposals at Homes England, said: “We are pleased to have been able to support Cottsway, Helix and Cotswold District Council to bring forward 15 new low carbon social rent homes to Moreton-in-Marsh. The proposed homes demonstrate how we can work in partnership to deliver high quality, sustainable affordable homes where they are needed. We look forward to continuing our work with communities and partners to achieve this.”
Cottsway is West Oxfordshire’s largest affordable housing provider and has a growing number of properties in Gloucestershire and Wiltshire.
