Abri, a leading housing provider, is pleased to announce that The Old Brewery, one of the largest affordable housing developments in Bristol, has reached a key milestone with ‘topping out’ being achieved.
Bristol City Councillor Tom Renhard and John Kearney, Head of Provider Management from Homes England, were present for the occasion that marked the building reaching its highest point.
Located at the end of a popular high street in Southville, the scheme includes 107 new affordable apartments, offering a combination of one-, two- and three-bedroom homes, with 98 of them available for shared ownership and nine for social rent.
Stuart Hensby, Associate Director Sales and Marketing at Abri, said: “With great thanks to grant funding from our Strategic Partnership with Homes England, we’re excited to provide more much needed affordable housing in Bristol. Good quality homes and facilities are key to making a difference and creating thriving communities, especially in the midst of the national cost-of-living crisis. We’re ambitious to deliver 10,000 warm, safe and sustainable homes by 2030, including over 750 homes in Bristol within the next five years that’ll create places where people feel they belong.”
As well as new homes, the regeneration at The Old Brewery includes the adaptation of some of the original brewery buildings to retain the industrial heritage of the site. Seven commercial spaces are being created, including the conversion of the original brewery manager’s house, and these buildings will be used to offer new services for the local community including food and drink outlets, offices and creative spaces.
Cllr Tom Renhard, Councillor Tom Renhard, Cabinet Member for Housing Delivery and Homelessness from Bristol City Council commented: “Building homes is about creating neighbourhoods that meet the diverse needs of our communities and make use of unused brownfield land, so it’s great to see the results of another high-quality 100% affordable regeneration that’ll deliver much needed housing in Bristol. The new homes in Southville ward look great and will add to over 12,500 homes built since 2016, as we continue to tackle Bristol’s housing crisis head on.”
As a Strategic Partner with Homes England, Abri is using grant funding to make all the homes affordable for customers.
John Kearney, Head of Provider Management at Homes England said: “This new development in Bristol supports our greater vision for more affordable housing in the next five years, providing more people with a place to call home. The regeneration and delivery of additional housing is key to creating thriving and inclusive spaces where communities are proud to live, work and play.”
Abri is working in partnership with McLaughlin & Harvey who are undertaking the construction of the new homes and commercial spaces, as well as specialist surveying and construction consultancy, Rund. The homes are due for completion in 2024.
Simon Stewart, Managing Surveyor at Rund commented: “We’ve been assisting Abri in expanding its development portfolio in Bristol, supporting this 100% affordable housing development in our capacity as Employer’s Agent, Quantity Surveyor, Clerk of Works, and Principal Designer at The Old Brewery. As we celebrate the topping out, we continue to work hard to ensure that the development is built to the highest quality standard and fully complements the heritage and design of the site’s original architecture.
“The project involves work to deliver 107 new affordable homes alongside seven commercial units. Since the start, we’ve implemented thorough project management and quality control procedures and ensured all works adhere to strict health and safety requirements.”
Header image from left to right: Stuart Hensby, John Kearney, Ben Richards, Cllr Renhard, Phillippa Yeates and Sam Stone.
