Living in Yapton became a little less expensive for local people struggling to afford housing in the village, with the release of 11 affordable Stonewater homes in Emerald Gardens this week.
The new homes mark the completion of a two-phased, £7.3m mixed development of 69 homes — 45 for affordable rent and 24 low-cost shared ownership – which have been financed by leading social housing provider Stonewater.
The 11 new Stonewater properties are a mix of four three-bedroom and two two-bedroom houses, and two two-bedroom coach houses for affordable shared ownership. These part-rent, part-buy homes start at £70,000 for a 40% share. Three more three-bedroom houses are available for affordable rent allocated through Arun District Council. The mixed tenure scheme lies within Emerald Gardens, a new 173-home Persimmon development in Navigation Drive.
The Stonewater affordable homes come at a time when the average £281,849 cost of a home in the area is more than 11 times the average local wage and typical private rents consume over a third of local earnings.
“We are delighted to see the final phase of new affordable homes at Emerald Gardens now completed,” says Chris Montague, Head of Development at Stonewater. “I hope that these new homes will make a positive impact on affordable housing in the district and help more people find homes where they want them at a price they can afford.”
Stonewater commissioned artist Oliver Budd of Budd Mosaics, in association with a space arts, to create a special mosaic reflecting the important navigational influences of the area providing a sense of ‘place’ for the new housing community. Due to be installed shortly, Oliver’s design is a circle with two hemispheres: the north representing the story of the nearby Portsmouth and Arundel canal, and the south highlighting the historic World War II Ford Airfield which is 400 metres from Stonewater’s Emerald Gardens development.
Graeme Cole, Head of Sales for Persimmon Homes South Coast, says: “At Persimmon, we are proud to create homes to suit all parts of the community – from first time buyers and young professionals, to growing families and mature downsizers. The provision of affordable homes within our developments is an important element in helping our local towns and villages to survive and thrive.”
Stonewater owns and manages 866 homes across West Sussex.
Pictured above at the ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of 11 affordable Stonewater homes in Emerald Gardens, Yapton, from left to right, are: Karen Edwards, Stonewater Tenancy Services Officer; David Skipper, Associate, Lawson Queay; Karl Endersby, Persimmon Homes Technical Director; Councillor Trevor Bence, Arun District Council Cabinet Member for Housing; Chris Montague, Stonewater Head of Development – East and Helen Griffiths, Stonewater Area Manager.
