A building project that is part of an ambitious plan to address Shropshire’s housing shortage and provide a boost to the construction industry, has begun.
The Wrekin Housing Trust has appointed contractor, Hawk Developments (UK) Limited, to undertake the work at Princess Avenue in Arleston, Telford, which will involve the demolition of 34 properties that are currently on the site. The properties will be replaced with 45 modern affordable rent homes, consisting of 32 two-bedroom houses, seven three-bedroom houses and six two-bedroom bungalows.
Four of the new properties to be built at Princess Avenue will be super-efficient passive houses, which are advanced, low energy, draft-free buildings featuring high performance insulation to effectively eliminate heat loss. This will result in reduced energy costs for tenants.
Their construction is linked to the Marches Construction Ready Partnership, which was launched at the end of last year. The partnership, which involves The Trust, Landau Ltd, a training provider, Telford College, and Beattie Passive, received a £650,000 government grant to set up atraining hub aimed at providing opportunities for people to get in to the construction industry, while tackling Shropshire’s housing shortage, and boosting the county’s construction industry.
The plan, which was approved by Telford & Wrekin Council’s planning committee, in February, will also see the Trust contributing funds for the upgrading of facilities at the nearby Arleston Community Centre.
Matt Beckley, project manager at The Wrekin Housing Trust, said: “This development is an important part of an innovative and ambitious project. By training more people and providing more housing, including environmentally efficient homes, as well as boosting the local economy, we are addressing a number of challenges at the same time. It’s an exciting initiative and The Wrekin Housing Trust is proud to be at its forefront.”
Matt Edwards, Operations Manager from Hawk Developments, said: “We are excited to be working with Wrekin housing trust on this scheme bringing both high-quality traditional homes along with the passive housing development, providing a future proof energy efficient home for tenants to enjoy.”
Ron Beattie, Managing Director Beattie Passive, added: “Beattie Passive is proud to be partnering with The Wrekin Housing Trust. This summer, the trust will be undertaking the Beattie Passive training and will set up its Flying Factory in order to manufacture our system for its Princess Avenue site in Telford. It is great to work with like-minded organisations that share our vision and passion for high quality homes delivered by local people in the local community. We look forward to working with The Wrekin Housing Trust on many more schemes in the future.”
The project will be completed in 2021.
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