Hull City Council and local housing association Pickering and Ferens Homes have today welcomed the success of their joint bid to build 57 new ‘eco’ homes in the city.
A grant of £3.3m was today announced by the Homes and Communities Agency, and means that work will start at three development sites in east and west Hull later this year.
In west Hull, 38 houses and bungalows will be built at Junella Fields, off Woodcock Street, as part of the multi-million pound regeneration of Newington St. Andrew’s. All of the new homes will be available for rent, 18 of them through the Council and 20 through Pickering and Ferens Homes. A further 19 council homes will be built at Lingdale Road and Preston Road in east Hull.
The new homes will be the first in the city to meet Level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, a guideline to drive up standards in construction. Typical features in a Level 4 home include cavity, loft and under-floor insulation, on-site recycling of water, high efficiency boilers, renewable timbers and high performance double glazed windows and doors. Homes built to this standard could see annual heating bills cut by up to 75 per cent.
Councillor Rick Welton, Hull City Council portfolio holder for housing and regeneration said: “This is excellent news for local residents and a real boost to our plans to drive up the quality and choice of housing across the city.”
St. Andrew’s Councillor Nadine Fudge, whose ward includes the Junella Fields development site, added: “I am pleased that this bid has been successful because myself and the local community have fought for development on this site for a long time. Along with the new homes now on site at St. Andrew’s Square, it will mean a massive improvement to the area as well as creating more local jobs.”
Pauline Davis, Strategic Director for Housing Investment and Renewal at Hull City Council said: “We are absolutely committed to developing new, high quality housing for rent in the city and the success of this bid shows our determination to take advantage of every possible funding opportunity.”
Roger Elliot, Director of Pickering and Ferens Homes, said: “The association is delighted that the bid has been successful and is very pleased to be working in partnership with Hull City Council and the Homes and Communities Agency. We look forward to a very successful partnership, which will ensure that local residents will be able to live in the areas of their choice and in very energy efficient homes.”