A £7.7 million development of 22 new council houses in Mansfield is officially complete with the final tenants due to move into their spacious energy efficient homes in the coming days.
The council officially took handover of the new houses from Mercer Building Solutions earlier this month, with some tenants having already been given the keys to their new homes.
Executive Mayor of Mansfield, Andy Abrahams, said: “It is absolutely brilliant that this significant new council housing project has been completed.
“For the council this is a major achievement and one that makes me extremely proud. We have managed to improve the heart of what was a quite rundown 1960s estate with fabulous new family homes, new shops, new play areas and better transport links.
“It is not only going to transform the lives of those families on our housing waiting list who have been allocated one of these superb new houses, but also other residents of the Bellamy estate who will benefit from the new shops and facilities, including an improved bus service which will be in operation soon.
“The new council homes are being let at affordable rents and have been built to an extremely high spec, with super-high insulation, solar panels and air source heat pumps, making them some of the most energy efficient new-builds in the UK.
“They have been thoughtfully designed by the council’s own architects to future proof them for the changing needs of families over their lifetimes. This is council housing at its very best, right here in Mansfield. We should all applaud this at a time when housing is in such urgent need.”
The development includes 20 two, three and four-bedroom semi-detached houses. There are also two two-bedroom detached houses.
The first tenants moved in last year and currently nine of the homes have families living in them. The remaining 13 have been allocated tenants and they will be moving in over the coming weeks.
As well as affordable rents – classed as 80% of local market rents – the houses have been designed with modern living in mind with lots of storage space and electrical sockets. Outside, there are generously-sized gardens and electric vehicle charging points.
Cllr Anne Callaghan, Portfolio Holder for Housing, said: “The standard of these much-needed new homes is fantastic - with spacious, light rooms and lots of attention to detail in terms of how modern families live.
“These really are ‘forever homes’ where tenants can bring up a family and enjoy a good quality of life with lower energy bills and more affordable rents.”
As well as lowering energy bills, they will help the council to play its part in tackling climate change, with the homes going beyond the current Future Homes Standard specifications.
The homes have also been future-proofed, with the designs allowing for adaptations such as downstairs wet room showers for those that need them in later life.
The regenerated centre of the estate, which dates back to the late 1960s, now also has a new parade of shops, new children’s play areas and a learn-to-cycle track. There is also a new green space and through-road to improve public transport links.
The procurement process and construction of the development by Mercer delivered considerable social value to the area, bringing millions of pounds worth of trade to local supply chains while 88 percent of the people employed on the project lived within 20 miles of Mansfield.