New projects to inspire social housing of the future announced
24 Sep 2019 02:38 PM
Housing and Local Government Minister Julie James has announced over £30 million for innovative housing in Wales, part of a £90 million fund to test new approaches to help develop social and affordable housing.
Projects to be funded include:
- 76 homes in Ruthin from ClwydAlyn housing association. These could be the first in the UK to deliver net zero whole life carbon, with renewable energy offsetting the carbon impact of production and construction. Homes will have air source heat pumps, solar power and intelligent batteries with heating and lighting costs estimated at less than £80 a year
- two sites developed by Monmouthshire housing association in Chepstow to create 17 properties for people who are downsizing and first time occupiers whose households might expand. The homes will have designed-in opportunities to add an additional bedroom to create life-long flexibility
- Cardiff Council will build 214 low carbon homes, a mix of council housing and homes to be sold on the open market in Rumney
- Swansea Council will build 25 homes to the ‘Swansea Standard’, a low carbon, energy efficient specification with solar panels, designed to achieve low running costs for tenants.
Finance Minister Rebecca Evans will today announce the creation of a new Public Sector Land Division which will help the sustainable development of public sector land, in particular to increase the delivery of more social housing in Wales.
Julie James announced the new funding at Parc Yr Helyg in Birchgrove, Swansea, which received Innovative Housing Programme funding during a previous round.
She said:
We face serious challenges in Wales, in terms of responding to the climate emergency and also delivering more affordable housing. This programme offers us the chance to develop homes with low fuel bills to tackle fuel poverty, homes designed and built with a low carbon impact in mind, and homes that can evolve with their households.
We have an opportunity to deliver affordable, high-quality homes that meet all these challenges, which reduce the impact of housebuilding on the environment, and that can be built at scale to meet the needs of our communities.
Good quality, beautiful houses are so important to people’s lives. I look forward to seeing these projects develop and to seeing the finished builds become homes.
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