The Scottish government’s Help to Buy scheme is to be extended for another two years from April 2019.
From April 2019 a further £100 million will be invested over two years, helping up to 4,000 households to purchase a new home. Since 2013, the scheme has supported more than 12,000 Scottish households into a new home.
Help to Buy (Scotland) is open to first time buyers and existing homeowners, and provides up to 15% of the purchase price of a new build home. The maximum purchase price is £200,000.
Scottish housing minister Kevin Stewart announced the extension to the scheme during a visit to Calderwood Village, Coatbridge.
Stewart said: “Since we introduced Help to Buy, the scheme has not only helped thousands of buyers into new homes – it has supported around 9,000 jobs. A third of the annual £50 million budget – £18 million – will be reserved for sales from SME builders, who were particularly affected by the drop in development finance after the financial crisis.
“We know house builders still see Scotland as a place to continue to develop and invest, with the latest figures showing new house completions grew by 5% over the last year. Housing is about more than bricks and mortar – we want to provide safe, warm homes, help create a fairer Scotland, and preserve a diverse and more resilient construction sector.”
Douglas Cochrane, chair of the UK Finance Scotland mortgage committee, said: “The extension of Help to Buy in Scotland is good news for buyers and home movers with low deposits, who will continue to receive vital support when buying a new-build home. Last year the number of first-time buyers in Scotland reached its highest level in a decade, boosted by vital schemes like Help to Buy.
“Today’s announcement will bring welcome stability to the Scottish mortgage market and help more people get a foot on the housing ladder in the years ahead.”
Seventeen new houses could be built on a field near Vale School in Guernsey.
The island’s Planning Department have submitted a framework for developers to build on the agricultural land at Camp Dolent on Tertre Lane.
The site is 5-10 minutes walk from St Sampson main centre with Vale School and petrol stations nearby.
The Draft Development Framework gives a wide-range of guidance on the use of the plot, including:
Neighbouring residential development – There are no immediately adjoining residential properties. However, new development must respect the residential amenity of neighbouring properties to the south and west of Tertre Lane, including consideration of privacy and overlooking.
Access – The existing vehicular access is not suitable for a residential development of the scale proposed. Development on this site provides an opportunity to enhance pedestrian safety and access by providing a public footpath along Tertre Lane.
Design- Two storey buildings constitute a more efficient use of land than single storey buildings and therefore development proposals should consider a multi-storey design from the outset.
Renewable Energy – Proposals for the incorporation of renewable energy installations into the design of the development, such as solar tiles, is encouraged.
Based on the site, the Framework predicts between 8-17 dwellings.
Islanders are being asked to give their views before Friday 6th April.
Residents in a Chelmsford village have criticised property developers after they relaunched an application to build more than 100 homes and expand a primary school.
Bellway Homes has submitted new plans to build on a greenbelt site at the bottom of Aragon Road in Great Leighs.
The application also outlines proposals to expand Great Leighs Primary School on the same road.
The new plans come just two months after Bellway’s initial proposal to build 205 houses on the same site were refused by Chelmsford City Council after they deemed the site “unsuitable for development”.
Bob and Lorraine Wale, who live at 17 Aragon Road, started a campaign to halt the original plans and feel that the new proposal is no better.
Bob, 55, who works as a yacht broker, said: “We bought this house five years ago knowing that we would have busy traffic twice a day because of the school.
“But if more than 100 houses are built, there are going to be hundreds of cars having to get down Aragon Road at the same time as the school run.
“This road will become jammed. Everyone around there will have to use a car as well because there are no local shops.
“They are not really considering the people of Great Leighs. We want to preserve the intrinsic character of the village.”
Lorraine, also 55, said: “We worked really hard last time out to make sure everyone knew how to object to the application.
“No one wants the development here.”
Resident reasons against Great Leighs development
Site was not earmarked in Chelmsford City Council’s Local Plan.
Would ruin countryside views.
Access road (Aragon Road) will be a danger at peak times.
Pick-up points highlighted in Bellway’s Plans are not sufficient.
Only one way out into the village will cause problems especially at peak times.
Debbie Niccol, 54, lives on the same road and also objects to the recent application.
“I am furious about the plans,” she said.
“The council has already outlined all of the sites earmarked for development.
“This was deemed unsuitable.”
Debbie bought her current house three years ago and moved into the area because of its ‘village feel’.
But she fears that if this plan is pushed through the character of the village will be lost.
She added: “We bought our house because we loved the village feel.
“We don’t want it to become a housing estate – once you start getting bigger it becomes a faceless community.
“There is not enough infrastructure in place.
“All of the reasons that it didn’t go through last time have not changed.
“I am absolutely sick of these developers – I feel we do not have a voice in all of this.”
Developers are proposing an access road from Aragon Road
Jackie Ritchie, who also lives in the area, said: “There are not enough transport links.
“The road will be a nightmare for the school.
“I take my son to Chelmer Valley High School and I cannot get out of my road as it is.
“The plans will not work because people will not park in the designated areas, they will park as close to the school as they can.
“I do not know if it will go through or not but I can see myself being pushed out if it does go ahead.”
The site would be located behind Kay Close, Audley Road and Aragon Road.
Bellway say they have addressed the concerns made by residents in the area by adapting the plan.
Great Leighs Primary School has also been approached for a comment.
How do the new plans differ from the old proposals?
Bellway Homes submitted an Outline Planning Application to Chelmsford City Council on February 5.
The application is for 120 new homes with public open space, landscaping and land for expansion of Great Leighs Primary School.
The site is located to the north of Longlands Farm and Boreham Road at the bottom of Aragon Road.
It is on the same site as their previous application for 205 homes which was refused by the council on November 27, 2017.
Here are the similarities and differences between the two applications:
120 new homes (including 35 per cent affordable) down from 205 homes.
Still include fully equipped play areas and land for Great Leighs Primary School.
Vehicular access from Aragon Road.
No vehicular access to Boreham Road.
Parking in the development for pick-up and drop-off to the school.
Retention of existing public rights of way.
Inclusion of 15m green buffer to Sandylay Woodland.
A spokesperson for Bellway said: “We have worked in consultation with the local Council and community to take all views into consideration and ultimately, to make amendments to our plans.
“As part of this, we have significantly reduced the number of homes from 205 to 120.
“We look forward to making progress on this development, and delivering much needed new homes in this popular area.”
ITS approach to care was then revolutionary, and an entire village complex was supported by a working farm, church, shop and bakery before the rural idyll for vulnerable people was left to became a crumbling folly.
Now the former Bangour Village psychiatric hospital site in West Lothian –the size of 100 football pitches and including 15 listed buildings – is set to be taken over by a housing developer after lying empty for 14 years.
NHS Lothian, has a planning application going through the system for 891 homes, 800 new build and 91 conversions, and a primary school.
It is the second attempt to lay foundations for new homes there after an earlier effort fell victim to the economic downturn.
Allanwater Homes, based in Bridge of Allan, would not comment on its plans for the site but confirmed it has lodged a bid with owner NHS Lothian and that dialogue was ongoing.
It comes after renewed efforts were made to sell the site last year.
NHS Lothian, advised by the Scottish Futures Trust, appointed property advisers CBRe and Justin Lamb Associates to revive interest ahead of a planning decision through West Lothian Council.
Justin Lamb said Bangour is “probably the best opportunity in Scotland to deliver a new village in a mature landscape.”
A housebuilder has announced plans to open 19 new sites across the Yorkshire region in 2018, creating 2,800 new homes and over 1,000 associated jobs.
Barratt Developments Yorkshire West, which includes the David Wilson Homes brand, said sites will be in Leeds, Barnsley and Huddersfield. New employment will be in construction trades such as bricklayers, electricians and landscapers, through to head office support roles.
In the 2016/17 financial year Barratt Developments supported 610 sub-contractor companies and 370 supplier companies. The company intends to continue to support the local environments in which it builds. During 2017, more than 3,110 trees or shrubs were planted or retained on developments and 19.2ha of green space was created through public open spaces or private gardens, equivalent to 759 tennis courts.
The housebuilder recycled 95 per cent of its construction waste. Ian Ruthven, managing director at Barratt Developments Yorkshire West, said: “We’re delighted to continue contributing to the regional economy through local jobs for local people across our 19 new sites.
“We’re committed to investing in and supporting tradesmen across the region and look forward to working with them over the next year to build even more quality homes.
“As well as creating more jobs, the communities in which we build we be supported through our S106 contributions. In the 2017 financial year we provided over £13 million in local contributions to the areas surrounding our developments, which goes towards facilities such as public open spaces, school and educational facilities, public transport measures, and recreational facilities, as well as many other projects.
We look forward to continue helping create thriving communities over the next 12 months.”
A Sunderland social club could soon be a thing of the past if plans to demolish it and build new housing get the green light.
Proposals have been submitted to Sunderland City Council to bring down the single storey Farringdon Social Club, which is in Anthony Road.
Farringdon Social Club redevelopment of residential accommodation plans
Agent TTS Planning Consultants has said that if permission for the move is granted, residential accommodation will be built in its place, although there are no concrete plans for what type of housing would be created at this stage.
The application reads: “The application site is currently a social club and therefore the proposal for residential accommodation would be the development of brownfield land.
“The site is also within a highly sustainable location being within short walking distance to shops, services and public facilities. “Farringdon Primary School is directly north of the site with St David’s Church immediately to the west.
Farringdon Social Club redevelopment of residential accommodation plans
“There are a number of shops and facilities on Ashdown Road to the south of the site, which includes a Post Office, The Dolphin public house and Gills Golden Fry fish and chip shop. “There is also access to good public transport links with bus stops on Ashdown Road and Allendale Road which are a short walk from the application site.”
The time of accommodation which could be built on the land should the club be demolished is not specified in the plans. The application added: “A proposed layout for a residential scheme would very much depend on the type of development which would eventually be brought forward.
“It is considered necessary that a strong frontage is created along the main highway of Anthony Road. “Therefore it would be suggested that whether apartment blocks or individual houses/bungalows are brought forward, the built form would be built up to the main road, creating parking and garden/amenity areas to the rear of the site.
“It is considered that a suitable residential layout can be delivered which would offer a strong built form in the Farringdon area.” The application adds that a residential scheme would create an improvements in terms of an environmental impact on the surrounding area, with less noise if the social club was demolished.
No-one from Farringdon Social Club or TTS Planning Consultants could be contacted for comment. The application, which can be viewed on Sunderland City Council’s planning portal, is set to be decided on by February 13.
One of Britain’s major housebuilders is to prefabricate up to a quarter of its homes in a factory, in the latest attempt by the construction industry to tackle the housing shortage.
Berkeley Homes, which builds 4,000 homes a year, is planning to create a facility in Kent next year where builders will work to produce up to 1,000 houses and apartments annually which will then be craned on to sites.
Another company, nHouse, is setting up a factory in Peterborough with the capacity to build 400 homes a year, complete with light fittings, bathrooms, bookshelves and kitchens. Production is expected to start in January.
It claims it can build a house in 20 days in the factory which can then be erected on site in half a day. Several other developers, including Legal and General and Urban Splash, have also launched prefab home divisions.
Fears of a shortage of skilled construction workers caused by an ageing workforce and an exodus due to Brexit are part of the reason for the revival of prefabrication, which last provided a significant number of homes after the second world war.
The government has set a target of building 300,000 homes a year by the middle of the next decade. Despite recent increases in activity, the last annual figure was 190,000.
A Berkeley spokesman said: “We have acquired a 10-acre brownfield site from the Homes and Communities Agency to build a factory for modular homes in Ebbsfleet, Kent. This will have the potential to deliver up to 1,000 homes a year.
“Construction of the factory could begin next year. While the speed of production and the impact on skills and labour are important factors, our real driver is the quality we can achieve with modular housing.”
The nHouse has been designed by the architect Richard Hywel Evans and is made in four modules from engineered pine panels which are transported on the backs of lorries and are then clipped together on site and connected to pre-existing services. Its built-in features include solar panels, a robot vacuum cleaner and even a drone landing pad – looking forward to a time of aerial deliveries.
A three-bed house is on sale to developers or individual householders from £170,000 to £185,000, which is about the same price as a standard house built using wet trades.
Nick Fulford, the director of nHouse, argues that with 100 workers operating on an indoor production line rather than on muddy building sites in the elements, the homes will suffer from fewer snagging problems.
Funding for a multi-million pound bridge that will support the development of hundreds of new homes has been approved.
The new pedestrian and cycle access overpass will be installed over the A46, connecting the former RAF Newton site – where 550 new homes are proposed – with a plot of land also proposed for new housing in Bingham.
A total of 317 homes could be built on the plot of land, just west of Chapel Lane, by developer Barratt Homes.
The planning application was submitted to Rushcliffe Borough Council in September, and is due to be discussed by its planning committee at a meeting in the new year.
The council has been awarded £2,910,000 by Highways England – the government-owned company with responsibility for the operation, maintenance and improvement of the motorways and trunk roads in England – to build the bridge.
The bid to secure the funds began two years ago, and it was confirmed on December 28 that it had been awarded from Highways England’s Growth and Housing fund.
Bingham Town Councillor Sue Hull welcomed the news of the bridge being built, and said it would “connect” both Newton and Bingham together.
She said: “The borough council applied for the funding of the bridge over two years ago now.
“It is needed for the area. The residents on the RAF Newton site feel isolated, as the nearest shops for them are in East Bridgford.
“This new bridge will connect the two sides together. People will be within walking distant of supermarkets, and the post office.
“It will be a quick and direct link to Bingham’s town centre, and will have a huge positive impact on the people from the Newton side.”
It is not known when work on the bridge will start.
The developments are part of the first phase of Rushcliffe Borough Council’s plan to build up to 1,050 new homes as well as shops, a community centre, primary school and allotments and parks in Bingham
Leader of Rushcliffe Borough Council Councillor Simon Robinson said: “Rushcliffe is delighted to be awarded this funding from Highways England Growth and Housing Fund.
“The link bridge directly supports the development of 550 new dwellings proposed at RAF Newton.
“It will provide direct pedestrian and cycle access across the recently dualled A46 between the RAF Newton and Bingham development sites.
“This will mean the current and future residents of the RAF Newton settlement will have sustainable access to a wide range of retail and commercial amenities on offer in Bingham, and better access to employment opportunities in both the town itself and the greater Nottingham area through improved access to public transport links.
“RAF Newton is a key site on the A46 and the funding for the bridge brings us a step closer to realising our targets and ambitions for this key growth corridor.”
A former pub site and a row of shops with flats could be turned into 20 new homes, plans have revealed.
The former Harvester site off Old Farm Road and a row of shops and flats in Knights Close, Top Valley, could make way for a mixture of houses and houses.
A document submitted to the council by Pelham Architects on behalf of Nottingham City Homes states the site will be turned into 12 two-bedroom houses, two two-bedroom flats, one two-bedroom split-level house and five four-bedroom split-level homes.
It also says there will be a four-bedroom ‘parsonage’ with a garage and three parking spaces.
The area has previously been described as an “area of blight” and residents speaking to the Post earlier this year were relaxed about the planned demolition.
The site also includes a former Harvester pub, which has been empty for some time.
A shop will be retained on the site but moved to a more suitable area.
The document states: “The shop is now at the pivot point on the site, facing the subway, existing footpath route and the extended Knights Close. It will be useful in increasing natural surveillance in the location proposed and with windows from the flats above on three sides there will be surveillance to all the public areas.
“We ensured that homes have habitable rooms facing the route to help with natural surveillance. This route will also work well in replacing the path that is proposed to be close which runs north-south adjacent to the western boundary.
“Closing this path will help make the routes children take to school feel safer as the new route is in front of homes rather than being isolated and not over-looked.
“The existing homes are simply detailed and we wanted to reflect that in the house designs, but add more features such as the various porches, black brick header details and contrasting brick colours.
“Brick garden walling will also be used, which will add interest and longevity. We tried to tie together the varied colours of brick from the surroundings by using red, buff and black brick.”
Speaking to the Post in May when it was revealed the area had been earmarked for demolition, Carl Brant, 28, who also lives over the shops, said: “I think it was March I found out. I was kind of happy because I’ve wanted to move, to be honest – I’ve got a young daughter in Aspley, so I would like to move nearer.
“I wouldn’t say it’s quiet. It’s a bit noisy outside sometimes, although there’s never really any trouble – but most of the shops have been empty now for about two years.”
Developers have revealed plan to build 970 new houses and a primary school on the edge of York.
National housebuilder Redrow has drawn up proposals for the north east of the city, near Huntington, on a site bounded by Monks Cross Link Road to the east and North Lane to the north.
The development would cost £100 million to build and take ten years to complete, at a rate of around 100 homes a year.
As well as the houses and school, there would be sports pitches, a play area and public open areas.
Redrow says the school and commercial, transport and sports facilities would be at the heart of the development, to form a vibrant village centre.
The site is within the Outer Ring Road has been deemed suitable for housing in various draft versions of York’s proposed Local Plan, so will likely prove less controversial in principle than a separate, larger plan north of the bypass, reported earlier this month in the York Press.
Redrow revealed its ideas for the site at two local consultation events earlier this month, and intends to submit a formal planning application to City of York Council early in the New Year.
Redrow revealed its ideas for the site at two local consultation events earlier this month, and intends to submit a formal planning application to City of York Council early in the New Year.
Redrow’s site plan
Redrow said it was keen to “create a community that is not just another new development”. They say they will include affordable housing.
It says:
The extended village will have new community facilities to meet the needs of the future and existing residents, including a small local shop, primary school and public open space and playing fields.
It is expected that the primary school will be designed to a standard that facilitates wider public uses, to act as a community hub.
‘Respecting the landscape’
Elsewhere in the information they sent to YorkMix, Redrow says: “Monks Cross North will be a leading example of a high-quality sustainable community, through the creation of a place that is economically, socially and environmentally sustainable.
“The development will draw on the features of the site while respecting the landscape setting of the surrounding green belt.”
Huntington and New Earswick councillor Keith Orrell said: “Local councillors know this has long been in the Local Plan.
“When the Local Plan process finishes, we look forward to local people being consulted about the details.”
City of York Council has struggled for many years to complete an acceptable Local Plan, a landmark document meant to help determine the future development of the city.
The plan identifies which parts of the city are suitable for what sorts of development, and aims to project how many houses will be needed to accommodate the city’s growth.
Disputes between parties have seen repeated disagreements and rewrites, but the current administration now hopes to submit a plan to the Government by May 2018.
