New residents are moving into 25 brand new affordable homes on a £4m development close to Fossway in Byker, Newcastle.
Karbon Homes has worked with one of the region’s largest contractors, Esh Construction, to develop homes for social rent, supported by funding from Homes England.
The site on Roman Avenue, close to the route of Hadrian’s Wall, has been vacant for some time, having previously been used as a telecoms depot.
The development provides 17 houses with a mix of semi-detached and terraced properties and eight flats. There are two blocks of flats, with each flat having its own front door at ground level.
The development has open plan front gardens and fencing to the back gardens to provide private space.
Residents of the Roman Avenue homes will also benefit from 34 parking spaces, and a bike shed for every home. Karbon has also installed an electric charging point on the development which residents with an electric or hybrid vehicle can use.
The new homes will be let at what is known as ‘social rent’ which ensures they will be truly affordable for local residents.
The new homes on Roman Avenue form part of Karbon Homes’ development programme which will see the landlord complete around 500 homes in 2021/22.
Michelle Stephenson has just moved into a two bedroom home with her son. She said: “I love it, it’s really nice. The house is brand new, really beautiful, and so warm. It’s perfect, and lots of light too.”
She used to live in a two-bed home in private rented accommodation in the West Denton part of the city but when she saw these new homes advertised, she applied and was successful.
Miss Stephenson, 43 works as a counter manager in a beauty store at the MetroCentre, said: “It’s a brand new home in an excellent location and is also handy for my son who studies at the Quayside. The car parking is very useful too.
“The house is really affordable. Normally you see two bed houses with one double bedroom and a single room – but these are both good size bedrooms.”
Zoey Hawthorne, assistant director of development delivery at Karbon Homes, said: “This has been a great site for us, really well located on the edge of an existing residential area, and close to employment sites, shops and both bus and Metro routes.
“We are glad to be developing social rent homes in Newcastle, to ensure they are as affordable as possible for the long term.”
Laura Devaney, Head of Land and Partnerships, at Esh Construction, said: “We’re really proud that we’ve been able to deliver these new homes on brownfield land that has been easy to integrate into the local area. The development will make a huge difference to the local community by providing housing that is always in high demand and provide dozens of families with secure and affordable housing for decades to come.
“Working in partnership with Karbon Homes, Newcastle City Council and Homes England, we have once again made a huge difference to our local communities.”
Paul Shorten, Senior Manager, for Homes England, said: “Homes England is pleased to have been able to work with Karbon Homes to support this former telecoms brownfield site to come forward for much needed social housing in Newcastle. Roman Avenue in Byker is a great example of partners working together to create good quality, well designed new affordable housing for the local community.”
The development has been designed by HMH Architects.