Tenants have now moved in to the first two houses built as part of Harrogate Borough Council’s affordable housing scheme which could see 50 new affordable homes being built on its land across the district over the next few years.
The two properties, which mark the start of the council’s first house-building programme since the 1980s, are semi-detached, energy efficient properties that were completed this September on a former garage site in Glasshouses, near Pateley Bridge. The new tenants moved in to the large two bedroomed houses shortly afterwards.
The new homes have been financed from the council’s existing housing funds and all of the work involved in building the properties was done by the In House Maintenance Team at Harrogate Borough Council. The work has also enabled the council’s multi-trade apprentices to gain invaluable experience by being involved in the whole building process.
The houses are designed to achieve a 19% carbon reduction which means less energy is needed to keep the new homes warm. This in turn will help reduce fuel costs.
Solar panels are incorporated in the roof of the houses to generate electricity, providing a clean source of energy. Household internal water use has been designed so that only 105 litres per person per day is needed, which is approximately 45 litres less than the national average. The homes also incorporate a home office, so new and future residents will be able to work from home.
The new tenants in the properties are both young families who lived nearby.
Councillor Stanley Lumley, Cabinet Member with Harrogate Borough Council, said:
I was incredibly impressed by the quality and obvious pride that the in-house team had in their work, the two new properties are a credit to them.
The very high standards in finish and the fantastic efficiency results that both properties have achieved are remarkable.
I am also delighted that the properties have been let to local people.
This has to be a win win, not only does this provide much needed high quality social housing at a far reduced cost to the tax payer, it provides employment and training opportunities for existing and new staff at Harrogate Borough Council, and a fantastic opportunity for an apprentice scheme.
Amy Beecroft, her husband Lee and their small daughter have just about settled into their new home now after moving in at the end of last month.
Amy said:
It’s absolutely brilliant, there’s so much space to put everything. We really couldn’t believe our luck when we got the phone call – even more so when we saw the finished house!
We kept going past and taking a peek as it was being built but it was amazing to finally get inside and realise that it was ours.
