Yorkshire firms begin work on £2.2m Barnsley affordable homes scheme

Work on a £2.2m residential development at Aldham House Lane in Wombwell, Barnsley, has been started by Leeds & Yorkshire Housing Association (LYHA).

The project, which consists of 25 affordable rented homes, is being undertaken by a number of Yorkshire-based companies.

Leeds architects Acanthus WSM are designing the scheme of 20 bungalows and five houses, and Termrim Construction Ltd from Huddersfield will be building the homes by using local labour to transform the site and provide a further boost to the economy in Barnsley.

The one and two bedroom homes will be built to Level 3 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, with an aim of reducing both running costs and carbon emissions for each property

This ensures the homes, which should be available to rent by March 2016, will be both affordable to rent as well as to live in.

Furthermore, many of the bungalows are being built to support customers with mobility issues now or in the future including full wet rooms.

Joanna Chambers, development manager at LYHA, said: “Barnsley is a fantastic place and we are delighted to bring additional high-quality homes to an area where they are much-needed. These homes are extremely cost-effective for our customers to run with the added bonus of producing low carbon emissions which is good news for the environment.”

Graeme Bird, managing director at Termrim Construction Ltd, added: “Over recent years we have built significant numbers of new affordable homes in the Barnsley and South Yorkshire Region and we are very pleased to secure this contract with Leeds & Yorkshire Housing Association to build more affordable homes in Barnsley.”

Aldham House Lane is part of a wider commitment from LYHA, which owns and manages 1,300 homes across Leeds and Yorkshire, to build or provide 85 new homes in Barnsley over the next several years.

Matt Gladstone, executive director of development, environment and culture at Barnsley Council, also commented: “The development of 25 new homes on the Aldham House Lane site will provide affordable housing for both families and older persons; comprising 20 one and two-bed general needs bungalows and five two-bed properties. We are thrilled to be working with LYHA on the delivery of the scheme, which is transforming an area of the estate previously cleared of low demand housing.”