A £1.5 million development which will provide much-needed homes for the people of a bustling Warwickshire village is underway.
Work to build 10 houses for affordable rent and two bungalows for sale started on site in Station Road, Fenny Compton, yesterday (WED) where the ground was ceremoniously broken.
The properties will be built to level four of the Government's Code for Sustainable Homes, in which level six indicates a carbon neutral home.
It is the first time Warwickshire Rural Housing Association, which will own and manage the homes, has built to level four.
Energy efficiency features fitted within the properties will include a ground source heat pump system, which converts natural energy found in the earth to heating.
There is a proven need for new homes in the village, sandwiched between Burton Dassett Hills and Oxford Canal. A survey completed by Warwickshire Rural Community Council in the village in June 2008 found there was a need for two bedroom bungalows and two and three bedroom houses.
Fenny Compton Parish Council and the community have supported plans for the housing development from the outset. Stratford-on-Avon District Council has provided funds in excess of £230,000 and the Homes and Communities Agency has invested £770,000 in the development.
Derrick Dyas, chairman of Warwickshire Rural Housing Association, welcomed key partners to the site yesterday. He said: "I am really excited that our scheme at Fenny Compton will be a major contribution to making the village more sustainable - not just in terms of energy consumption but also ensuring the availability of more affordable homes for local people.
"This is surely a fine example of working in partnership with a number of agencies and the parish council and community as a whole have been unanimous in its support. This has meant moving from completion of the housing need survey in June 2008 to starting on site less than two years later, which bodes well for our future work, helping rural communities satisfy their housing needs."
Dave Webb, Head of Revenues & Housing at Stratford-on-Avon District Council, said: "We are delighted another affordable rural housing scheme is underway in Fenny Compton. The scheme is testimony to the hard work of all partner organisations, in particular the parish council and local community. The district council also welcomes the energy efficiency features of the new homes which support its environmental and sustainability priorities."
Completion is scheduled for spring 2011 and only those with a local connection to the village, for example through family or work ties, will be eligible to move into the development.
