Council tenants have moved into five new houses that have been handed over to North West Leicestershire District Council as part of a development agreement with David Wilson Homes.
The new estate at Hastings Park in Ashby has been built by David Wilson Homes, with the five homes being provided to the council as part of the developer contribution to affordable housing in the district.
This is the first time that this method of providing affordable housing has been used in North West Leicestershire.
The five homes feature in the first phase on this development with a further 11 homes due to be transferred to the council next year.
This agreement comes as NWLDC works to increase its housing stock to meet demand. The authority’s housing waiting list currently stands at 733 households.
Further new homes to follow include 24 houses and bungalows being built by the council itself on sites at Linford and Verdon Crescent, Coalville, and on the Willesley Estate in Ashby.
Councillor Roger Bayliss, the council’s portfolio holder for housing, said: “As part of any new housing development, the developer must provide a quantity of affordable housing, either on that site or elsewhere. This agreement is the best of both worlds; the council increases the number of homes it can offer to prospective tenants and David Wilson Homes meets its requirements to provide affordable housing.
“Our waiting list shows that there is a high demand for council homes. By using new agreements like this, as well as building our own homes, we can increase the number of affordable homes we have to let to those in housing need. ”
