Back to the list
Tenants share views on new build homes
Deputy Leader of Bolton Council, Cllr Linda Thomas, visited tenants at one of our new housing developments to see their impact on people’s lives.
The 10 new homes, in Hayfield Close, off Brownlow Way, form one of three new-build projects recently completed. A fourth development will see 60 properties created overall.
The development at Hayfield Close was built through a joint Bolton at Home and Bolton Council affordable housing programme. It is part of a £6.5m new build project overall, which is funded by a mixture of one-off capital funding, government grants and Bolton Home.
The new homes feature a mix of two, three and four-bedrooms. They have helped some people to downsize and given other families the space they need.
Cllr Thomas met with our customer Deborah Mills, who secured a downsize move to avoid having to pay the government’s under-occupancy charge.
Deborah said: “Living in my old house became too much for me. With three of my four children now grown-up and having left home, I was left to pay the bedroom tax on two spare bedrooms. I’m over the moon to be in our new home. I love it. Since moving in I’ve also been saving a lot on bills because the property is energy-efficient.”
Cllr Thomas said: “There is a desperate shortage of affordable housing in the borough and we are doing everything we can to try and combat this. This is a delightful and contemporary development providing well-designed, high-quality housing. I like the different specifications of the houses and the fact that we are helping people with different needs - those who need more space for their families and equally people like Deborah who needed to downsize after getting caught by the bedroom tax.”
Noel Spencer, Life President of Bolton at Home, added: “This development, and others like it, is part of our commitment to increasing the supply of quality affordable housing in Bolton. It’s one of a number of things we are doing to help ease housing waiting lists, provide more family homes and help customers who want to downsize.”
As well as the 10 properties at Hayfield Close,10 new homes in Darley Street, Farnworth, and 22 new homes at Greenroyd Avenue in Breightmet have also been built through the joint programme with the council. A further 18 homes are being built at Wildman Lane, Farnworth, and a number of other developments are in the pipeline.