A ceremony has been held in Stevenage to showcase the progress on a housing development which aims to improve sustainability and increase the number of social homes.
Helston House on Scarborough Avenue, Symonds Green is due to be completed next year, and will see the delivery of 29 one, two and three-bedroom apartments for social rent. The apartments will be let to people currently on Stevenage Borough Council's waiting list.
Members of the housing development working group were invited to attend a ceremony on Monday, which showed the building works to date, highlighted environmental sustainability features and marked the topping out point where the building's highest point had been reached - a custom dating back to the 14th century.
Cllr Jeannette Thomas, executive member for housing, health and older people at Stevenage Borough Council, said: “The new homes on Scarborough Avenue, due to be completed next year, will be a great addition to the social homes we already have here in Stevenage.
“We are working hard to deliver more affordable and social homes for the town through large re-investment projects, like North Road, which has funded the homes being built at Symonds Green.
"We are building hundreds of new homes in Stevenage alongside generating local prosperity by creating new jobs on the development sites and offering workers professional training.”
Environmental technology used in the new homes includes the use of electric heating, triple glazing, added thermal building insulation and photovoltaic panels for solar energy generation.
As part of the housing scheme's commitment to helping the community, contractor SJM made a number of donations to local good causes, including the Irish Network Stevenage and three mayoral supported charities.
Peggy Lyon, vice-chair of the Irish Network Stevenage, said: "We’re really grateful for the donation received from SJM and are delighted to have assisted the council with its ambitious housing plans by hosting the community consultation event for Helston House.
“We look forward to collaborating together on many more future projects for the people of Stevenage.”
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