Greenest homes in Derbyshire

Housing and regeneration group LHA-ASRA has announced the completion of 33 affordable eco-homes on disused land in North Wingfield.

Built by Loughborough contractor William Davis, the scheme of two-bedroom bungalows for the over 55s, meets level four of the Government’s rigorous Code for Sustainable Homes criteria.

It’s already been dubbed the greenest development in Derbyshire with some residents already having moved in.

Resident Judy Owen is thrilled with her bungalow and quick to praise the build quality and green credentials of the scheme.

“I can’t fault anything,” she said. “My new home has all the mod cons I need. It’s warm, comfortable and environmentally friendly. It’s been the best move ever for me.”

The properties, located on Wayside Close and Eyam Close, benefit from a state of the art renewable heating system thanks to a £73,000 Department for Energy and Climate Change Bio-Energy Capital Grant awarded in 2009.

William Cornall, Director of Development and Regeneration at LHA-ASRA said: “These homes are ground-breaking in their use of eco-technology. A biomass boiler on each site runs on wood pellets, providing a heating system which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by half, whilst remaining true to the area’s tradition of solid fuel heating.

“This shows our commitment to building greener homes into the future, without compromising the needs of our customers.”

The bungalows also run efficiently on low levels of water, contain storage space for recyclables and have access to secure storage of electric scooters and bikes. Each bungalow has a recharging station for mobility scooters and two have full disabled access with a car port.

LHA-ASRA and William Davis worked closely with local councillors over the design and layout of the homes.

North East Derbyshire District Council donated the land to the project. It has been funded by LHA-ASRA, including £420,000 from NEDDC and £333,000 from the Homes and Communities Agency.

Of the homes, 26 are for affordable rent and six are being sold for shared ownership.

One larger bungalow will be a four-bedroom learning disabilities unit for three young people and a support worker.

All the homes meet the Lifetime Homes Standard, which means they can be adapted to suit a range of needs, allowing people to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible.