Out-dated coal board properties modernised and back on market

Published by Richard Lord for Wakefield & District Housing in Housing and also in Communities, Environment

Four former National Coal Board properties that were neglected for nearly a decade have been transformed by social landlords Wakefield and District Housing (WDH) and are now on the housing market as part of a Government initiative.

Three properties on Smeaton Road and one on Clayton Avenue in Upton, West Yorkshire, were purchased by WDH as part of the Green Corridor project – an alliance between Barnsley, Doncaster and Wakefield local authorities to modernise houses with coalfield legacies in areas of housing market weakness.

The homes, which were originally built in the 1920s, were purchased by WDH in 2009 after they had gone nearly ten years uninhabited. All four have gone through a comprehensive renovation programme to transform them into modern and affordable family homes that are now on the market.

WDH Chief Executive Kevin Dodd said: “This project exemplifies our commitment to providing affordable homes throughout the Wakefield district. Working in partnership with the council we have been able to turn unwanted properties into desirable family homes.”

The properties have been brought up to the Wakefield Standard – a level higher than the Government’s Decent Homes standard – and the work was carried out by WDH’s Technical Services Team.

The homes benefit from a full re-wiring, double glazing, new kitchens, bathrooms, heating systems and cavity wall insulation as well as having front paving areas that are specially designed to reduce the risk of localised flooding, which left some people in other properties out of their homes for 12 months when heavy rain fell in the area in 2007.

WDH Support Services Manager Shaun Hodson said WDH took on board the views of local residents before they improved the properties.

He said: “We are aware of local residents’ concerns at the risk of flooding, so these homes have been improved to make sure they are as environmentally friendly as possible.

“We have worked in partnership with Tobermore Concrete to install a material called ‘Hydropave’, which is a paving system that delays the time it takes rainfall to enter the drainage system.

“As a result, the water is held underground for longer before it is gradually released into the watercourses, avoiding sudden rises in water levels that is the root cause of localised flooding. This is the first of its kind to be installed in the Wakefield area.

“We are taking previously out-dated properties and putting them on the housing market as modern, affordable homes that will help improve the image of the area.”