Dream home unites family...

Published by Mel for The Regenda Group in Housing

Tania and Neil, who have lived in the Lancashire village of Claughton on Brock, Garstang, all of their lives  have been living apart for over 12 months due to the lack of affordable housing in this rural location.

They are one of thirteen local families to move into a brand home thanks to the £1.5million development by The Regenda Group, after the official opening by the Mayor and Mayoress of Wyre Council this week.

Tania, who is 5 months pregnant, and their son Harry (aged 2) have been living in a static caravan in her mum’s garden whilst Neil has been living with his parents only 2 streets away from their new home, due to being priced out of the local property market in this idyllic rural village.    They both wanted to stay within Claughton to be near to their families, friends and the community in which they have been brought up.

The new homes which were allocated, following a strict local letting policy, to residents of Brock and Catterall through a social rent scheme were fully occupied within days of their release. 

The properties are not only modern but have a number of environmentally friendly features including solar panels which feed directly into every property to heat their water, a rainwater harvesting system to reduce water consumption, an ultra-efficient gas boiler, improved insulation and double glazing throughout.

Tania and Neil said about moving into their new Regenda home, “We are so excited about moving into to our brand new 3 bedroom house – we really cannot believe this is happening.   It means so much to us as we will be moving in as a family, all under the same roof.

We have gone through the local lettings policy and both the parish council and Regenda have been fantastic, guiding us through step by step.   We are literally moving in on the day we get the keys – we cannot wait.

Because the house is so energy efficient we’re expecting that our bills will be lower, which means that we won’t have to worry about keeping the house warm in the winter, especially after the baby is born.  It will also give us the chance to buy carpets and the furniture we need to finish the house.

This is a dream come true.”

After attending the official hand over to local residents, Steve Newsham, regional director at Regenda said, “We are delighted that Tania, Neil and their family are able to move into one of our new properties and are glad that this home has given them the opportunity to reunite under one roof, especially with a new baby on the way.

Regenda has worked in partnership with Wyre Council and the local parish councillors to deliver much needed affordable accommodation for local residents in this rural location and demonstrates our commitment to continually invest in our neighbourhoods and Wyre in particular, offering affordable housing solutions.”

The development was funded by a grant of £866,000 from the Homes and Communities Agency.

Regenda works with communities to build a sustainable future.