Member Article

Developer completes 500th home at Plymouth’s regeneration project

A major milestone has been reached at the award-winning £168m regeneration scheme at North Prospect in Plymouth.

Developer Barratt Homes, which was awarded contracts by Plymouth Community Homes to deliver new homes in Phases One and Two at PL2, has celebrated the completion of its 500th home.

North Prospect is a major, 10-year multi-million-pound regeneration project between Plymouth Community Homes and Plymouth City Council, two miles from the city centre. When complete, in six years’ time, the development will have 1,200 new homes and 300 homes will have been refurbished to meet a higher standard, with 57 per cent being affordable homes.

PL2 is being built by Barratt Homes having been commissioned by PCH and each home style has been carefully designed to accommodate a variety of lifestyles.

For the open market, Barratt is building a range of one, two, three and four bedroom homes. Two and three bed homes are also available for Shared Ownership through Plymouth Community Homes, as well as homes for rent. The mixed tenure development benefits from a great range of local amenities, great transport links, and an outstanding sense of community spirit.

Each home is built to code level 4 sustainability, featuring gas central heating, double glazing and solar panels on the roof, making them eco-friendly and highly efficient to run.

Barratt also constructed The Beacon, a community centre commissioned by Plymouth Community Homes, which houses a range of facilities including meeting space, a local library, a convenience store and nursery. In addition, Barratt and PCH have made contributions of more than £400,000 under the Section 106 agreement to improve the local facilities and infrastructure. This has included allocations to the local school and upgrading Cookworthy Green.

PL2 has received another accolade this year: 20-year-old Jordan Brown, who works on the development, has been named as Barratt Apprentice of the Year.

Paul Moran, managing director at Barratt in the region, said: “We are delighted to have played a key role in transforming this large area of Plymouth. As the south west’s leading developer, regeneration is very important to us.”

“PL2 has proved to be extremely attractive to private home owners who have seen their investment flourish. Prices for the most popular two bedroom properties have risen by up to 32% over four years.”

He added: “Help to Buy has been a key ingredient in its success with 139 purchasers benefitting from the Government’s initiative.”

Councillor Tudor Evans, a ward councillor for Ham for over 28 years, said: “As someone who has represented the area for many years I am delighted to see the dramatic change at North Prospect. The area now has an exciting future ahead of it thanks to the vision and contribution made by Barratt who have delivered homes of a very high quality. The 500th home is a real milestone and everyone involved should be proud of this impressive achievement. “

Occupying the 500th Barratt home – a three bedroomed semi - is Barna and Otilia Kerekes with their young son Norbert. Mr Kerekes secured their home with Help to Buy. He said: “We are thrilled to be here at PL2. It’s a great place to live with a real sense of community. We couldn’t be happier.”

Andrew Lawrie, Head of Development at Plymouth Community Homes said: “The regeneration of North Prospect and the work done at PL2 has really transformed the area. We are committed to maintaining the same amount of affordable housing for rent and shared ownership for local people through this regeneration project. We’re working hard to secure the necessary grant funding for the next stage of the project.”

Councillor Steve Ricketts, Cabinet Member for Transport and Housing for Plymouth City Council, said: “The regeneration work has already made big improvements to the North Prospect area and when it’s all complete it will vastly improve local people’s quality of life. As a Council we are committed to making sure there are more homes available in Plymouth, and the development has also brought with it lots of jobs and training opportunities, which is also great news.

“The new homes are built to high standards and are energy efficient, and although there is still a way to go, the 500th new home to be built is quite a milestone which I am pleased to be able to help celebrate.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Barratt Homes .