Chell Heath Residents praise beautiful bungalows

Tenants have praised their ‘beautiful bungalows’ ahead of the official opening of the first newly built council houses in 30 years.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council has invested around £1.5m in building the 17 two-bedroom properties, to help meet a clearly defined housing need in the city.

The bungalows, built to high eco homes standards – with solar panels, under floor heating and level access wet room bathrooms – have been built on Warren Road, Chell Heath. They will be officially launched tomorrow (Friday, 11 May).

And tenants Stephen and Hannah Lowe, and their 16-year-old son Josh, who uses a wheelchair and has hypoplastic anaemia from inadequately functioning bone marrow, are thrilled with their new home.

Stephen, 42, said: “We had lived in a town house in Burslem for 14 years. It was very difficult for Josh to use the stairs, and also because we needed to keep the house warm because of Josh’s condition, we were spending up to £800 a quarter on electricity.

“Having a beautiful bungalow like this really helps, we are really appreciative of our new home.”

The houses have been designed with extra wide doorways, for ease of access for wheelchair users. They are built to Code for Sustainable Homes Level Four, making them both environmentally friendly and thermally efficient. The solar panels will provide some of the household electricity and should also offer residents a saving on their fuel bills.

Josh said: “The house is very nice, and I am very comfortable here. It is easier for me to move around and it is a great help not having stairs to contend with. The shower is great too, it is much bigger and it is one I can walk into, so it is much easier to access.”

The new build properties have been funded through a combination of housing capital and rental income, in a project delivered by the council’s housing enabling team. They took around 40 weeks to build, and were constructed by contractor J & S Seddon. All properties have been let within a matter of weeks of the building work being completed.

Councillor Gwen Hassall, cabinet member for social services, said: “The bungalows are state-of-the-art, and it is wonderful that they are helping tenants with a clearly defined housing need.

“In each case, all 17 bungalows have been let to people on our housing waiting list, following an assessment of their needs.

“It is great that Josh and his family are enjoying their new home and we wish them all well for the future.”

The houses meet a clear need in the city – there is a lack of two-bedroom bungalow accommodation for city residents. The properties also support the council’s aims to continually improve the standard of the housing offer in the city, address housing needs, and links in with wider regeneration plans.

Councillor Janine Bridges, cabinet member for housing, neighbourhoods and community safety, said: “These are the first new build council properties for almost 30 years, and are a benchmark for future housing schemes.

“Now that the government is handing control of housing renewal allowances to councils, this housing scheme is something we can build on for the future.  We can learn from the technologies used in creating these wonderful properties for future housing schemes in the city.”

Seddon Construction managing director Jonathan Seddon said: “As a business with strong roots in Stoke-on-Trent, we’re proud to have built these high-quality and energy-efficient new homes for the council and wish the residents every happiness as they settle in.”