Ground breaking celebrated in Oxfordshire as work on energy efficient homes starts

Groundworks are now underway at the Giernalls Road site in Hailey, west Oxfordshire as part of Sovereign’s plans to build more sustainable homes and address local housing need. 

The housing association, working in partnership with contractors E G Carter & Co Ltd, celebrated work starting on site earlier this month. The purchase of the 2.7-acre site was facilitated by Carter Jonas.   

Plans for the area include building 22 homes for affordable rent and shared ownership, with planning permission granted for the development in October 2022.   

Using Sovereign’s Homes and Place standard as a benchmark for design, every home on the development will be sustainable through the installation of solar panels, air source heat pumps and improved building fabric.  

The new two and three-bed homes also come with plenty of parking, access to the existing Public Right of Way, as well as the neighbouring playing field and local village.  

Planning permission was previously granted for nine large homes for private sale. Sovereign instead took the decision to submit a different plan for the site. Its application focused on providing a greater number of high-quality and more efficient homes, to better address the demand for local housing. 

Designed by award winning architects Quattro Design, the homes will be in keeping with the local area and are expected to be completed in early 2024. With funding from Homes England and Sovereign, the scheme represents another land-led development for the association in Oxfordshire.    

Joanna Smith, Development Manager at Sovereign said: “It’s hugely encouraging to see work starting on site to deliver these sustainable and energy efficient homes.  

“Sustainability and energy use are something on all our minds right now and I’m pleased the homes being delivered will be more affordable to run. This is all thanks to the measures we are taking to make them energy efficient.  

“This development showcases our ability to deliver affordable homes, at a time of real need.”  

Mathew Vye, Associate Director at E G Carter & Co Ltd added: We are delighted to have supported Sovereign to secure planning permission for this development and we are looking forward to delivering the new homes. The pre-contract phase of the project has been a fantastic advertisement for collaborative working to create a strong team base to take into the construction phase and we look forward to seeing the benefit these sustainable homes will bring to the future residents.”