Havebury Housing Partnership's transformation of former Erskine Lodge site in Great Whelnetham into affordable homes proves popular with buyers

Homes have been snapped up in a housing association's final phase of a project which transformed a former sheltered scheme.

Havebury Housing Partnership breathed new life into the Erskine Lodge site, in Great Whelnetham, having completed the second phase of the Pipistrelle Way development with 35 houses.

The first was finished in 2018 providing 21 affordable rented apartments and two shared ownership homes.

Kate Leszczyszyn, senior project manager, said the site ‘helped to meet local housing needs’.

The 23-unit sheltered scheme Erskine Lodge was considered unfit for purpose and closed in May 2014 with residents rehomed.

Havebury bought land next to Erskine from Abbeygate Ltd in April 2013 to create a larger site and, as the area was of high archaeological significance, extensive excavations were needed. The dig in 2018 took nine months and the final reporting of all the finds is still ongoing.

The 35 properties in the second phase included 25 for shared ownership, which have all been sold, and 10 for social rent, with six let and Havebury is working through remaining applications.

Alex Davies, new homes sales and business development manager, said they chose to trial marketing the homes off-plan to show prospective buyers the properties while they were still in construction.

“This allowed us to agree sales earlier on in the process, thus reducing the length of time we will have empty homes,” he said.

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