How is Richmond Tailoring Homes to its Residents’ Needs?
Nine new homes have been constructed by Richmond Housing Partnership (RHP) to help Richmond upon Thames achieve its goal of ensuring the delivery of great quality, affordable homes. Housing Industry Leaders explores how the homes are helping to meet the housing needs of its residents.
The homes have been constructed at Edgar Road on the Hounslow Heath Estate and it is the first RHP scheme that partly uses modular homes which have been manufactured in a factory off-site and then delivered to the site.
Providing Homes That Are Meeting Residents’ Needs Was The Focus
Using modular homes that have been manufactured off-site speeds up build times, reduces carbon emissions and material waste during the construction process, and provides higher quality homes as the building materials are protected from moisture and weather during the construction process.
Councillor Jim Millard, Deputy Leader of the Council and Spokesperson for Housing, said that especially during the current housing crisis, it is essential to see affordable rent for those who need it: “The completion of nine new family homes for genuinely affordable rent is hugely welcome and much-needed addition to the housing in the borough.
“We are committed to ensuring the building of homes that support residents at different stages of their lives and are tailored to residents’ needs, to ensure we have a thriving and diverse community.”
Providing genuinely affordable homes that consider accessibility and allow families to grow helps us to deliver on this commitment.
Local people through the scheme will be provided with good quality accommodation set at London Affordable Rent, which is an affordable rent set at significantly below the market rate. It is said that this will ensure that residents on lower incomes are able to manage the monthly costs. These homes will form part of the portfolio of around 7,000 affordable rent and leasehold properties that RHP currently own and manage in Richmond.
The Council’s Housing Strategy Is Addressing Housing Market Pressures
Over the past few years, Richmond Council by releasing its own land for development and working with developers and housing associations on private sites has established a development pipeline of affordable homes in the next five years.
Edgar Road is some of the first affordable homes to be completed under the programme and in the scheme RHP and the council have ensured that a number of properties have been specifically delivered to be fully wheelchair-accessible residences to make sure that the homes meet the needs of all its residents.
The completion of these homes is part of the Richmond Council’s Housing Strategy, which is aiming to address housing market pressures and deliver affordable homes that meet the diverse needs of the borough’s residents. It highlights the council’s approach to partnership working that focuses on creating sustainable new homes that meet current and future local housing needs.
