New Ripon homes given to families on council waiting list

Three new council houses built on the site of former garages in Ripon are now being occupied by local families, the council has announced.

North Yorkshire Council said the homes, in Holmefield Road, have been allocated to people on the waiting list for houses.

They each have two or three bedrooms and feature air source heat pumps, solar panels and triple glazing, producing between 0.2 and 0.3 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year compared with the six tonnes produced by an average home.

Claire Edwards, who will move into one of the houses with partner Sharon this weekend, has been a council tenant for 32 years. She said:

“This is the first time I have moved into a brand new house and I can’t wait to get there. I am literally moving round the corner, but we are downsizing, which gives someone else a chance to be rehoused, too. They are lovely homes – I feel very lucky.”

The houses are the latest to be developed in a scheme which uses council-owned land used to create new homes, which are then let as social housing.

Almost 60 homes across Harrogate and Craven have been developed through the scheme in the last five years using £2.3 million of government funding. A further nine homes are being developed in the Harrogate district: seven in Harrogate and two in Sharow.

The three Ripon homes are the first to be occupied since North Yorkshire Council took responsibility for housing when Harrogate Borough Council, which had originally granted planning permission, was abolished at the end of March.

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North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for housing, Cllr Simon Myers, said:

“These are the first new social rented affordable homes delivered by North Yorkshire Council and are part of an on-going programme to make a big difference to the lives and well-being of local families.

“Across the county there are plots of unused land – particularly garages that are too small to be used for cars and end up overgrown, derelict and a haven for anti-social behaviour. Many of these areas would never be touched by developers as they can be complicated to bring forward.

“It is a pioneering initiative and just one of the ways we can create much-needed affordable homes in the county – we also work with housing associations and through our commercial arm, Brierley Homes.”

Matthew Wright, from the government’s housing agency Homes England, added:

“Despite the current challenges affecting the country, accelerating housebuilding remains our number one priority.

“We are committed to supporting North Yorkshire Council’s ambitions to build new homes and our investment through affordable housing grant allows us to do that.

“We’re delighted that this funding will enable North Yorkshire Council to deliver much-needed new homes in Ripon and other parts of North Yorkshire.”