As part of the National Housing Federation’s #RuralCommunitiesTogether week, we are celebrating our partnership with Kier Living on phase one of the Lucombe Park development which will deliver 11 homes for rent, 10 for shared ownership and 39 for open market sale.
We have completed 35 of the 60 homes and 33 of those homes are now occupied with a majority of the remainder of the homes on course for completion by the end of this year.
One of the main aims of the scheme is to provide affordable homes for local families who would ordinarily be priced out of the area.
The homes are set on the edge of the village of Uffculme, situated on the River Culm close to the Blackdown Hills, an area of natural beauty.
The village has a primary and secondary school, local shop, pub and busy community centre and is nearby to Tiverton.
LiveWest has invested in upgrade works to the main road into Uffculme, including provision of two new bus stops.
Through the S106 agreement, we have also given £164,000 contribution towards education in Uffculme. The profit generated by open market sales is recycled back into LiveWest to enable the provision of more affordable homes.
New trees will be planted on the scheme as well as plants that have been specifically selected to attract and sustain local wildlife.
Bird and bat boxes will be provided throughout the estate and residents will be encouraged to enjoy picnic tables in the green space to really make the most of the rural surroundings.
Having secured ownership of neighbouring land and local authority planning permission, we are ready to oversee phase two of the development.
This phase will deliver a further 30 homes, with a mix of six for affordable rent, four for shared ownership and 20 for open market sale.
As part of this new development, we will be introducing home offices into our designs.
The construction contract is currently out for tender and it is hoped that work will start on phase two this year, with first completions in 2021.
Our Senior Development Manager, Leon Harris, said: “We are delighted with the continuing success of this project, the first major housing development in the village of Uffculme for over 20 years.
“LiveWest’s commitment to rural housing has led to a successful application for planning for a further 30 homes which we are excited to be starting this year.
“In total across the two phases we will be providing 31 low-cost homes supporting many local families that would be otherwise priced out of the area to stay within their community.
“Alongside the homes we are also providing large green open-spaces for the residents, a large financial contribution towards schooling in Uffculme and we have worked with the highways authority to provide new bus shelters and reduce the speed limit along the main road to make it a safer environment for all.”