The green agenda has taken centre-stage in the housebuilding industry. Johnny Turner looks at what that means for today’s buyer
The green agenda has found its way into many areas of our lives, but the way we build and run our homes is very high on the list of fast-changing practices. Building methods and energy-saving spec are not only on the government’s agenda, but buyers, too, are becoming more and more picky about green considerations.
Starting in Brighton, a joint venture between Crest Nicholson and BioRegional Quintain Limited will yield what is being called the UK’s most environmentally advanced apartments.
One Brighton will comprise 172 studio, one- and two-bedroom eco-apartments along with a range of on-site facilities that follow the ten ‘guiding principles’ of the environmentally sustainable ‘One Planet Living’ concept.
Located on New England Street, within the Brighton’s exciting New England Quarter, One Brighton combines sustainability with stylish city centre living.
The key principles of One Planet Living have been major considerations at the development: zero carbon emissions, a zero-waste plan, use of sustainable materials, implementation of sustainable transport solutions and the application of measures to support local and sustainable food and wildlife. These have been applied in both the construction of the scheme and the functionality of the homes for its residents.
In order to optimise energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions, the scheme will be powered by energy from guaranteed renewable sources. Hot water and space heating will be provided by an on-site biomass boiler that will burn locally sourced woodchip from tree surgery waste, discarded wood pallets and saw mill cut-offs. The majority of the site’s electricity will be provided by off-site renewable sources. It will be supplemented with some unique eco-features including photovoltaic panels and eight small-scale wind turbines located on the roof.
Minimising waste at the development has been addressed in two key areas: during construction the developers have set a target of including 25 per cent recycled materials – for example, concrete used at the scheme contains 60 per cent recycled content including aggregate that is a by-product of the china-clay industry in Cornwall. In the homes, kitchens will be fitted with segregated rubbish bins to help residents divide their waste with ease. Organic waste bins will also be provided and the contents of which can be transferred to an on-site composter. Furthermore, all apartments will be fitted with water efficient fittings, taps and appliances.
Residents at One Brighton will be able to make use of several unique features of the development for an enhanced lifestyle: rooftop allotments and balcony planters will be an integral part of the development where residents will be encouraged to grow their own produce. A rain water harvesting system will also provide ample irrigation. For those who enjoy outside space in which to relax, sky and roof gardens along with Brighton’s newest square will provide the ideal places to unwind.
One Brighton aims to take away the need for a car by linking to local cycle routes into the city and to Brighton train station. For travelling further afield, the on-site car club means residents can hire a car as and when they require.
Prices start at £145,000 for a studio, £205,000 for a one-bedroom and £290,000 for a two-bedroom apartment. Contact 0870 752 1820 or visit onebrighton.co.uk.
In the village of South Nutfield, Surrey, Osborne and Raven Housing Trust officially open the
Mid Street housing development, which is called the most energy-efficient social housing in the UK.
The development comprises the first 100 per cent affordable housing scheme to achieve Level 5 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.
The energy usage at Mid Street will be monitored by the Energy Saving Trust and records will be kept on how much energy – and money – is saved by the residents in utility bills over the next two years.
The new homes are very much in-keeping with the surrounding area and mirror the predominantly red-brick Victorian architecture of the village. However despite their conventional appearance, the properties boast a raft of green features such as photo-voltaic panels, biomass wood-chip boilers and UPVC windows. They were built using highly innovative structural insulated panels which contribute to a reduction in the homes’ energy consumption. Their tenants will therefore enjoy cheaper fuel bills and a more sustainable way of life.
The new scheme has been built on a disused piece of brown-field land owned by Tandridge District Council. The Council transferred the land to Raven Housing Trust at no cost, and will also be contributing additional funding to enable the scheme to achieve Level 5 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.
The Housing Corporation will be providing £157,000 in social housing grant, and both Osborne and Raven Housing Trust have provided supplementary funding to make the Mid Street homes a reality. Other funders involved include: BERR (former DTI) Low Carbon Building Programme Phase 2 and The Energy Saving Trust.
Nicholas Harris, chief executive for Raven Housing Trust, says, ‘Raven Housing Trust believes in delivering innovative developments that benefit our residents, the environment and creating sustainable homes for the future. The new technologies within these homes will provide our residents with lower bills for electricity, water and space heating and also lower water bills.’
In Felbridge, Surrey,
Springfield Gardens comprises two four-bedroom detached properties and four three-bedroom semi-detached homes. The development combines cross gabled roofing with tiled frontage and pavilion-hipped roofing with traditional red brick, to create a visually diverse collection of properties. More than 50 per cent of the houses have solar thermal panels which reduce carbon emissions.
Each property comes fitted with a luxury custom built kitchen and appliances which include a Siemens stainless steel oven, a Siemens stainless steel gas hob, an integrated fridge/freezer, and an integrated dishwasher. All of the houses incorporate a contemporary open plan kitchen/dining area, which is ideal for socialising. There are also French doors which lead out onto the garden, flooding the space with natural light.
Springfield Gardens benefits from the towns of East Grinstead and Crawley being just a few minutes drive away, whilst residents can also enjoy the open country and wooded lands surrounding Felbridge. Crawley and East Grinstead train stations both have direct trains to London Victoria, which take about 50 minutes.
Prices at this development start from £329,950 for a three bedroom semi-detached home. For further information please contact Antler Homes on telephone: 01342 410802 or visit the website antlerhomes.co.uk.
St George is offering a range of green components to its developments, from innovative natural roofs to opportunities to get around with less effect on the environment.
The developer will be installing a green roof system in the next stages of their
Imperial Wharf and
Battersea Reach developments. This is basically a landscaped garden on the roof of a building, comprising everything from 100 per cent grass to combinations of shrubs, heather, wild flowers and trees. Its primary aim is to improve sustainability and biodiversity by increasing levels of oxygen, providing a safe habitat for birds and animals and reducing smog, carbon dioxide and dust.
Meanwhile, St George has incorporated the eco-friendly Electric Green car club at Imperial Wharf and
St George Wharf, offering residents easy and convenient hire of the G-Wiz vehicle. Booked online, the vehicles offer significant cost savings, congestion charge free travel throughout the capital, free parking in the City of Westminster and City of London whilst also helping to reduce CO2 emissions. The Parkwest development has a simlar club but uses the Honda Civic Hybrids instead of the G-Wiz vehicles.
Finally, the developer is undergoing a three-year plan to turn a section of the bank of the River Thames into a tidal habitat on its Battersea Reach development in SW18. The innovative environmental scheme will transform an area of barren, lifeless mud banks into a haven for plant and wildlife - a valuable example of how a contemporary urban architectural scheme can work alongside the natural environment, ensuring its protection and continuity of flora and fauna. See stgeorge.co.uk below for more information.
Renaissance is a forthcoming Addlestone High Street site by Premier. Building has just started at Renaissance, the Surrey-based developer’s latest project in the area. Premier Properties is building 20 brand new environmentally-friendly apartments on the 0.6 acre site. Ten per cent of the energy used by the development will be taken from renewable resources; the roofing will incorporate solar panels which help to increase energy efficiency by cutting fuel costs and carbon emissions. Completion of the development is scheduled for November.
Every Premier home boasts that little extra edge that comes from using the best materials and fittings, most obviously in the kitchens and bathrooms. Reflecting the outlook of its typical buyer, the development has a unique contemporary design, which features large windows, glass balconies and warm red brick.
‘These apartments will be developed to our award-winning high standard,’ comments Matt Jelley, Sales and Marketing Manager of Premier Properties. ‘The location will appeal to those buyers who want good commuter links but prefer a village setting’.
From the development’s central High Street location, all amenities will be close at hand, with good communications links into London with its business, retail and cultural facilities. There is also easy access to Heathrow, the M25 and the motorway network. The surrounding countryside provides great leisure opportunities for all tastes.
Addlestone is a former hamlet, taking its name from ‘Attel’s Denu’ – ie, the valley owned by Attel, a Saxon figure. Situated on the outskirts of Weybridge in Surrey, it really started to grow when the railway arrived in 1848. Prior to that, however, and thanks to the nearby Wey Navigation and Basingstoke Canal, industry was found in the area from the 17th century. The George, the town’s oldest inn, dates back to the 16th century. Addlestone is also home to the Crouch Oak, reputedly one of Britain’s oldest trees at 1,000 years, and a place where Queen Elizabeth I is said to have stopped to picnic. The Oak used to mark the boundary of Windsor Forest, and was fenced around in 1810 to prevent young maidens stripping its bark to make love potions.
Prices at Renaissance in Addlestone will start from £215,000 for a one-bedroom apartment. For further information please contact Premier Properties on 01276 406765 or the selling agents, Curchods in Ottershaw on 01932 874488. Alternatively, visit premier-properties.co.uk.
Shanly Homes has launched
Cressex Close in High Wycombe, where buyers will find a mix of tradition and modern convenience should consider High Wycombe, home of the famous Mayor weigh-in - and the new Eden shopping hub. There will be 13 two-, three- and four-bedroom mews, semi-detached and detached family homes on Cressex Road.
The location, in the heart of the Buckinghamshire countryside, has a street market that dates to the medieval era.
In keeping with the Greener by Design initiative, various eco-friendly features have been incorporated into the development, including solar panels that contribute to the supply of hot water, energy-efficient appliances (A-rated where possible), bird boxes and water butts in every garden, and RSPB membership for all households.
The homes have landscaped front gardens, double ovens with gas hobs and extractor hoods, fully integrated fridge/freezers, dishwashers and washer/dryers, thermostatic showers, flush eucalyptus doors, polished chrome ironmongery, and built-in wardrobes with glass sliding doors in almost all bedrooms.
A major new shopping hub, Eden, has just opened, offering a 12-screen cinema, a library, restaurants, state-of-the-art bowling alley and over 50 shops including a four-level House of Fraser and two-level Marks & Spencer. Eden will have parking spaces for over 1500 cars and a new bus passenger interchange.
High Wycombe station offers a regular service to London Marylebone in just over half an hour, making it possible for residents to get into the office in the greenest way possible. A show home is open Thursday to Monday 10am to 5pm. Prices start from £265,000. Call 01494 685822 or visit shanlyhomes.com.
With the government’s commitment to providing a high proportion of sustainable development on brownfield sites,
Farnborough Central by Redrow Homes sets a precedent. Built on Farnborough Airfield, Hampshire, it’s part of a huge regeneration project which includes a mix of new homes, offices and shops, creating an exciting, sustainable new community.
The 12-acre residential development will eventually comprise a mix of 476 new homes including new and refurbished apartments and town houses. Central to the development is a 250ft long airship hangar frame which provides a striking piece of historic architecture, and the site’s design has been influenced by Farnborough’s aviation connections. The first phase of 32 one- and two-bedroom apartments has just launched, and is attracting a lot of attention.
Paul Hogarth of selling agent Knight Frank South East says, ‘This development offers purchasers a unique opportunity to be part of something with real historic significance. The regeneration is creating a really exciting mix of business and leisure opportunities. Several large businesses including BMW and IBM are now based here, so the apartments are great for young professionals who might work at the Business Park, or for buy-to-let investors looking at the opportunity for corporate lets. Its location close to the M3 and Farnborough railway station also means that Farnborough Central is within commuting distance to the City, so these apartments offer affordability for those priced out of the London suburbs. Eight sold at the launch, and we expect their popularity to continue.’
Phase I, Cathedral Court, includes 32 spacious one and two bedroom apartments and sumptuous duplexes in a conversion block with plenty of character. One of the former Royal Aircraft Establishment (REA) buildings, its exterior reflects the art deco period, whilst inside, it has been beautifully converted to offer distinctively designed contemporary apartments, seamlessly combining old and new.
Apartments include spacious, open plan kitchen / living areas with full height windows which create a light and airy feel. Kitchens are fully fitted with an integrated dishwasher, fridge/freezer and washer/dryer. One bedroom apartments include a separate bathroom, whilst there is an additional en suite to the master bedroom in the two bedroom apartments. In all apartments, the master bedroom has fitted wardrobes. Bathrooms are fitted with white sanitary ware and chrome effect taps, as well as full height tiles to wet walls.
Farnborough Central is part of a wider project to regenerate Farnborough Airfield, which is currently undergoing a transformation that includes a new business centre, contemporary offices, studio workshops, a cafe-bar, a heritage centre, a children's nursery, as well as a hotel and leisure complex.
Farnborough Central benefits from excellent communication links. Junctions 4 and 4a of the M3 are within easy reach, and Farnborough railway station is approximately two miles away, with services to London Waterloo and Bournemouth, via Basingstoke.
Farnborough itself offers plenty of leisure and entertainment opportunities with three shopping centres, a wide range of pubs and bars and the largest leisure centre in Hampshire. Alternatively, for rest and relaxation, Yateley Common Country Park which has 476 acres of heathland, woods, grasslands and ponds is nearby.
Farnborough Central is for sale through Knight Frank, priced from £175,000. Please telephone Knight Frank on 01483 564660 or visit the website knightfrank.com for further information