Places for People advances on 130 homes in Battle

Rother DC Housing Company has formed a partnership with Places for People to purchase 130 of the 200 homes that will be built on a site in Battle, East Sussex, over the next three years. The partnership will see PfP take possession of 130 low-carbon, energy-efficient affordable homes at RDCHC’s flagship Blackfriars site in the heart of the town, which has the marketing name of “Tapestry”. PfP will sell some homes as shared ownership and let others as affordable rented homes for local people. As master developer on the site, RDCHC intends to sell the remaining 70 homes on the open market to families. There is a carefully considered mix of one to four-bedroom homes, which will all feature air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points to enable householders to benefit from energy-efficient homes, which are cheaper to run. Richard Thomas, chair of Rother DC Housing Company, said the partnership “will ensure the local community, particularly those looking for an alternative way to get on the property ladder and those on the housing waiting list, benefit from high-quality and genuinely affordable homes”. He added: “Although the requirement for us to deliver a proportion of affordable housing under section 106 was removed through the planning determination process in February 2024, we remained committed to finding a solution to reintroduce affordable housing to the scheme as soon as it became financially viable to do so. After gaining approval for a more efficiently designed housing scheme, and following a competitive tender process to appoint a new main contractor within the available budget, RDCHC achieved the improved financial outlook that has made today’s news possible.” John Kerr, regional managing director at Places for People, said: “Housebuilding is not about just building more homes; it’s about building homes in tenures that meet local market needs. That is why we are thrilled to enter this new partnership with Rother DC Housing Company and deliver all the 130 homes we acquire from RDCHC as affordable tenures. “We are uniquely placed to see the consequences of not delivering the homes that a local community needs and are committed to doing all we can, where we can, to help tackle the UK’s housing shortage. We look forward to welcoming our new customers to this up-and-coming new thriving community.” Construction of the new homes will begin early in 2025 and will follow completion of the newly constructed spine road. The construction work will proceed in phases, with the first properties planned to be completed before Christmas 2025. The scheme is scheduled to be fully completed in the autumn of 2027. Photo © Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock (11726522l)