Wantage MP David Johnston recently visited Sovereign Housing Association’s nine affordable zero-carbon homes during a recent visit to its Springfield Meadows housing development.
Set near Abingdon in Oxfordshire, the nine homes at Springfield Meadows – which comprise a larger 25-home development – have all been factory-built using closed-panel timber frames with hemp-and-lime-mix insulation.
Sovereign says the homes are all affordable, cheap to run, and net zero-carbon in construction.
Once the materials for the other 16 homes have been assembled in the factory, they will be moved on-site for construction.
David Johnston met with the faces behind the development to discover more about the environmental benefits of offsite manufacturing.
“It was inspiring to see what has been achieved at the Springfield Meadow development – houses built with net-zero carbon as well as being net-zero to use, at little extra cost to the traditional way of building homes,” said the Wantage MP.
“I commend what Greencore have designed and Sovereign for purchasing some of them so that those on lower-incomes can experience the housing of the future.”
Sovereign’s nine affordable homes at the development – six for affordable rent and three for shared ownership – makes it one of the few affordable housing providers building carbon-zero homes in the UK, and the only one using Greencore’s construction methods.
Ian Pritchett, managing director, of Greencore Construction, said: “A normal home will emit around five tonnes of carbon a year, using this construction, these homes at Springfield Meadows will be carbon zero.
“If we start building things with bio-based materials that perform better and have low carbon footprints, we can start to make a serious difference to climate change.
“Our homes at Springfield Meadows have been awarded the One Planet Living Global Leader status by the leading environmental charity, Bioregional, making these homes one of the most sustainable places to live in the UK.”
Alex Brooks, Development manager at Sovereign, said: “It’s fantastic to see residents moving into these new eco-homes.
“We’re proud that our development at Springfield Meadows is helping us to achieve our environmental development ambitions and providing new affordable homes in an area where they’re much-needed.
“It’s great to know that we’re building the right homes in the right places.”
Main image: Wantage MP David Johnston visits Sovereign Housing Association’s Springfield Meadows housing development
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