A major milestone in the Calderdale Together Investment Partnership has restored a Brighouse man’s independence.
Steven Titterington and his family have moved into one of 10 new homes on Beechwood Park in Bailiff Bridge. The Bradford Road development was built by Together Housing Group in partnership with Calderdale Council and is also supported through a grant from Homes England.
Comprising seven two-bedroom houses and three three-bedroom houses, including two which have been specially adapted for people with disabilities, the scheme is the Calderdale Together Investment Partnership’s first to complete.
Steven said:
“It’s a great relief to move into our new home. I now have my independence again and my family is looking forward to a new future.
“I have MS and it’s been getting worse. We owned where we lived before but it was on four floors and we couldn’t make any adaptations to it. I couldn’t manage all the stairs anymore and I had a few trips and falls.
“Our new house is all level from the drive to when you go in through the front door. Even better, it has a wet room which makes life so much easier and we can add a stair-lift and handrails.
“In our old house, I couldn’t even do a simple job like vacuuming without getting exhausted and my wife and two teenage children had to do all the jobs. Now I can do so much more and it will really improve my quality of life.
“What’s even better, we haven’t had to move far and my son is able to stay at the same school which is good as he’s got exams this year. And we’re still close to all our friends.
“We were put on the waiting list for an accessible home. We found out about these new homes being built and it was a huge sigh of relief when we got one. We kept an eye on the building work every time we went to the supermarket.
“It’s the perfect move.”
Dave Procter, Chair of the Board at Together Housing Group, said:
“This development is the first to come to fruition as part of the Calderdale Together Investment Partnership, in which we are investing more than £70 million to develop homes that people in Calderdale can be proud to live in.
“It was a pleasure to meet Mr Titterington and hear how housing that meets his needs has transformed his life.”
Cllr Daniel Sutherland, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Environment, added:
“It’s great to see people moving into their quality new homes. Developments like this boost our communities by providing much-needed homes that local families can afford. They bring land back into use, grow our economy and help make Calderdale a place where people want to live, work and invest.”
The Calderdale Together Investment Partnership will see up to 650 homes built for affordable rent and home ownership, including through schemes such as shared ownership.
Other developments in the area include:
- Belle Vue Road, Shelf – 10 homes comprising four two-bedroom houses and six three-bedroom houses. Work started in March and the development is due for completion in spring 2019.
- Rooley Heights, Sowerby Bridge – 28 homes for affordable rent in a mix of 12 two-bedroom houses, 14 three-bedroom houses and two two-bedroom bungalows.
- Industrial Road, Sowerby Bridge – seven apartments designed for people with learning disabilities, enabling them to live independently with floating support where required. One of the apartments will be wheelchair accessible and the others will be adaptable.
As part of the programme of work, contractors will also provide traineeships, apprenticeships and new employment in the area.
These new developments will help to address the housing crisis in the area where the average house price is over six times the average income at £160,947*. Households need an income of £36,788 to secure a mortgage to buy an average-priced home in the area.
Building affordable homes supports the Vision2024 for Calderdale to be a place where people can live a larger life – a place that is distinctive, resilient, full of hope, and where talent and enterprise can thrive.
The year 2024 marks Calderdale’s 50th birthday. Where do we want to be by 2024? What’s our ambition and what will be different? Get involved with the debate on Twitter with #VisionCdale2024 and find out more at www.calderdale.gov.uk/v2/council/vision-2024