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Raven HT ahead of the green game with brownfield sites
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| Tuesday 17th February 2009 |
Since 2007, 100% of east Surrey's Raven Housing Trust's new affordable homes have been built on brownfield sites - well ahead of the national average of 77%.
Figures released by the UK Statistics Authority on 29th January 2009* show that overall, 77% of homes built in the UK since May 2007, including conversions, were built on previously-developed land, slightly up from 76% in 2006. Only two per cent of new homes were built within the green belt, a level unchanged since 2004. However, all Raven's new homes have been built on brownfield sites, despite operating in Surrey - an area of high density housing - and working within the greenbelt.
The Homes and Communities Agency defines a brownfield site as "A piece of land which has been previously developed for a use other than agriculture or forestry and which has one or more permanent structures on it. These sites can be in urban and rural areas and examples include industrial sites, defence buildings and land used for mineral extraction and waste disposal."**
In the past two years Raven has built 82 new homes, which have been sold on shared ownership terms or let to local people in housing need. A further 86 homes are in the pipeline and due to be ready by April 2009.
Pete Trowbridge, Raven's development manager, said, "Raven is committed to developing and acquiring 1000 new homes by 2014 in the most sustainable way possible. We are very aware of the need to balance the housing needs of people in east Surrey with maintaining and developing communities that people want to live in.
"Developing brownfield sites makes better use of land and minimises environmental damage.
"The government is keen to use more brownfield sites. Raven's record proves that this is perfectly achievable."
Raven is already beginning to be recognised as one of the leading housing associations in the area of environmental sustainability. Last year, Raven built the first social housing homes at Level 5 of the Code for Sustainable Housing, and won a major national housing award for an innovative water efficiency project. Since April 2008, all our homes have been built to Code Level 3 and above. |
| Posted by 0 for Raven Housing Trust |
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