Chesterfield council housing chief welcomes construction of new homes in drive to meet waiting lists

The announcement comes after Chesterfield Borough Council confirmed it was continuing with efforts to address a significant number of empty council properties across the borough following difficulties with repairs and waiting lists.

Councillor Jean Innes, Chesterfield Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, said: “Creating attractive places for people to live is at the heart of what we do and once built, these new properties will provide a welcome addition to our housing stock and be let to people on our housing register.

“The number of people on the housing register has risen in the last year as more people look for affordable housing options as a result of the rising cost of living, and we’re working hard to meet this demand by increasing the number of affordable, modern and accessible homes that are available for families in our borough, so we’re really pleased that works are now underway.”

This latest project will see the addition of nine three-bedroom houses on Westwood Avenue, two three-bed bungalows on Ringwood Avenue and two two-bed bungalows at Court Place, four two-bed bungalows on Wensley Way, two two-bedroom houses on Paisley Close, and three three-bedroom houses at Aston Court.

The council planning committee considered the planning application at a planning committee meeting in April for the nine new properties to be built at Westwood Avenue, in Staveley, for the council.

Nine former homes on the Westwood Avenue site, accessed from a road leading from Edward Street and Westwood Avenue, had been demolished in 2016 after structural concerns and after tilts had exceeded safe limits.

But the council planning committee has since given the go-ahead for the council’s planning application for the nine new properties to be built at Westwood Avenue, in Staveley, after considering a number of statements from expert consultees.

Each of the nine properties will be near a school and public transport routes and will be regarded as affordable rental properties, with Chesterfield Borough Council as the landlord.

Construction of all the 22 new-build properties is now well underway after councillors joined representatives from Fortem Solutions Limited, the council’s main contractor, to break ground on one of the sites and kick-start the project.

Each property will be fitted with an air source heat pump for the heating and hot water and solar panels will be installed on the roof with battery storage to generate electricity.

During 2022/23 the council invested over £21.5 million in homes and estates across the borough and a further £3.2 million on new homes, and a stock condition survey aims to help the council plan for future investment for homes with other capital investment projects planned for 2023 onwards.

The council stated in October that it has completed a £4.1 million scheme to build 21 new homes at Badger Croft, in Loundsley Green, and it also aims to deliver IT improvements, increase staff resources, reduce the waiting time for repairs and invest up to £22.4 million in its council homes to introduce new heating systems, windows and doors.