First net zero carbon affordable homes for Cheltenham residents get underway

• All net zero carbon homes are powered by renewable technologies 
• Cheltenham Borough Council has worked with local developer to secure the net zero carbon affordable housing through a Section 106 agreement
• New properties will help deliver the council’s £180m investment in affordable homes, managed by Cheltenham Borough Homes

Cheltenham is to benefit from a further nine new affordable homes, all of which will be net zero carbon, secured by Cheltenham Borough Homes (CBH) on behalf of the council.  

The new properties are part of a section 106 agreement which allowed the development of nine new affordable homes at Pear Trees on Kidnappers Lane, with local developer Newland homes, and will offer a mix of 1, 2 and 3 bed homes available for affordable rent and shared ownership.  

The homes will all have solar panels, air source heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points, and will all be built to the same net zero carbon specification as the other properties for general purchase at Pear Trees.  

This is a direct outcome of Cheltenham Borough Council’s key priority to increase the supply of housing and investing to build resilient communities. 

Cllr Victoria Atherstone, cabinet member for housing at Cheltenham Borough Council, said: “We’re delighted to be working with local developer Newland Homes to provide nine more affordable, and net zero homes for Cheltenham residents.    

“All nine properties will be available for affordable rent and shared ownership, and form part of our continued commitment to delivering on our £180m housing investment plan and tackling the climate emergency, to provide much needed affordable homes in Cheltenham.” 

 The new Pear Trees homes are part of a wider scheme of 22 properties from Newland Homes and are designed to meet the Council’s net zero carbon objective. The homes will include solar PV, air source heat pumps, high levels of insulation and electric vehicle car charging points for every affordable home. For residents, this means a more sustainable, healthier, comfortable, and affordable home. 

Steve Slater, chief executive of Cheltenham Borough Homes, continued: “To have secured more homes via a section 106 agreement with Newland Homes is fantastic and the net zero carbon element is the icing on the cake.  

“At CBH we believe everyone deserves a place they can call home. This is just one of the many ways we are supporting the council to provide a variety of opportunities and tenures to help people find a home where they can feel safe and secure.”  

Cllr Alisha Lewis, cabinet member for climate emergency, added: “Affordable housing and tackling the climate emergency are two key aims in our council’s ambitious plans for Cheltenham and this project is a great showcase of how we can combine those ambitions. 

“We are pleased to be working with CBH to bring our first new net zero carbon homes to Cheltenham, and I’m excited to see these properties completed. We’ll take everything we have learned in this development on to inspire future projects that will improve the sustainability of our homes and reduce energy costs for our residents.” 

Craig Cobham, project manager at Newland Homes, said: “We’re proud to be able to deliver Pear Trees on Kidnappers Lane, the first commercial residential net zero carbon homes in Cheltenham, in partnership with Cheltenham Borough Council and Cheltenham Borough Homes.  

“We are grateful for the combined efforts to all parties involved in helping achieve this milestone and look forward to continuing these relationships moving forward on future projects.”

Increasing the supply of housing and investing to build resilient communities is part of the council’s key priorities. The Section 106 agreement is in place between the local authority and the applicant as part of the granting of planning permission. This agreement is in place to ensure that the housing is of high quality and with the latest zero carbon technology, with homes going to local people most in need of affordable housing. Find out more in the council’s corporate plan.  

Find out more about Cheltenham Borough Homes and shared ownership - which is way for people unable to buy a property on the open market to purchase a share of a home - at www.cbh.org. 

For media enquiries, contact: communications, telephone 01242 264154, email communications@cheltenham.gov.uk. 

Notes:  

Cheltenham Borough Homes  

 Cheltenham Borough Homes (CBH), is the council’s top performing Arm’s Length Management Organisation (ALMO) responsible for the management and maintenance of Cheltenham Borough Council’s (CBC) housing stock and housing and homeless service. For more information visit: www.cbh.org. 

• Cheltenham Borough Homes (CBH) provides quality homes across multiple tenures including affordable and private rent and is committed to making Cheltenham a better place to live by providing great homes and stronger communities.   
• CBH is responsible for the management and maintenance of Cheltenham Borough Council's (CBC) housing stock and housing and homeless service.   
• CBH is a non-profit making limited company with a non-executive Board of Directors.   
• Currently CBH manage and maintain more than 5,000 tenanted, leasehold and shared properties with high satisfaction and performance levels, when compared nationally with other housing providers.    
• CBH puts customers at the heart of what it does; working with them to shape services and ensure the company focuses on local need.    
• CBH delivers more than high quality core landlord services: it has an ongoing programme building new homes and regenerating communities; supporting people to find work and employment; and works to improve financial inclusion and develop stock to make it more energy efficient.   
• Shared ownership is an affordable housing product designed to enable people unable to afford to buy a property on the open market to purchase a share of a home (usually between 10% and 75%). Shared Ownership is limited to households earning less than £80,000 per annum and is popular in areas like Cheltenham, where there are affordability issues and high property prices.   

Newland Homes is an independent housebuilder, which began in Cheltenham in 1991, before relocating to Barnwood. Newland Homes was the first traditional housebuilder in the UK to sign the United Nations Climate Neutral Now Pledge, which is a commitment to measure greenhouse gas emissions, implement means to reduce them, consider offsetting and report progress annually. 

The company is on course to achieve at least a 50% reduction in its carbon footprint by the end of 2024. Diesel is no longer used in any of its site construction vehicles, which are instead powered by hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO), a cleaner and greener alternative. The company has been recognised by Carbon Neutral Britain as a carbon neutral business.