Plans to build 58 affordable homes on the outskirts of Beaminster have been granted by Dorset Council.
The homes will be built by Abri, a large housing provider who own and manage more than 50,000 homes and assets, and will include measures to make the development one of the most sustainable in the area. To remove the need for gas energy, each home will be fitted with air source heat pumps and sustainable features will be incorporated across the development to help lower carbon emissions such as solar panels on roofs and electric vehicle charging points.
The 4.5 hectare site is to the north and west of Cockroad Lane in Beaminster and Abri will utilise its in-house construction team to build a variety of one, two, three and four-bedroom homes.
To address diverse housing needs and help some of the 6,000 people on the waiting list for an affordable home in Dorset, the 58 homes will include a mix of affordable rent and shared ownership homes.
Phillippa Yeates, Head of Land and Planning at Abri said:
“The planning approval represents another important step in Abri’s commitment to building 10,000 homes by 2030. Our vision for this development is to create a thriving community where people can live in energy efficient homes with lower bills.
“By using our in-house construction team we’ll make sure the quality of each home meets our high standards and where possible we’ll work with local trades to help support the local economy. We hope by bringing more affordable homes to the area we can meet the needs and aspirations of the community with a positive impact.”
The original outline plans for the homes included a proportion of the homes for open market sale, but by utilising Abri’s own funding and grant funding from Homes England, all of the homes will now be affordable.
Work on building the new homes is expected to start in early 2025 with the homes completed towards the end of 2026.