emh group has celebrated the completion of eight new affordable homes in the village of Husbands Bosworth, Leicestershire.
Harborough MP Sir Edward Garnier, Phil King, Harborough District Councillor for Planning and Environment, Lesley Bowles, Harborough District Councillor for Husbands Bosworth, and Graham Hart, the area’s County Councillor, attended the official opening of East Midlands Housing Association’s new development in Knights Close, Husbands Bosworth. emh group Chief Executive Chan Kataria welcomed Tony Pick and his partner Sarah Hardy to their new home as the MP and councillors presented them with a Christmas wreath and bottle of champagne at the ceremony on Friday 13 December.
The development was built on the original site of the village cricket ground, and has been named after the three Knight brothers who were mainstays of the cricket club for many years. Berwyn, the youngest of the brothers, attended the ceremony with his wife, Win. The homes overlook the new cricket pitch.
Of the eight new homes, five 2- and 3-bedroom houses and one 2-bedroom wheelchair-access bungalow are for affordable rent and will be managed by Leicestershire Rural HA, while two 2-bedroom houses are for shared ownership and will be sold through Hello Homes, the sales arm of emh group.
The homes are the first to be built in Harborough with New Homes Bonus funding, with Leicestershire County Council and Harborough District Council each contributing £87,000 to the development costs. The Homes and Communities Agency also contributed £90,000 from the Affordable Home Programme to the project.
Chan Kataria said: “There is an all too real shortage of housing in our rural communities, with many people unable to afford to rent or buy in the villages in which they grew up. One of the major blockages is vocal opposition to new housing, so it is heartwarming to see local people and local councillors in Husbands Bosworth coming together to address the housing needs of their community. We are proud to have been part of this project, and could not have done it without the help and support of our partners.”
Councillor Phil King, Harborough District Council portfolio holder for Planning and Environment, said: “We are committed to enabling projects that help sustain our rural settlements. We are therefore extremely pleased to be involved in this partnership development by working very closely with the Husbands Bosworth Parish Council and the community from the outset. Providing affordable homes for local people will help us achieve this aim.”
Sir Edward Garnier commented: “It is a pleasure to be involved in the opening of these eight new homes in Husbands Bosworth. The availability of housing to rent or buy at prices the less well-off can afford remains a problem not only in rural Harborough but throughout the country, which is why I welcome this development.”