Commendation for best housing project
School's out
When North Cray Primary School closed in 2003, it gave Bexley Council an opportunity to build affordable housing in that half of the borough with the greatest demand for it. There are more than 6,000 households seeking housing association homes in Bexley, but only around 1,000 properties are available each year, and there is little chance of first-time buyers being able to afford even the cheapest property in Bexley, which now costs nearly £123,000.
The council has chosen to sell the 5.7-acre site to London & Quadrant Housing Trust because the council’s housing stock was transferred to it in 1998, so it already manages more than 4,000 properties in Bexley, including the neighbouring Bedensfield estate. There will be 103 new homes on the school site designed by architects Levitt Bernstein, who have achieved two commendations in this category this year, and Bexley Council is to provide a new community centre at the Northern end of the site,
The housing will range from one-bedroom flats to threebedroom houses, with the majority being let at affordable rents, and the rest being available for shared ownership.
The buildings are planned so that most of the new homes will have East or West-facing dining areas and balconies to benefit from morning and evening light,
The materials chosen for the buildings and hard landscaping will create a vibrant streetscape of character, resulting in a new modern vernacular, based on the Kentish tradition of timber cladding and textured brick. Safe streets and routes through the development will be provided by clearly defining the public and private spaces. Low walls and gates to front gardens, and enclosed rear gardens, will create a safe environment for young and old alike.
HomeBuilder: LONDON AND QUADRANT HOUSING TRUST
36-38 Artillery Place, London SE18 4AB
Tel: 020 8557 2830 Fax 020 8316 0262
Contact: Jerome Geoghegan, Director of Development SETR
Email: jgeoghegan@lqgroup.org.uk
Website: www.lqgroup.org.uk
Architects: LEVITT BERNSTEIN
1 Kingsland Passage, London E8 2BB
Tel 020 7275 7676 Fax 020 7275 9348
Contact: Lara Main, Marketing
Email: post@levittbernstein.co.uk
Website: www.levittbernstein.co.uk