Archived press release

Date Published: 19/09/06

A tree-planting ceremony is to be held to mark the official opening of a new affordable housing scheme in Aylesbury. Chairman of AVDC, Councillor Sue Polhill will be planting a tree at the Hampden Hall development off Wendover Road on Wednesday 2...

A tree-planting ceremony is to be held to mark the official opening of a new affordable housing scheme in Aylesbury.

Chairman of AVDC, Councillor Sue Polhill will be planting a tree at the Hampden Hall development off Wendover Road on Wednesday 20 September.

Built on land that was previously occupied by an agricultural college, the affordable housing scheme in Silver Birch Way and Maple End provides 18 family homes for rent.

The development, completed in March this year, has been jointly funded by AVDC and The Guinness Trust. The council has invested £606,000 from its capital programme to allow the scheme to progress.

The new homes (of which there are six three bedroom houses and 12 two bedroom houses) have been provided for affordable rent to local families from AVDC’s waiting list. As well as the affordable houses, the Hampden Hall development also has 132 homes for outright sale.

Over the next two years, 666 new affordable homes will be built in Aylesbury Vale after
AVDC received £25.5 million in funding from the Housing Corporation. Of these new homes, 577 will be for affordable rent and 89 for shared ownership.

Councillor Michael Edmonds, Cabinet Member for Housing, Environment and Health, said: “I am delighted to support the opening of this new scheme. The council’s housing team has worked closely with The Guinness Trust to ensure new affordable housing was built at Hampden Hall to meet high housing need in the district. Not only has the development helped to house people who cannot afford to rent on the open market, it has also helped to reduce our waiting list.”

Pamela Dawson, Regional Investment Manager at The Guinness Trust, said: “We were pleased to work with Aylesbury Vale District Council to produce new affordable rented homes on this very attractive site.  In partnership with housing developers Bellway Homes (North London) Limited and P. J. Carey Limited, we have built homes to a very high standard that are tenure blind.”