House builder teams up with council to develop more than 300 homes

Kirklees Council is working with Keepmoat Homes to develop 319 homes on council-owned land in Soothill, Batley.

The development will include 65 affordable homes, allowing the council to deliver more of its Local Plan allocation for housing development.

Public open space will be featured in the scheme, including play areas. In addition to the 65 affordable homes, 15 plots will be allocated to the Government’s First Homes initiative.

The project is supported with funding from Homes England, the Government’s housing and regeneration agency and West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).

The Homes England grant comes from the agency’s Local Authority Accelerated Construction Programme, which aims to help unlock public land and increase the speed of housing delivery using modern methods of construction. (MMC)

Foundations for 54 plots have now been laid and the first timber frames were delivered to site in October 2022. The first plots will be completed by spring 2023 and a total of 73 plots should be finished by December 2023.

Councillor Graham Turner, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “I am pleased to see another vital project get off the ground in Kirklees.

“The site is creating hundreds of much-needed modern, energy-efficient homes. Not only providing housing for the people of Kirklees but also helping towards our carbon-neutral goals.

“The pace of build using MMC is fantastic and it’s great to see the timber frames are being produced and installed by a local company based in Dewsbury.

“By using such a great business, we are helping sustain not only jobs on the site but in Dewsbury, and by using a local company the transport emissions are kept to a minimum.”