13/12/22

Residents of a new council housing development in the north of the city are settling into their super energy-efficient, low carbon new homes in time for Christmas.

The council has taken handover of 12 two-bed homes on the new Aspect Place development in Heath - part of the Council's Cardiff Living scheme with national developer Wates Residential, that is delivering 1,500 new homes in the city. 

The scheme, which was awarded an Innovative Housing programme grant of £1.8m from Welsh Government, consists of 30 one and two-bed flats for rent from the council and 12 two-bed mews houses, six of which have been available to buy through First Homes Cardiff, the Council's assisted home ownership scheme, with the remainder being for council rent.

All 42 affordable homes on the development, built on the site of the former Highfields Day Centre off Allensbank Road, have achieved Passivhaus Certification - the gold standard of energy efficiency requiring high levels of insulation and low air permeability to create homes that require less energy to heat, helping to lower energy bills for residents and reduce carbon emissions.

While gas is still the primary source of heating and hot water on the development, the latest (hydrogen ready) Viessmann Vitodens 200-W combi boilers are being used and energy efficiency is further enhanced through the use of MVHR heat recovery and triple glazing.

Cabinet Member for Housing and Communities, Cllr Lynda Thorne, said: "Delivering much needed affordable housing in a ward with high demand but low supply, Aspect Place in Heath is our flagship low energy-certified Passivhaus development.  As well as boosting our supply of council homes for rent, I'm really pleased that through our First Homes Cardiff scheme, first times buyers who would normally be priced out of buying their first home have an opportunity to get onto the property ladder in these lovely new houses.

"Originally, the intention was for the 30 flats to be Passivhaus-certified and for the 12 houses to be Passivhaus Lite-certified but we are delighted to have achieved the higher standard for the 12 homes as well now, so that they also meet the high standards required for Passivhaus-certification.

"During the current climate with so much concern around rising costs of energy, this is really positive news and a significant milestone in the Cardiff Living programme. We'll be monitoring the new homes' performance and speaking to residents to hear their first-hand experience of living in a Passivhaus home."

Wates Residential Regional Director, Edward Rees, said: "The Cardiff Living development programme between Cardiff Council and Wates Residential is about delivering new homes for the city, so we are delighted to be handing over another 42 properties, which will be warm, comfortable and efficient for the people moving in, who we hope will be very happy here.

"Using the latest technologies to build new homes is a necessity to reduce carbon and energy costs, and Cardiff Living is working on a number of sites, such as at Aspen Grove in Rumney, that will also be help to tackle the climate emergency." 

A celebration event to mark the homes' handover to the Council took place attended by Cllr Thorne, Council leader, Cllr Huw Thomas, the Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Cllr Graham Hinchey and Wates Regional Director, Edward Rees.

Lord Mayor, Cllr Hinchey said: "The quality of the properties on this site is clear to see and I think this development is a real example of how a true partnership between a local authority and a developer partner can deliver innovative, high quality affordable homes helping to tackle our city's housing need and meet our sustainability agenda."