The Leader of Havering Council, Damian White, with Hugh Jeffery, from Wates Residential, and members of the developer’s construction site management team.
The Napier and New Plymouth House site, which completed demolition in February, is one of 12 included in the borough’s ’12 Estates’ regeneration programme.
Plans for the site have been designed in line with the high demand for affordable housing across the borough, with 197 council-rented and mix of affordable housing properties.
All residents, who have been moved off the site to enable the regeneration, have been guaranteed the right to return to the brand-new properties.
The borough’s £1.5 billion regeneration programme is a joint venture between Havering Council and Wates Residential.
Around 3,500 new homes are planned to be built in the borough over the next 12 to 15 years as part of the project.
The partners have pledged to deliver a “borough-wide legacy” by investing in education, training and skills opportunities, and by employing local businesses to work on the scheme.
More than £1.3 million has been invested into the Havering community so far, through the Napier and New Plymouth House site alone.
Since work on the tower site began in July 2019, 40 local people have been hired or have benefitted from training initiatives, as part of the commitment to boosting the local economy.
Leader of Havering Council, Cllr Damian White, said: “I am excited to have reached this point in the programme that means we will soon see high-quality, affordable homes for local people.
“There has been an immense amount of dedication and hard work to get us to this point, and I very much look forward to the building phase commencing and seeing these new homes take shape.
“However, this regeneration programme is not just about replacing and improving estates across the borough with new, fit for the future homes.
“We are hugely ambitious for Havering and our residents, by making sure that local people and businesses are at the heart of our joint venture, we can make sure they benefit through education, employment and skills training, and contracts being awarded locally.
“I am proud to be working with Wates Residential, as a partner who share (sic) this council’s ambition to buy British and help this country on our journey to recovery from COVID-19 and grasp all opportunities in a post-Brexit world.”
Development Director for Wates Residential, Kate Ives said: “We are celebrating a significant milestone for the 12 Estates project as we finish demolition and move onto the construction phase at Napier and New Plymouth House.
“Wates Residential is now another step closer to delivering 3,500 high-quality homes for residents in Havering.”
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Tags: Havering, Rainham, Housing, Havering Council
