Work starts on 115 new Gentoo homes at 'Cricketers Hill' development in Carley Hill area of Sunderland

Building is underway at housing group Gentoo’s latest development, Cricketers Hill in Carley Hill, in partnership with Sunderland-based regeneration specialists RE:GEN.

The development consists of 115 homes including two, three and four bedroom houses, two-bedroom bungalows and two-bedroom apartments. It will see a 4.28-hectare brownfield site redeveloped for affordable housing on what was previously the site of Carley Hill Education Centre.

With Sunderland City Council, Gentoo was awarded a £1.95million grant from the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2, from the One Public Estate Programme.

The new homes will be built with sustainable technology featuring air source heat pumps, smart meters, photo-voltaic panels, full fill cavity wall insulation and vehicle charging points.

The homes will be available for affordable rent, Shared Ownership and Rent to Buy.

Cricketers Hill is Gentoo’s launchpad for Rent to Buy. The scheme aims to ease things for aspiring homeowners saving for deposits to buy homes in the future by paying affordable rent, calculated at 20% less than market rents for the area.

Eventually, customers will be offered the chance to buy their home outright or through Shared Ownership.

Louise Buckton, Gentoo construction director, said: “Our new development at Carley Hill marks Gentoo’s tenth affordable development across the city, showing our dedication to providing much needed affordable homes in Sunderland.

“We are delighted to be working alongside RE:GEN to provide our customers with brand new homes they can access in a variety of ways including affordable rent, Shared Ownership and Rent to Buy.”

Lee Francis, CEO of RE:GEN Group, said: “We are thrilled to have been awarded this contract from Gentoo.

“This project not only symbolises our strength and offering in the social housing space across regeneration and new build, but reflects more than two years of a brilliant partnership we’ve enjoyed with the team at Gentoo, who continue to put their trust and confidence in our team to deliver for them, and their customers.

"A scheme of this size will of course come with its challenges, but through adopting a truly collaborative approach with Gentoo, key partners and the wider supply chain, we will deliver an amazing project for everyone to be proud of.”