Take a look inside the new Sunderland hi-tech affordable homes available for rent at Gentoo's Liberty Grange development in Hylton Castle

Housing association Gentoo says the new development in Hylton Castle is ready to provide new homes to tenants to move in as it announces work is complete on the first part of its 1,200-home, £165million Affordable Homes Plan.

11 new homes, including three bungalows and eight two and three-bedroom family homes, have been built at the Group’s Liberty Grange scheme in Cricklewood Road in the Hylton Castle area of Sunderland.

Gentoo says the development marks the start of a new an exciting new era of affordable housing in Sunderland as it’s the first time the housing associations tailor-made, modern new house types have been completed.

The company said as part of its commitment to carbon reduction, each of the new homes is 70% carbon neutral and has been built with the latest technology and a ‘fabric-first’ approach to maximise thermal efficiency.

A range of new technology has been installed in a bid to support the sustainability of the homes including electric car charging points, and insulation. Ahead of the government’s plan to ban the installation of gas boilers into homes by 2035, Gentoo has invested in air source heat pumps for every home.

The company said the technology allows tenants to make the most of renewable energy and is designed to help keep tenants energy bills low.

The homes, which were built by Gentoo’s partner EQUANS, and received grant funding from Homes England.

Joanne Gordon, development director at Gentoo Group, said the team behind the project had taken care to consider tenants’ needs when drawing up and building the new homes at the site.

“The completion of our Liberty Grange scheme is a really exciting time here at Gentoo as it’s the first time our tenants will move into our stylish, high-quality and environmentally friendly new homes,” she said.

“We designed these homes with our tenants at the forefront of every decision, and from large windows to let in natural light to the installation of energy saving technology, we’re confident these homes will improve the quality of life for those who move in.

“I’m delighted to see these homes come to fruition and we look forward to continue building these new affordable homes across Sunderland.”

Councillor Graeme Miller, leader of Sunderland City Council, said praised the project and said it fitted in with the authority’s vision for the future of Wearside.

He said: "I am delighted to see these fantastic new homes complete. As a council we are determined to see more high-quality affordable housing brought to the city to help make Sunderland a more dynamic, healthy, and vibrant place to live.

“These environmentally friendly homes also add to the council’s carbon reduction activities, as we aim to make the city carbon neutral by 2030.”

Each of the new homes has been made available for affordable rent through Gentoo’s allocations system HomeHunt and the first tenants are expected to move in in the coming weeks.

More information about the development can be found on Gentoo’s website: https://www.gentoogroup.com/for-customers/rent-a-home/our-affordable-homes-plan/liberty-grange-hylton-castle/

Support your Echo and become a subscriber today.

Enjoy unlimited access to all of our news and sport, see fewer ads, experience faster load times, test your brain with daily puzzles and get access to exclusive newsletters.

Your support for our journalism means we can continue telling Sunderland’s stories for generations to come. Click here to subscribe - and click here to get a snapshot of the Echo’s news and sport to your inbox through our email newsletters.