In total 33 new affordable homes will be available when construction completes in January 2023. National contractor Willmott Dixon has been appointed to build the new homes.

The project includes the building of:

• Twenty-one 2-4 bedroom houses on Adwick Lane, Toll Bar (above)
• Seven 2-3 bedroom houses on Appleby Road, Intake
• Five 2-3 bedroom houses on Athlestane Crescent, Edenthorpe.

The sites form part of the council’s new £100million housebuilding programme which was approved, along with a new Housing Strategy, by Mayor Ros Jones and cabinet earlier last year.

The quality social housing developments will be a mix of bungalows and family homes using award winning designs from the council’s in-house architects. A key focus is sustainability with various features included to make them energy efficient, cost effective for the tenants to run and supporting efforts to tackle the Climate Emergency declared in the borough in September 2019.

Consideration of how the schemes may impact on nature recovery and biodiversity are at the core of the design briefs, with each site being designed to safeguard the environment.

The project will generate £444,000 in social value through initiatives to enhance social, economic and environmental wellbeing, such as charity work, apprenticeships for young people and bettering energy efficiency standards.

Cllr Glyn Jones, Deputy Mayor & Portfolio holder for Housing & Business, said: “I am delighted to see the next raft of new council homes start to go up. Building quality homes for Doncaster residents was a fundamental element of our Housing Strategy and the Housing Delivery Plan so seeing work get underway on our latest three developments is excellent news.

“We have had a superb record for delivering new council homes in recent years and this commitment is continuing with more than 500 new homes planned over the next five years. These are homes that include the latest energy saving features to address the climate change agenda and are built to meet the needs and wants of residents. We are leading the way on high standards on the council homes building front.”

The homes will be built using traditional construction methods but will be at least a third more efficient than even the latest energy efficiency regulations. All houses will have solar photovoltaic (PV) panels that sit within the tiles, meaning that they don’t have to be retrofitted and green energy comes as standard for the tenants. Furthermore, better flooring insulation and electric vehicle charging points will be included on all new homes to help tenants live comfortably and sustainably in the new homes.

Nick Heath, director at Willmott Dixon, said: “We’re excited that work is commencing in Doncaster on Adwick Lane. After working with the Council to deliver over 400 new homes in recent years, we have built strong relationships in the area and continue to help meet the growing housing needs of the local community.

“As with all our schemes, we aim to leave a positive lasting impact on the communities we work within. Over three of our current schemes in Doncaster in Toll Bar, Intake and Edenthorpe, we will generate £444,000 in social value through initiatives to enhance social, economic and environmental wellbeing, such as charity work, apprenticeships for young people and bettering energy efficiency standards.”

All the new council homes will be available on an affordable / social rent and advertised through St Leger Homes Choice based lettings on completion early next year.