The first nine new affordable homes at Rolleston Drive in Arnold have now been handed over to local residents.
Jigsaw Homes Midlands is delivering 131 homes for affordable rent and shared ownership at the development known as Birch Fields – a symbol of new beginnings.
Although there were delays due to the original developer ilke Homes falling into administration, Jigsaw remained committed to completing the scheme, with all but four homes already manufactured off-site. In June, Midlands-based Morro Partnerships was appointed to finish the development.
The 85 affordable rent homes have been advertised through Gedling Borough Council’s Home Search scheme and allocated accordingly to meet those in housing need. The 46 homes available through shared ownership are being made available in phases, with the first two going on hold within 24 hours.
The Homes England part-funded scheme will have 46 two-bedroom, 72 three-bedroom and 13 four-bedroom homes, with landscaped gardens, EV charging points and several with solar panels and air source heat pumps.
One family who has just moved into their new four-bedroom home is Yasmin Aktar and her husband, together with their daughters aged from three to 17.
Yasmin, a full-time mum and qualified teaching assistant for children with autism, and her family were made homeless in 2021 when her private rented landlord issued her with a Section 21 eviction notice after 10 years – and they had been living in temporary accommodation since then.
They were one of the families originally offered a property before the development stalled.
Yasmin said: “I had just had my baby when we were told we needed to move out of our private rented home so it was a really difficult time. Then we were allocated one of the homes here and two weeks before we were due to get the keys, the developers went into administration.
“We were devastated, and it was especially sad having to walk past the development and see the houses so close to being ready but nothing happening. It was a stressful time and unsettling for the children.
“We are so grateful to Gedling Council for helping us find accommodation, as private renting was no longer an option. Getting the keys to this new home means everything. It doesn’t really seem real. We can now make this house a home and we are over the moon.”
The homes will benefit from an NHBC warranty following stringent quality and compliance checks and they will all be finished to a high standard.
Work continues to finish all the remaining phases by autumn 2025.
Garnet Fazackerley, Operations Director of Development at Jigsaw Homes Group said: “We are thrilled to finally see residents moving into their new homes.
“This development has been an incredibly challenging one following the collapse of ilke Homes, but we remained confident that it would be completed.
“By working in partnership with Morro, Gedling Borough Council and Homes England, we are delivering sustainable affordable housing to help meet local housing need and creating an extension to this great community of Arnold.”
Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor John Clarke MBE said: “We’re very pleased that families, who have been waiting for such a long time, are now moving into these much-needed affordable homes.
“This has been a very stressful time for families, and it has also impacted housing waiting lists in the borough, so we look forward to being able to reduce that list and get people, like Yasmin and her family, out of temporary accommodation.”
