Work set to begin early on new Wolverhampton council housing

The homes in Thompson Avenue, Ettingshall will become the first new council homes to be built in the city since a development was created in Pendeford in the 1980s.

A planning application has been submitted to Wolverhampton City Council and regeneration chief Peter Bilson said he wants planning permission to be granted 'as soon as possible'.

He revealed work is likely to start by the end of the year – earlier than was originally expected. Developers Kier had said building would begin some time next year, but Councillor Bilson said he was keen to 'get the project moving'.

He said: "I'm delighted to see the application being submitted. This is a key stage in the process and signals the start of an important development for Wolverhampton which we are all looking forward to seeing.

"My view is that the plans should go before the committee once final details have been resolved. I expect them to come before the earliest possible planning committee, with a view to work starting on the site by the end of the year."

The plans reveal that the houses will feature high efficiency gas condensing boilers and also systems that will reduce the amount of water used each day. They are grouped in short terraces with a few semi–detached and detached units in between. Some will have small courtyards and private drives accessed from side roads.

The waiting list for the council's housing company Wolverhampton Homes currently stands at around 13,000.

There are also more than 3,000 council tenants affected by the Government's so-called 'bedroom tax', which removes 14 or 25 per cent of housing benefit for people who have one or more spare rooms. However, the council has a shortage of smaller homes for people to move into.

The leader of Wolverhampton City Council, Councillor Roger Lawrence, has previously welcomed the development of the new council homes saying the authority recognised there is a 'significant need' for housing in the area,

It emerged in June that a review of council-owned land across Wolverhampton has been carried out to try and find sites for hundreds of new homes in the city. The first potential development sites are set to go before council bosses later this year.