The former site of a church in Lowton is being redeveloped to provide 26 much-needed new homes.
Elan Homes acquired the 1.78 acre site on Newton Road from the Archdiocese of Liverpool following full planning permission being granted. Groundworks are now complete and construction of the first homes is now underway at the development, which is to be marketed as “St Catherine’s Gardens”.
Philip Palmer, Land Director for Elan Homes in the North, said: “Redeveloping previously developed sites is part of our land acquisition strategy. The Lowton site presented a perfect opportunity to provide new homes in an area where there is a pent up demand for housing.
“St Catherine’s Parish Hall was demolished several years ago, with the church itself cleared from the site in 2018. By building new homes we’re bringing brownfield land back into good use and contributing to Wigan Council’s housing supply both for open market and affordable properties. While work here has only just started, we are keen to acquire similar brownfield sites across the North West suitable for building 20 to 150 homes.”
At Lowton Elan will build 20 open market homes, including three and four-bedroom semi-detached and detached designs, ranging from 933 sq ft to 1497 sq ft.
There will also be six affordable homes consisting of two-bedroom Audley and three-bedroom Howden types, which will be available through shared equity at 70% of the open market value.
Elan will also make a £25,000 off-site contribution towards affordable housing locally and contribute almost £45,000 towards open space provision at Pennington Flash Country Park.
“The development will predominantly be two storeys in height with some 2.5 storey homes. This is in keeping with the surrounding area and is a significant reduction from the height of the church that once stood on the site,” Philip added.
“Our aim is to complement the character of the neighbourhood, adding visual interest.”
Homes will be built using quality materials including grey concrete roofs with red ridge tiles and red multi brick with contrasting red engineering brick. Some homes will be finished with off-white rough cast render.
All private plots with parking spaces/ drives will have electric vehicle charging points. Other sustainable features include bird boxes and bat bricks/ slates.
Existing trees at the rear or the site will be retained, plus Elan will carry out additional tree planting on site.
With easy access to both Liverpool and Manchester, homes at the development will appeal to commuters. Situated in the catchment area for schools in nearby Culcheth, where Elan has built previously, the properties are also sure to be popular with families.
