A £7.45m loan from Homes England is set to support the development of the first 1,150 homes at Port Loop in Birmingham.
The scheme at Port Loop will provide a mix of homes, including modular, factory built, and traditionally constructed houses, within walking distance of Birmingham’s city centre. The loan for this development comes from the government’s £4.5bn Home Building Fund to boost the number of homes being built in desirable locations.
Housing Secretary James Brokenshire said: “Birmingham’s Port Loop is a great example of how our £4.5 billion Home Building Fund is helping to meet the triple challenge of delivering more, better, faster home construction, as well as revving a strong and prosperous Midlands Engine.”
A new community
In the first stage of the project at Port Loop, 77 of the homes will be built around shared gardens, 40 will be customisable modular homes, and 37 traditionally built houses. The development will also include a new park and improved canal towpath.
Ian Martin, head of investment in the Midlands for Homes England, commented: “The sheer scale of the scheme provides the opportunity to build a whole new community and will be one of the largest regeneration schemes in the Midlands. This will provide a much needed boost to the region’s housing stock, which is exactly what the Home Building Fund was established to do.”
Birmingham City Council and Canals and River Trust originally owned the large brownfield site. The two organisations are working with Urban Splash and Places for People, who are coordinating the wider scheme.
Birmingham’s housing numbers
A recent survey revealed the number of residential units currently being built in Birmingham is at the highest number ever recorded. As just under 1,700 units were completed in 2018, Deloitte forecasts that figure to be almost 3,000 this year. Additionally, with a growing student population, more than 2,600 new bed spaces for purpose-built student accommodation are being built in Birmingham.
As demand continues to grow, housing numbers are expected to increase even further. Following the 2022 Commonwealth Games being hosted in Britain’s second city, the athletes village will be converted into more than 1,100 accommodation units, which will further boost the housing market.
