News

Phil Hope MP visits the first occupied Code 6 eco homes in England

Minister for the East Midlands, Phil Hope MP, experienced the future of new housing on 18 January by visiting the first residents in the first commercially developed Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH) level 6 properties in England.

The tour came during a visit to the Upton development in Northampton – a 1,400 home project to create an urban extension promoting best practice in sustainable urban growth – which is being delivered by Metropolitan Housing Partnership in conjunction with the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), the local authority and other developers.

The Minister explored the One Earth Homes developed by MHP, a select scheme of six properties successfully achieving Code level 6, which are the most eco-friendly in the country. The first three homes have recently occupied.

The One Earth Homes – comprising two social rented, and four New Build HomeBuy (also known as shared ownership) properties – were developed further to bring them up to code level 6, which included a rainwater harvesting system, additional photovoltaic and solar panels, additional clothes drying facilities, a composting system and changing of the lights in the kitchen to LEDs.

Sensors have been installed into three of the six One Earth Homes to enable the energy
consumption and generation to be measured. MHP are working with the University of Northampton to monitor and analyse the information obtained.

Margaret Allen, East Midlands director for the HCA, said: "We know we must act now on climate change; minimising use of natural resources, reducing carbon emissions and protecting our green spaces. Whilst doing so, we need to build more houses, invest in growth areas and maintain a prosperous economy that enables people to live in the places they can afford and enjoy. These One Earth homes at Upton are a fantastic example of a 'green home' in a 'green' place."

Bill Payne, Chief Executive of MHP, added: "This is a wonderful achievement; however, all these efforts will be of limited value if we do not learn from these innovative homes. We are committed to working with the residents to discover what works best for them and the environment by close monitoring in the short, medium and long-term. We are grateful to the HCA for having the confidence to do this and are delighted to be working in partnership with them to deliver the next phases. When it comes to sustainability both MHP and HCA are committed to sharing the lessons learnt from the delivery and creation of these pioneering homes."

All press enquiries should be directed to:
Jason Grant
Communications Officer
Jason.grant@mhp-online.co.uk
07786 274535