A new £2.2m development of quality but affordable family homes has been unveiled in Stockland Green, thanks to a small group of residents that galvanised itself into action when it saw its community going into decline due to poor quality and absent private landlords.
The construction of 14 family homes at Copeley Hill on Slade Road has totally transformed a site that had been left derelict and abandoned after being bombed during WWII and then cut off from the rest of the community by Spaghetti junction.
Stockland Green Opportunity Housing and Training (SGOHT) is the community-led organisation that inspired the Copeley Hill development of aspirational and quality private rented homes, which will enable local families to stay in the area. The homes were built by MCE Property with the backing of SGOHT partners, Pioneer Group.
Sarah Kelly (33), son Amari (11) and daughter Ivy (5months) are the first family to receive keys to Copeley Hill. Erdington born and bred, Sarah moved to Coventry for nine years but wanted to return to Birmingham so she could be around her family and support network.
“When I discovered there was a new development being built in the area, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to move back to my roots and have a fresh start,” said Sarah. “The houses at Copeley Hill are absolutely fantastic and we can’t wait to get moved in and into our routine back in Birmingham, just minutes away from the people we love.”
Labour MP for Erdington, Jack Dromey said: “A loving mum, Sarah, and her two delightful children, cannot wait to move into their new home; a good home, at a reasonable rent and with real security for the future. The SGOHT is to be congratulated for its outstanding initiative in building 14 new badly needed homes.”
Those families renting from SGOHT at Copeley Hill will benefit from living in a modern, spacious home and receiving a quality maintenance and repair service. In addition, because SGOHT has made a long term commitment to the area, they will also enjoy the peace of mind that comes from certainty of tenure and sustainable and ethical rent levels.
Penny Holbrook, Chair of SGOHT said: “Stockland Green has always had a rich heritage and vibrant and ethnically diverse community, which was quick to organise itself and meet the challenges head on as the area went into decline.
“We could never have imagined only four years ago what we would be celebrating today, but from small acorns mighty oaks do grow. Copeley Hill was an abandoned part of Stockland Green, an eye-sore that was blighted by fly tipping, but the transformation is remarkable and one that we can all be proud of.
“The ambition and drive of a small group of people disillusioned at the lack of good quality private rented housing, which was driving young families out of Stockland Green and destroying the community, has resulted in a fabulous housing development of three and four bedroom houses that will allow them to stay in the neighbourhood and help the community grow and thrive.”
There are 12 spacious three-bedroom (from £725 per month) and two four-bedroom homes (£850 per month) in the Copeley Hill development, all with master bedroom and ensuite bathroom, modern fitted bathroom and kitchen, cloak rooms, sound-proof windows and rear gardens.
Penny concludes: “We’ve delivered homes with the same rents as private landlords, but with superior housing and services. This community-based solution to a lack of quality housing in the area is one that we have committed to and intend to build on.”
As a Pioneer Group partner, SGOHT benefits from its financial support and management resource, but is able to work autonomously in the community it knows inside out and has its own board that shapes future activities and investment in the area.
SGOHT is committed to helping Stockland Green and its people flourish by providing excellent homes and creating development and training opportunities for those living in the community, including working with a local training provider on the refurbishment of its properties.
The new Copeley Hill housing development is the first in a new chapter of regeneration in Stockland Green with SGOHT planning a further 20 houses over the next four years.
