Self-Build Loan Fund to reopen

£6 million loan fund reopens for applications tomorrow

Self-builders who are unable to access standard bank lending can now apply for a loan of up to £175,000 to help with the development costs of their home.

The Self-Build Loan Fund reopens for applications tomorrow (Monday 21 November) and aims to support the delivery of good quality and energy efficient housing, giving people more choice about the homes they want to live in.

Following the success of a pilot scheme in the Highlands the fund was launched nationally in 2018, with 41 loans worth a total of £6.2 million approved to date.

Housing Secretary Shona Robison said: ““This fund aims to unlock the dream of building your own home, in many cases allowing people to stay in their local communities.

“We know it can be more difficult to access finance for self-build projects than for buying an existing property, and this fund is a crucial lifeline for those unable to access standard bank lending. When loans are repaid, the money can be re-used, during the life of the fund, supporting more self-builders and providing more homes for future generations.

“Self-provided housing can play an important role contributing to the long-term sustainability of our rural and island communities, and this £6 million Scottish Government fund will continue to help support this. It has had great success in the Highlands and Islands and has also provided dream homes for people living across the whole of Scotland.

“Wherever you live, if you’re interested in building your own home I’d encourage you to contact the Communities Housing Trust to find out more.”

Kirsten, a school teacher from Shetland who benefitted from the fund, said: “We acquired our plot of land over 20 years ago. At that point there was an old croft house on the land which we initially planned to renovate.

“However, several things arose to hinder our plans. The most significant was my partner becoming long-term disabled after an accident. This meant a lot of disruption to our build plans.  

“If the fund hadn’t been available we would have had to stop our build altogether and sell the plot of land. That would have meant it being harder for us to get onto the property ladder.

“It can be difficult or more costly to find a property that has larger living accommodation needed for wheelchair use. It may also have taken us away from our home area where family are nearby. I don’t know what we would have done without this fund.”

Ronnie MacRae, CEO of the Communities Housing Trust, said: “In the years we’ve administered the fund, we’ve seen demand rise as conditions become even more challenging for people to build their own home. In many cases, families just need a bit of extra support and are fully able to build and then repay the loan.

“Self-build remains an important option for many, particularly in areas where no other options exist, so we are extremely grateful to the Scottish Government for continuing to provide the fund.”

The fund is reopening after closing on 31 August 2022 to new applications.

The Self-Build Loan Fund is administered on behalf of the Scottish Government by the Communities Housing Trust.

Edinburgh triumphs as local housebuilders named one of UK’s best in Pride in the Job Awards

NHBC, the UK’s leading new homes warranty and insurance provider, has announced a number of site managers from Edinburgh as winners in the first round of its flagship competition to determine the very best site managers in the UK. 

The competition recognises site managers who have achieved the very highest standards in house building with the awards being the most prestigious of their kind in the sector.

The winners in Edinburgh are:

Ewan MacLean of Barratt and David Wilson Homes East Scotland for Cammo Meadows in Edinburgh (above)

Barrie Mitchell of Barratt and David Wilson Homes East Scotland for Heritage Grange in Edinburgh.

Colin Scott of Barratt and David Wilson Homes East Scotland for The Strand @ Portobello in Edinburgh.

Mark Foley of CALA Evans Restoration Limited for The Crescent in Edinburgh.

Ian Welsh of CALA Homes East Ltd for Waterfront Plaza in Edinburgh.

Jim Martin of Miller Homes Scotland East for Edgelaw in Edinburgh.

From a field of more than 10,000, 450 site managers have won a Quality Award in the first round of NHBC’s Pride in the Job Awards 2021. This represents the top 5% of those who entered and is testament to their commitment to deliver quality homes for their customers.

Pride in the Job, first launched over forty years ago, is the most highly regarded competition in the house-building industry. Judging for the Awards is rigorous, with the current competition beginning in July 2020 and each site manager assessed across six key areas: consistency, attention to detail, leadership, interpretation of drawings and specifications, technical expertise, and health and safety.

Pride in the Job is at the heart of NHBC’s core purpose to support the delivery of high-quality new homes. By recognising the very best site managers across the UK, the competition celebrates the vital role that site managers play in ensuring new homes are delivered on time, on safe sites and to exacting construction quality standards.

The competition is fully inclusive and representative of the UK house-building industry with three categories for different sized businesses: small, medium and large, with a separate multi-storey category.

The Quality Award winners will go on to compete for Seal of Excellence and Regional Awards in the autumn, with the national, Supreme Award winners unveiled in January 2022. 

Commenting on the Awards, NHBC Chief Executive Steve Wood said: “Pride in the Job has been pivotal in improving the quality of new homes for more than 40 years. Despite the numerous challenges the industry has faced, the very best site managers of 2021 have remained focused on delivering high quality new homes for their customers. 

“At NHBC we are very proud of Pride in the Job, what it stands for and the impact it has across the sector. Pride in the Job winning sites have higher levels of homeowner satisfaction as these homes are among the very best in the country.

“Congratulations to all our 2021 Pride in the Job Quality Award winners in Edinburgh – be proud of what you are building and the standards you are setting.”

For the full list of winners please visit https://www.nhbc.co.uk/awards-and-events/pride-in-the-job/2021-awards

Barratt East Scotland site managers named as best in the country for quality

–      Five David Wilson Homes and Barratt Homes site managers in the region win awards

–      Barratt Developments wins more ‘Pride in the Job’ Quality awards than any other housebuilder, with 14 awards in Scotland alone

Five site managers from Barratt East Scotland have won a top national award for the quality of the homes they are building.

Known as the “Oscars of the housebuilding industry”, the National House Building Council (NHBC) Pride in The Job Quality awards recognise the finest site managers from around the country.

From East Scotland, the winners are:

NameDevelopment
Barrie MitchellBarratt @ Heritage Grange
Ewan MacLeanCammo Meadows
Shaun QuinnPentland View
Colin ScottThe Strand @ Portobello
Peter LawrieThe Heathers

In total, site managers from Barratt Developments won 93 ‘Pride in the Job’ Quality awards this year. In Scotland, the housebuilder scooped 14 awards. This is the 17th year in a row that Barratt has won more Pride in the Job Quality awards than any other housebuilder, showing its long-term commitment to building high quality homes.

These awards, now in their 41st year, rate site managers against key criteria such as technical expertise, health and safety, consistency, leadership and attention to detail. The awards celebrate the vital role site managers play in ensuring new homes are delivered on-time, on safe sites, and to the highest quality standards.

Every site manager that is registered with the NHBC is automatically entered into the awards, with just 450 winners being selected from 11,000 entrants, showing how difficult they are to win.    

These awards come off the back of a Barratt site manager being crowned the overall winner in last year’s awards. Kirk Raine, senior site manager, won the supreme award, the fifth time in the last six years that a Barratt site manager has won the top prize.

Alison Condie, managing director for Barratt East Scotland, said: “These awards showcase only the best new homes and well-run sites.

“By winning so many awards, it demonstrates that we are building some of the highest quality homes in the country. It also shows the long-term commitment we have to looking after our customers and making them happy. No other housebuilder can match our record at the NHBC Pride in the Job Quality awards.”

These awards closely follow Barratt Developments being awarded 5 stars by its customers for satisfaction in the annual Home Builders Federation (HBF) new homes survey.

To be rated five star means that more than 90% of its customers would recommend one of its homes to a friend, with Barratt being the only major national housebuilder to be rated five star for 12 years in a row.

CALA HOMES: BUILDING WITH PRIDE

SITE MANAGERS RECOGNISED AS TWO OF THE COUNTRY’S BEST FOR 2021

TWO CALA Edinburgh site managers have received UK-wide recognition for their excellent professional standards and positive contributions to the construction industry.

Mark Foley, site manager for CALA Homes at The Crescent at Donaldson’s and Ian Welsh, site manager for CALA Homes Waterfront Plaza, are celebrating after receiving a prestigious industry award from the National Home Building Council (NHBC). 

Mark and Ian have been recognised in the 2021 Pride in the Job Quality Awards for their contribution to creating homes of the highest quality and showcasing best practice, joining an impressive 16 site managers from across the CALA Group to receive the coveted accolade.

The Pride in the Job Awards has been running for more than four decades and is one of the highest industry accolades a site manager can receive.

More than 11,000 site managers across the UK were assessed this year, with only 450 winners selected, putting those awarded in the industry’s top four per cent who demonstrate the passion, commitment and leadership to deliver new homes to the highest possible standards.

Mark and Ian will now go through to the next stage of the competition, the Seal of Excellence, which will be announced later this year.

Craig Lynes, Managing Director with CALA Homes (East)  comments: “The Pride in the Job Awards recognise site managers who, along with their teams and sub-contractors deliver excellence for our customers every day.

“It is our teams on the ground who bring our homes to life, ensuring the vision for each development is delivered on time, safely and to the highest quality standards. 

“Over the past year, more than any other, site managers have had to overcome unprecedented challenges, but the commitment from Mark, Ian and their teams to deliver the highest quality standards have been unwavering. We wish teams at The Crescent and Waterfront Plaza all the best of luck as the awards progress on to the next stage.”

As well as undergoing spot checks of the day-to-day running of their site, each site manager is assessed across 37 different areas of site management, including technical knowledge, quality and consistency.

Mark, who is CALA’s most decorated project manager with 15 Pride in the Job awards, alongside 10 Seal of Excellences, three regional awards and one supreme award, said: “To secure the Pride in the Job accolade is a real honour.

“Knowing that our team at The Crescent has achieved this following stringent site inspections is testament to their hard work and professionalism.”


Ian added: “Knowing how diligently the team at Waterfront Plaza have worked from the outset of the project, it’s great to see our efforts rewarded in such a fitting way. We are all very proud.” 

A cutting-edge interpretation of Georgian architecture, with 18 acres of landscaped gardens and grounds, prices at The Crescent range from £595,000 to £1,750,000, with a range of one, two and three-bedroom apartments, duplexes and penthouses available.

Launched in summer 2019, Waterfront Plaza is CALA’s latest brownfield regeneration project.

After the sell-out success of the first release colony apartments, Waterfront Plaza currently features 2 & 3 bedroom apartments & 4 bedroom townhouses ranging from £295,000 to £520,000.

For more information on The Crescent at Donaldsons or to arrange an appointment, please visit: www.cala.co.uk/homes-for-sale/scotland/edinburgh/the-crescent or call 0131 341 2667.

For more information about Waterfront Plaza or to arrange an appointment please visit www.cala.co.uk/homes-for-sale/scotland/edinburgh/waterfront-plaza-leith or call 0131 516 6832.

Artisan set to invest £150 million in Sustainable Living for Scotland

City Centre brownfield Sites to become £90 m ‘Blueprint’ for Low Carbon Living

 Artisan Real Estate is set to invest £150 million in residential development in Scotland over the next 12 months in a radical bid to raise standards for sustainable living in prime city centre locations in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The niche homebuilder and regeneration specialist launched a new UK-wide building design framework earlier this year geared to increasing low carbon city living whilst meeting the changing requirements of people and communities in a post-Covid world.   

And now this game-changing blueprint could have significant environmental and investment benefits for Scotland’s cities as the developer progresses with ambitious new homes’ projects planned for city centre brownfield sites

In Edinburgh, Artisan is planning to invest more than £90 million in several significant city centre residential developments.

The first phases of the Canonmills Garden scheme will be ready for occupation in spring 2021, while planning applications for two major projects at Rowanbank Gardens, Corstorphine and Abbey Lane in Abbeyhill will be discussed by the City of Edinburgh Council at the end of November. 

Clive Wilding, Artisan’s Group Development Director, believes Artisan’s investment in Edinburgh especially will fast become a blueprint for the company’s housing projects across the rest of the UK, coming at a critical time for investment in the city.

“Artisan is firmly committed to future investment to get the city living again following lockdown,” he explains. “Initially our plan was to achieve low to zero carbon development across all our new homes developments.

“But the challenges highlighted by the pandemic has accelerated the importance of other critical aspects of development planning – such as technological efficiency, easy access to the outdoors and improved amenity space. 

“We are going above and beyond the existing Council guidelines for sensitive city centre environments. This includes reducing urban sprawl by optimising the number of people living in well-designed, sustainable homes in low car-use locations well-served by public transport and linked to pedestrian and cycle networks. 

“Smart energy-efficient building design has been matched with an innovative approach to placemaking and community.  Across all our developments, we are introducing creative concepts such as green roofs, communal ‘edible’ gardens with fruit and vegetable plots and integrated green transport plans.”  

 “We are also envisaging what people want from their post-Covid living environment,” he adds. “Significant emphasis is placed on the quality of internal space and light to create enjoyable home-working environments, whilst accessible balconies, gardens and landscaping promote health and well-being by making nature and well-designed outdoor space integral to the day-to-day living experience.” 

Such development principles have been applied to the major planning application for 126 new homes at Artisan’s Rowanbank Gardens.

The brownfield former care-home site in Corstorphine is set to answer the City of Edinburgh Council’s requirement for well designed, high density living whilst providing spacious communal areas and well-established public transport links ensuring low car ownership.   

The development is designed around a central courtyard garden providing nearly twice the level of open space recommended by Council planning policy, filled with fruit trees and communal planting and growing beds.  

Apartments are designed for open plan living with large windows giving views of the courtyard and the wider area, while green roofs ensure benefits of surface water retention, insulation and ecology.  

Artisan is perhaps best known in Scotland for large-scale city regeneration projects like the award-winning New Waverley at the heart of Edinburgh’s historic Old Town.

The development’s Queen Elizabeth House, now a flagship UK Government office hub, was recently awarded the Innovation Award at the 2020 British Council Offices Awards, recognising the building design which includes a variety of low-energy techniques. 

The developer is now applying the same values and philosophy which has guided the successful design and execution of New Waverley to its residential developments, setting it apart from other major homebuilders in Scotland. 

Clive Wilding adds:  “Artisan now has an opportunity in Scotland to set a new benchmark for high quality urban regeneration in sensitive city-centre environments – whether it be commercial, residential or mixed-use.  

“Our track record in Edinburgh and in Scotland has given us a strong understanding of the importance of sustainable low carbon living combined with high quality placemaking, which is at the heart of all Artisan’s developments.” 

For more information on Artisan’s developments in Scotland and the UK visit: 

www.artisanrealestate.co.uk 

CALA Site Manager in running for major UK award

An Edinbugh based professional is in the running to scoop one of the UK housebuilding industry’s most prestigious awards. Neal Toland, former Site Manager at Leith’s Ten Brunswick Road, is one of a handful of nominees vying for glory within the Best Multi-Story Development category at the NHBC Supreme Awards. Continue reading CALA Site Manager in running for major UK award