Lovell has been chosen by West Mercia Housing Group to build a £4.5 million affordable homes scheme at Longbridge, Birmingham.

The scheme will include Birmingham's first affordable zero-carbon homes, built to Level 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, the system for measuring the sustainable performance of new housing.

The development in Thelbridge Road will create 48 new houses and apartments: 28 for affordable rent and 20 for shared ownership. It will be made up of 42 two-, three- and four-bedroom houses and six two-bedroom apartments.

Forty-four of the new homes will achieve Level 3 of the Code for Sustainable Homes. Two of the ho§mes will be built to Level 4 of the Code and two will be zero-carbon properties, achieving Level 6.

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Construction work is starting this month with the development set to be completed in June 2011. The scheme is the final phase of an £17.1 million development of the former Nimmings Farm Estate.

The homes are being built using an advanced Modern Methods of Construction thin joint mortar construction system which allows homes to be built quickly to a high quality standard.

All properties will benefit from high-performance gas boilers with weather load compensators. The Level 3 and 4 homes will have solar water heating panels while the Level 6 homes will have photovoltaic panels. Rainwater harvesting systems – which allow rainwater to be recycled for uses such as flushing toilets - will be installed in the Level 4 and 6 homes and in eight of the other properties. The Level 4 and 6 properties will also have mechanical ventilation with heat recovery systems which work by recycling 'wasted' heat from kitchen and bathroom areas which is used to warm incoming fresh air from outside.

Lovell will provide training placements for a number of its Midlands apprentices who will have the opportunity to work on the scheme.

(CD/GK)