Extra funding has been secured for an affordable council housing project being constructed by Bradford Council.

A total of 50 homes will now be built at Beech Grove, Undercliffe, on a brownfield site, after the Council received an additional £1.4m from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). The overall cost of the scheme is £7.5m, with the Council contributing half.

Local employment and training opportunities have also received a boost, with seven construction apprenticeships (up from four) being recruited and a total of 84 weeks of work placements (up from 48) being offered throughout the build programme to help tackle worklessness.

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Preparatory work has begun on the project, which had initially been scheduled to consist o 31 affordable homes. The 19 extra three, four and five-bedroom properties will be built at the same time with an estimated completion date of May 2012. They will be available as social rented properties.

Councillor the Rev Paul Flowers, Bradford Council's Executive Member for Culture, Planning and Housing, said: "There is a big demand for affordable housing in the district so this additional funding is great news.

"The Beech Grove scheme will include a range of high-quality homes and I'm sure families seeking social housing locally will welcome its expansion.

"As well as the extra 19 homes this creates, the added apprenticeship and training opportunities will further increase the benefits of the scheme."

All of the properties will be energy efficient homes, achieving Level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes, meaning materials used will help the buildings be thermally efficient and environment friendly.

They will include facilities to reduce surface water run-off through rainwater harvesting systems and high efficiency gas condensing boilers and solar panels.

(CD/KMcA)