Energy firm ENGIE is to lead a £37 million project which will regenerate derelict brownfield and transform the gateway to Kirkby, Merseyside.

Appointed by Your Housing Group ENGIE will begin work to deliver 266 new mixed tenure homes on Whitefield Drive, comprising 106 homes for shared ownership, 115 for affordable rent and 45 for private rent later this month. They will be available in a mix of two, three and four-bedroom designs.

Plans were approved by Knowsley Borough Council earlier this year, and they have welcomed the investment into affordable homes.

The development has been funded through Your Housing Group's Strategic Partnership with Homes England. Your Housing Group was announced as one of the government Housing Agency's Strategic Partners in January 2019, receiving £87.5 million of funding in line with the Government’s aspiration to provide 11,000 affordable new homes across the country.

-- Advertisement --

Pete Hayes, Head of Land & Partnerships at ENGIE, said: "We are delighted to be continuing our long-standing partnership with Your Housing Group. ENGIE and YHG have worked tirelessly over the past two years to help bring in to use this challenging and derelict Brownfield site. By combining ENGIE’s technical and design expertise with YHG’s passion for creating much needed homes and sustainable communities, the organisations have collaborated to produce a housing offer that the Kirkby community can be proud of and will enable flexibility of tenure for our customers.

"This project is a perfect example of ENGIE’s focus on creating energy-efficient communities fit for 21st century living, and we’re all looking forward to getting started on site and delivering a transformational development for Kirkby."

Jacque Allen, Chief Operating Officer of Your Housing Group said: "Your Housing Group has ambitious plans to continue delivering much needed new homes across our region. In uncertain times we have been able to keep moving forward with our new developments and are currently working on plans for several new opportunities that, in total, will create more than 1000 new additional homes.

"We are really pleased to be able to start work in Kirkby to transform this derelict site and bring fantastic new homes to the area. Throughout this process we have received great support from Knowsley Council and ENGIE to create this development, and we look forward to working with them."

The first properties are expected to be completed in early 2022.