Morris Homes has been appointed to deliver the next phase of building at a landmark regeneration site in the north of Leicester.

Leicester City Council selected the firm as its development partner for the next parcel of housing development at Ashton Green, a major project to create a new neighbourhood of up to 3,000 homes, along with community facilities, green space and retail.

Morris Homes is one of the largest independently-owned house builders in the country and will deliver a new village centre with around 380 new homes, including 114 affordable homes, a supermarket, some smaller shops and attractive open space.

The city council has agreed to sell to Morris Homes 46-acres of land across two plots bordering Ashton Green Road.

This will be the third parcel of land developed for new housing at Ashton Green. Morris Homes was also the council's development partner for the first phase of building, completing the construction of 100 new homes in late 2020.

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The new homes will be contemporary in style, similar to the first phase, and will include a mix of three, four and five-bedroom family homes and two-bedroom apartments. The homes will meet the environmental standards for Ashton Green and will also incorporate well-designed landscaping with high ecological value and sustainable urban drainage.

Morris Homes aims to secure planning approval next year and will begin work on site in 2023, with the first of the new homes expected to be completed later that year.

City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: "Morris Homes were the first to commit to developing at Ashton Green. Their appointment to deliver a third phase of new house building, with much-needed affordable homes, will help maintain the momentum of this vital regeneration project.

"Appointing a development partner to deliver another 380 homes is an important milestone and represents significant further investment in our growing city.

"The ambitious programme of house building at Ashton Green is already making a valuable contribution to the number of new homes that are needed in Leicester – and it will ultimately contribute greatly to the economic prosperity of the city.

"Over the next five years, we expect to see developers invest an additional £150million at Ashton Green, and deliver more than 1,000 additional new and affordable homes."