New 'eco-homes' to help homeless in Waverley

Two new 'eco-homes' for tenants who were previously homeless have been unveiled in Waverley.

The developments will be used to provide emergency or temporary accommodation to support those transitioning from the street into longer term supported living.

They have been specially built as part of Waverley Borough Council’s ambitions to provide more affordable accommodation and help address the issues of street homelessness.

Funding has been specifically allocated to the project, a partnership between the council and Homes England, under the Government-initiated Next Steps Accommodation Programme which has the aim of eliminating rough sleeping in England by 2024.

The two self-contained units, which were built off-site in a factory to a Passivhaus standard and feature an extensive range of features for 'green living', will help provide a solution for complex cases involving rough sleepers and other single homeless households.

Waverley portfolio holder for housing and community safety, Councillor Anne-Marie Rosoman, said: “We have set out to tackle the issues of homelessness and provide more affordable housing, particularly social housing, throughout the borough and these excellent new homes are a statement of that intent.

“They will provide vital accommodation at an affordable cost. They are also an important step forward toward our commitment and ambitions for making all our council homes carbon neutral by 2030.”