Community Benefits
Yarm proves popular with first-time buyers
Stockton-on-Tees house-hunters are taking advantage of the government-backed Help to Buy scheme to help them secure new homes in just a matter of months, reports Taylor Wimpey North Yorkshire.
Adam Morrison, a first-time buyer who recently moved to the homebuilder’s Morley Carr Farm development, in Yarm, praises the Help to Buy scheme for allowing him to finally get onto the property ladder and away from renting.
Adam, who moved into a three-bedroom, semi-detached Gosford at the development, comments: “I was so impressed when I viewed the Taylor Wimpey show home. Not only did it stand out from the other properties I had visited, but the area was just perfect for me – so quiet, and only a five-minute walk to work.
“Taylor Wimpey has been exceptional throughout the whole process and without the Help to Buy scheme, I wouldn’t have been able to afford a house in such a fantastic location.”
The Help to buy scheme enables buyers to progress on the property ladder with just a five per cent deposit.
Debbie Whittingham, sales and marketing director at Taylor Wimpey North Yorkshire, explains: “With Morley Carr Farm offering such an outstanding range of homes in a variety of sizes and styles, it’s easy to see why it’s been so popular amongst both first-time buyers and families alike.
“It’s wonderful to see how the financial schemes help buyers, like Adam, get out of renting and onto the property ladder far sooner than they may have thought.”
Morley Carr Farm currently features a selection of three and four-bedroom homes, from just £194,950.
Adam concludes: “I couldn’t have had a smoother or more stress-free experience buying my first home, and I would definitely recommend Taylor Wimpey and Help to Buy to anybody in a similar situation.”
Taylor Wimpey supports Walk to School Month
Taylor Wimpey is encouraging families in North Yorkshire to put on their walking shoes and leave the car at home for the journey to school this autumn.
The housebuilder is supporting
Walk to School Month, and has donated 75 high-visibility wristbands to the pupils of Layfield Primary School, to help keep the youngsters safe on their journey.
The campaign takes place every October and asks parents to walk their children to school – with the aim of promoting healthier lifestyles and reducing the number of cars on the road. This year, the initiative will see more than 13,000 wristbands provided to children across the country.
Helen Owen, head teacher at Layfield Primary School, says:
“Children really do benefit from walking to school – not only is the exercise healthy for them, but it also helps reduce the amount of traffic outside school, making it much safer.”
According to Living Streets, the charity that organises the Walk to School campaign in the UK, only 21 per cent of boys and 16 per cent of girls meet the current recommended daily level of exercise, which is 60 minutes of physical activity.
A generation ago, 70 per cent of youngsters walked to school, but now it’s less than half – and during morning peak traffic times, one in five cars on the road are taking children to school, contributing to congestion, air pollution and carbon emissions.*
Debbie Whittingham, sales and marketing director at Taylor Wimpey North Yorkshire, comments: “We are proud to be supporting this great campaign for another year, and are delighted to be working in partnership with Layfield Primary School.
“Walking is a great form of physical activity for youngsters to get into, and we hope our wristbands will add some fun to the journey, as well as keep them safe on the way.”
Layfield Primary School is located just a short distance from Taylor Wimpey’s Morley Carr Farm development, in Yarm. The scheme currently features a range of three and four-bedroom homes, from just £194,950.
Helen concludes: “We are incredibly grateful to Taylor Wimpey for this generous donation, which will help raise the profile of Walk to School Month amongst pupils and parents alike.”
What are we doing?
The development of the Morley Carr Farm site will not only provide a range of new housing that will contribute greatly towards Stockton Borough Council's requirement of 2800 new homes over the next 16 years, but also facilitate both new and improvements to existing local amenities and facilities that could otherwise not be provided or sustained.
This development is planned to benefit the community by:
- The generation of circa. 40 new jobs per annum. Emphasis will be put on employing local labour throughout the construction phase.
- An investment of approximately (circa. £2.8m) will be received by Stockton Borough Council from the New Homes Bonus Scheme, which has been set up by the Government to benefit local communities when accommodating new development.
- Potential to provide community facilities such as a bowling green and associated club house.
- Creation of a 'green corridor' and new areas of public green areas and open space which will provide a very attractive setting for both new and existing residents of Yarm. These areas will be sympathetically designed and will link in to the current public footpaths adjacent to the site.
- The development will deliver a range of housing to meet the needs and aspiration of the whole community. There will be a varied mix of affordable units, housing designed to meet the needs of the elderly, first time buyers, key workers, families and also an element of large executive style housing.
- The project will also generate financial contributions that will facilitate improvements to local education and any off-site highways improvements that are necessary to accommodate the development.