MORE ‘affordable’ homes are being built in the hope to ease the city’s housing crisis and provide more homes for NHS key workers.

Oxford City Council, in partnership with their housing developers Catalyst and Hill, is building 270 new homes in Littlemore.

The new development, less than four miles away from the city centre, is being built on land that formerly housed Littlemore Hospital.

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Developers say the new homes will be ‘100 per cent affordable’ with 108 of the houses being available for social rent, and 162 available for shared ownership.

Oxford Mail:

Shared ownership is intended for first-time buyers to take their ‘first steps to home ownership’ in Oxford, which is the least affordable place outside London, with the average house price being 17 times the average salary in the city.

Those who are NHS key workers will be given an option for priority purchase.

The developers also aim to meet the needs of those on the council’s housing register, meaning that 14 wheelchair-accessible homes will be built as well as a five-bedroom family home.

The first phase of the development at Newman Place will begin this month, with the hope that 102 homes will be available later in the year.

Developers say that the new site will be ‘sustainable and biodiverse in design’.

The new estate will have footpaths, cycleways, and seating areas alongside Littlemore Brooke, connecting the housing estate to the adjoining Oxford Science Park.

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The development will also have a play area made from natural materials, two hibernacula for local wildlife, and community allotments.

Concerns of increased congestion around the city, however, were raised by locals from Oxford Civic Society and Littlemore Parish in 2019 after planning permission for the site was approved.

Joe Marshall, managing director of new homes at Catalyst, said: “I’m delighted to announce this first major milestone in the construction of Newman Place, Oxford.

Oxford Mail:

“Newman Place not only brings much-needed affordable new homes for people on the city’s waiting list but gives many first-time buyers, including NHS workers to whom we’ve given priority purchase options, the chance to get on the property ladder in an area where they’d normally be priced-out.

"Catalyst has over 2,000 homes in Oxfordshire, a strong relationship with Oxford City Council and a strategy to build hundreds of new homes."

Last week, a planning application for a further 91 homes to be built on Railway Lane in Littlemore was submitted.

This housing estate, to be developed by Cantay Estates, also hopes to provide ‘affordable’ homes to help provide homes to those 2,852 households currently on the council’s waiting list.