The completion of 32 affordable rented flats in Bristol has given Chloe the opportunity of a new home to call her own.
It is a new lease of life for Chloe, 21, who moved into a mother and baby unit following the birth of her daughter Lilah Mae last year.
The shared accommodation gave her little space for her young family to flourish.
Now Chloe has moved into one of our new affordable flats at a development in Hartcliffe, which forms a key part of the regeneration of South Bristol and has seen land owned by Bristol Council transformed into a vibrant new community.
Chloe was one of the first residents to have moved into her new two-bedroom home with her one-year-old daughter.
Chloe said: “I was so excited when the property came up on the council’s HomeChoice site and felt so lucky when I got a successful bid.
“I am going to love being here and watching Lilah grow, she has space for her toys now and it’s nice to have my own fridge that I haven’t got to share with other people. I love the open plan living, the balcony and the view.
“LiveWest has been really supportive around grants available to me so it’s nice to know the support is still there where I need it despite me now living in my own place.
“This is the first time I have lived on my own, this is my opportunity to create a new life for me and Lilah Mae, I have been dreaming of this day for so long.”
Chloe added: “Our families are local, being on a main bus route is helpful. The community is great; we have everything we need right on our doorstep and all within walking distance. I can’t wait for our journey to begin.”
The new development in Hartcliffe, is a joint partnership between LiveWest, Keepmoat Homes and Bristol City Council and will provide 375 new homes when complete, of which 105 are affordable.
Located on the former Hartcliffe College Campus, when fully completed the scheme will include several unique features including a new community orchard, wildlife corridor and natural play areas.
Emma Young, Area Housing Manager for LiveWest, said: “We brought everyone together for a move in event, to make sure all our new residents knew all the different teams that could support them, like our income officers, housing officers and our community connectors.
“We have been making phonecalls through our Tenancy Sustainment team and applications for people to get help with things like white goods before they even move in to help them set up home.
“As a newer scheme, we have ground source heat pumps which will help our residents keep their energy bills down longer term which is so important in these current times. We are looking forward to building a strong community in Hartcliffe.”
Parry Morgan, Head of Development for LiveWest, said: “Working with Keepmoat Homes and Bristol City Council, we have had a common goal of creating a high-quality new housing development which will provide new residents moving into this project with a great place to live.
“Sustainability sits very much at the heart of our organisation and being involved in a project which places importance on the environmental credentials of the project in terms of public space as well as renewable sources for heating homes is vitally important for both LiveWest and our customers.”
As part of a partnership with Bristol City Council – which will see the local authority benefit from a Renewable Heat Incentive – ground source heat pumps will be used on the site which include one and two-bedroom apartments as well as two, three and four-bedroom houses.
Furthermore, almost a third of the properties will be available as affordable housing through either social rent or shared ownership schemes accessible to families on lower incomes.