A veterans’ self-build project in Plymouth that provides 25 new affordable homes has been completed.
The Stirling House Project, which houses six veterans in need of a new home, is a partnership between LiveWest, Plymouth City Council, and veterans’ charity Alabaré.
The development, based on the site of a former residential care home at Honicknowle Green, has seen a number of previously homeless military veterans involved in the construction of the self-contained affordable homes to rent.
The project has helped the veterans with employment, learning skills for life and helping them settle into their new homes.
Adrian Colwill, 49, joined the forces at the age of 16 and served in the Royal Army’s Artillery before performing a number of successful roles, including managing a hotel when he left the military.
During this time, Adrian experienced some mental health challenges which, despite being years after leaving the forces, left him on the brink of becoming homeless and, at times, living in a tent.
Adrian was involved in the project from the start and now lives in the home he helped to build.
Adrian said: “I don’t know where I’d be now had I not had this experience because life has taken a vastly different path and a path that I will forever be grateful for.
“There are no superlatives to quantify what’s happened.
“I have been on the verge of homelessness, living in a bedsit and living in tents, living in all sorts of things throughout my adult life.
“This is somewhere I can have pride, can open the door and go ‘oh, I put that door in’.
“There isn’t one area of this house where I haven’t had a hand in… this is a home.
“To go from being virtually homeless to building my home is a phenomenal journey, something you wouldn’t believe was viable.”
The Stirling House Project began in 2021 after Plymouth City Council selected LiveWest as a partner to redevelop the site.
They joined forces with Alabaré who provide a range of accommodation and support for ex-Armed Forces personnel who have struggled in their civilian lives, and who run several veterans’ self-build schemes across the South and South West.
All of the 25 homes are occupied through social rent in order to provide support for households in high need and have air source heat pumps installed to improve the homes’ energy efficiency and help residents save on their energy bills.
Russell Baldwinson, our Executive Director of Development and Investment, said: “We are delighted to have worked with our partners on such a flagship scheme for Plymouth, supporting the further regeneration of the city.
“The Stirling House Project has provided much-needed housing and offered ex-service personnel the unique and special opportunity to get involved with the construction of the homes, learn new skills and build on the scheme supported by Alabaré.
“We are proud to offer these high-quality and energy-efficient homes, where the build and design of the project focuses on the wellbeing of its residents.
“Our commitments to delivering more affordable homes helps to create communities where more families and individuals have a safe place to call home.”
Of the 25 homes, 19 are one and two-bedroom flats together with two, three and four-bedroom housing.
The large four-bedroom house has also been designed as a wheelchair-adapted property, helping to address the significant shortage of such properties across the city.
Councillor Chris Penberthy, Cabinet Member for Housing, Communities and Cooperative Development, said: “The Stirling Project has been far more than just a housing scheme; we’ve built far more than just homes.
“By working in partnership, we've managed to build new skills, new careers and new starts for our veterans and I’m so proud of everyone involved.
“I’ve made no secret of the fact that Plymouth is in the middle of a housing crisis and that we must tackle it head-on. Innovative housing schemes that tackle our local need, like the Stirling Project, can and will be replicated.”
Throughout the project, Alabaré has provided support to the veterans, helping them to rebuild their self-esteem, mental health and wellbeing, and empowering them to go on to live successful, independent civilian lives in the new homes they have built.
The support provided by Alabaré has been funded thanks to grants from Plymouth City Council, LiveWest, Veterans’ Foundation and Army Benevolent Fund.
Major (Rtd) Ken Hames MBE, Chief Operating Officer of Alabaré Veterans’ Self-Build Scheme, said: “Days like today are what makes the Veterans’ Self-Build stand out. Our veterans have embraced the opportunity to learn new skills on the building site which has led to new employment and new homes for them.
“However, it is the personal development that happens alongside it that is fundamental to the overall transformation they report in their lives.
"The site, its rigour and its creativity improve attitude, mindset, and mental health that, when aligned, help enable a veteran to reintegrate back into the community and manage their new tenancy successfully.
“By working in partnership with housing providers and local authorities, Alabaré is delighted that we can offer veterans an innovative pathway of support which enables them to move on to a new life of their choosing.”
The development has benefited from grant funding from Homes England, the Government’s housing and regeneration agency.
Totnes-based, Coyde Construction, was contracted to build the Stirling House scheme which was designed by architects Form Design.