Eight 'zero-heat loss' homes have been built in Anstruther.

The Fife homes are a mixture of 2 and 3 bedroom houses and are the first council homes to be built in the town for over 20 years.

Oliver & Robb Architects designed the new homes, which were built according to enhanced specification.

Sprinkler systems have been fitted in every house along with solar hot water panels and energy monitoring meters.

Tenants will also be able to make use of a new 'breathing wall system' which captures and recovers some of the heat which would normally escape through external walls.

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This new insulation system was recently monitored and it was found that heat loss was lowered so much that the U-value was negative. This meant that the external wall construction was actually generating energy.

Councillor David Ross, Executive Spokesperson for Housing, Communities and Local Services said: "Work started on site in early March and I’m pleased to say it was completed on time and to budget. The majority of the contractors used on this project were based in Fife and this has generated £632,000 back into the Fife economy.

"It also provided work for 115 local people during the project and gave valuable training opportunities to local apprentices to develop and enhance their skills for the future. I’m particularly pleased that the Council’s own Building Services has been the main contractor for the project."

Derek Muir, Head of Housing and Neighbourhood Services, commented: "The results of this monitoring test are very exciting and will help us decide how to keep making our new build homes more and more energy efficient. We will be meeting with the supplier in the near future to learn more about these result."

(IT)