A £10.9 million housing development at the site of the former Glebe School in Scone has been completed by CCG.

Working on behalf of Perth & Kinross Council, CCG constructed 65 new affordable homes at the site. The development is the biggest since Perth & Kinross Council began its programme of housebuilding in 2012 – and the largest new Council housing development the area has seen in several decades.

The development of 12 flats and 53 houses for affordable rent was supported by funding from the Scottish Government and consists of:

• 24 two-bedroom houses

• 22 three-bedroom houses

• 3 four-bedroom houses

• 4 two-bedroom wheelchair-accessible properties

• 12 two-bedroom flats

Designed by MAST Architects, the development addresses a wide range of different housing needs with much-needed larger accommodation for families as well as smaller flats and houses, helping to create a vibrant, mixed community.

All of the ground floor flats have wet rooms for people with limited mobility, and are suitable for people with additional medical support needs to help them live independently.

The Glebe School development is the second development this year that CCG has handed over to Perth & Kinross Council this summer following the recent completion of the £1.65m Milne Street in Perth Town Centre.

The Council's Housing and Communities Convener, Councillor Bob Brawn, said: "This high-quality affordable housing will improve the lives of everyone who lives here and will address the accommodation needs of many different types of tenants. I'm especially delighted that there is accommodation for large and small families, as well as people with mobility issues and other supported needs. This is exactly the type of affordable housing for rent that is in demand here in Perth and Kinross.

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"The completion of the Glebe development is a landmark in our affordable house building programme. This ambitious project has utilised a previously unused site to deliver the biggest development since we re-started our house-building programme in 2012, and it is the largest build of new Perth & Kinross Council homes in decades.

"Before building began we consulted with the local Scone community about how they wanted the development to look, and what kind of housing they wanted to see on the site. This kind of approach is fundamental to the new Perth and Kinross Offer, which will see the Council work very closely with local people and communities to deliver the services that they want and need."

The development has also been constructed with the local environment in mind – bat and swift boxes have been included on the homes and 'hedgehog highways' have been incorporated into back gardens. This network of interconnected nature-friendly gardens includes small holes incorporated into screen fencing at ground level. This lets hedgehogs roam freely to access patches of feeding and nesting habitat. Signage in every garden will let residents know the importance of keeping the highway clear.

Flowering lawns and native shrubs and trees will be planted to connect green areas in the development, and a new community orchard will provide food for wildlife and the local community in years to come.

Vice Convener, Councillor Chris Ahern added: "As well as providing much-needed affordable housing for a wide range of different people, this development has been built with a sympathetic approach to the local landscape and environment. The homes are extremely energy efficient to reduce the carbon footprint of our tenants, and the inclusion of the bat and swift boxes, along with the hedgehog highways and the community orchard, will support species that are in decline to continue to live and thrive in the local area."

The development was constructed entirely using the iQ Timber System to deliver enhanced standards of thermal performance whilst all internal door sets (timber) were also designed and supplied by CCG Manufacturing.

As a direct result of CCG's involvement in the project, three new jobs were created and £11,000 has been committed to supporting locally-based initiatives.

CCG Director, John Baggley, said: "We are delighted to have led the construction of Perth & Kinross Council's largest affordable housing development since 2012. The project is one of seven to have been completed by CCG on behalf of the Council since 2017, with our partnership delivering a significant legacy of much-needed, energy-efficient homes as well as creating employment opportunities, training and investment across the region.

"The completion of Glebe is an important milestone and we look forward to working with Perth & Kinross Council again in the near future."