Housebuilder Tawd Valley Developments has secured planning consent to build 50 new homes in a £8.3m development. Tony McDonough reports

Tawd Valley Developments (TVD) will build 50 new homes in an £8.3m development that will comprise a mix of houses and apartments in Skelmersdale.

TVD has secured planning consent for the scheme in the Ashurst and Birch Green neighbourhood. It will be the company’s largest scheme to date and will include 30 two storey houses, eight bungalows and 12 apartments.

The new homes are being built for West Lancashire Council and all are expected to be available on an affordable rent basis. TVD is wholly-owned by the authority and is tasked with helping deliver new homes for local residents.

“There aren’t too many developers building bungalows at the moment and there is a lot of pent-up demand,” said managing director Mark Kitts. “We are really pleased to be delivering these to meet the needs of the borough.”

The scheme is designed by Liverpool-based John McCall Architects advised by ARP Associates as engineers. Mr Kitts added: “We’re delighted with the consent as it helps sustain our early momentum.

“We expect to finish our neighbouring scheme at Fairstead in November, at Brierfield either side of Christmas and will be on site at Fairlie early in the new year, so it’s all systems go. The development will be of the same quality as our recently completed Eskbank scheme, but with a wider range of housing types.”

TVD currently has four schemes under way in the borough, with one already completed, which will deliver 81 new council homes. Additional schemes are at the planning stage in Skelmersdale and further afield.

Cllr Jenny Wilkie, portfolio holder for Housing and Landlord Services, said the new development will boost the on-going housing-led regeneration in Skelmersdale. She added: “Providing quality new homes for our residents is a key focus for us as a council and I’m delighted with this consent.”