Innovative temporary housing site to open in Cheshunt

Broxbourne Council has signed a three-year lease with hugg homes for 32 new bespoke modular homes available to support local, lower-income families. The Council has added the two-bedroom, pop-up hugg units to its property portfolio to help meet the immediate housing need in the area.

On Tuesday 22 May, representatives from the Council met with hugg homes at the site in Delamare Road, Cheshunt, ahead of the official handover next week.

Stephen Wicks, Chief Executive of hugg homes, a subsidiary of Inland Homes – the lead developer bringing forward the long-term Cheshunt Lakeside masterplan – said:

“We applaud Broxbourne Council for thinking outside the box when it comes to delivering much needed housing in the area. hugg homes offers a high-quality, affordable alternative to hostels and B&Bs often used by local councils in responding to short-term housing demand.

“Rather than having dormant land lying empty for years, it makes much more sense to better use the land to meet the need for high-quality housing locally. This represents a real partnership with the Council, providing a response to immediate housing need alongside longer-term regeneration investment.”

Cabinet Member for Housing and Community Services, Councillor Siobhan Monaghan, attended the visit, saying:

“We are proud to be implementing this innovative and imaginative scheme that will allow us to react quickly to local housing needs. The homes will give those who are in the greatest need of a home somewhere to call their own, while they get themselves in to a position to secure a longer-term permanent residence.”

The high-quality hugg homes are constructed and designed to a consistently high standard and are compliant with building regulations.

Each hugg maximises space, with fitted furniture and appliances chosen to create an efficient living environment. Fitted kitchens with integrated appliances, fully tiled

contemporary shower rooms, electric heating, private lockable storage, and private access and parking are a standard feature. The homes are well insulated which ensures high energy efficiency and good acoustic performance with minimal noise transfer. The homes are situated in landscaped courtyards containing play and leisure spaces.

The site is very accessible; just five minutes’ walk to the closest railway station and a ten-minute walk from Cheshunt’s Old Pond. It will be professionally managed on site by hugg homes to support residents, and the tenancies will be managed by Broxbourne Borough Council.

Parking spaces will be provided, with storage that can be used for bicycle parking too. The site will have a dedicated refuse/recycling store.

This land in Cheshunt is part of a bigger planning application and would otherwise have been underused for a number of years. The Cheshunt Lakeside scheme proposes to redevelop most of Delamare Road to provide housing, business units for start-ups, a local centre situated along Windmill Lane, a two-form entry primary school and landscaped public open space.