A site described as an “eyesore” by Elmsett locals is transformed into a sight for sore eyes with delivery of 18 new homes.

Housing association Eastlight Community Homes (ECH), and its construction partner Rose Builders, are delivering the new homes at Whatfield Road in Elmsett. Nine of the homes will be for social rent, while other nine are for shared ownership.

Local residents and councillors caught a glimpse of their village’s new housing project last month. A bricklaying ceremony in July provided the opportunity to meet the team behind the project, tour the construction site, and get an early glimpse of the future homes.

Those visiting the site learned about the resident-led designs and sustainable building practices ECH says are being implemented in accordance with its development design guide.

The document is meant to ensure that Eastlight’s new homes exceed current building regulations, achieve a high Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating, and prioritise the resident experience, the community, and wider environment.

The site’s transformation has been eagerly anticipated by residents since 2018. Over the past two years, ECH and Rose have collaborated closely with the local authority to design the scheme with the community in mind, including the nearby Shrubland Nurseries, which is located behind the site.

Run by event attendees Bill and Gill Stitt, the project team worked with the husband-and-wife duo to construct a new road around the site to provide better access to the plant nursery.

Gill said: “We’ve been really impressed by the development so far as it progresses and welcomed the opportunity to visit the site. We very much appreciate the help we’ve had from Rose Builders in continuing to access our nursery.”

Eastlight’s head of development delivery, Andrew Allocca, said: “By putting on this event, we were able to highlight and celebrate this small but significant development initiative, supported by our £974,000 grant from Homes England. Our goal here is to address the pressing local housing need within Suffolk, and we chose Elmsett because of its unique potential to deliver a fully affordable scheme that local residents both want and need.