Housing Minister visits Pennywell site

SCOTTISH Housing Minister, Margaret Burgess MSP, joined Edinburgh’s Housing Convener, Councillor Cammy Day, for a tour of the new 719 house Pennywell construction site in the north of Edinburgh.

Pennywell is one of Scotland’s largest housing-led regeneration projects and is set to provide 356 social and mid-market rent homes, along with 363 new properties for private sale. The extensive development, which is being built by developers Urban Union, is a result of a major investment of £42 million by the City of Edinburgh Council and includes £7.9 million grant funding from the Scottish Government.

Housing Convener, Councillor Cammy Day, said, “Pennywell is a fantastic development and will greatly enhance the area. We are committed to investing in high quality, energy efficient, affordable housing and this is the perfect example of how this can be achieved. The project has already created jobs for local people and I am confident that Pennywell will be an asset, not only to its residents, but as part of the overall regeneration of the north of Edinburgh.”

The construction of the new homes will bring 60 new jobs and apprenticeships to the area, along with 180 work experience placements. Local people have also been heavily involved in shaping plans for the public spaces within the development and the overall master plan for the area.

Housing Minister, Margaret Burgess, said, “These new homes will replace poor quality housing and will give the area a new lease of life. In addition to this the project is delivering community benefits by supporting apprenticeships. It is an honour to launch the Pennywell and Muirhouse Regeneration, which is one of the largest housing led regeneration projects in Scotland, and is a fantastic example of how housing can transform a community.”

After a tour of the construction site they then visited Lindsey Wilson, a tenant of a new Council property in nearby West Pilton Crescent. Like the homes under construction in Pennywell, her flat is a modern, energy efficient home and provided the Minister with an insight into how the completed properties on the development will look. Both West Pilton Crescent and Pennywell are part of the Council’s ambitious 21st Century Homes project, which aims to create high quality social housing by developing brownfield sites across the Capital.

In response to the high demand for affordable homes in Edinburgh, 21st Century Homes will deliver 1,400 new properties for rent and sale throughout the city. 

Edinburgh based-planning and design consultancy Barton Willmore provided planning, architecture and master planning services to Urban Union.