HOUSEBUILDER Springfield has picked up two national awards for its flagship villages in Perth and Dundee.
The UK-wide WhatHouse? Awards, held in London, recognised Springfield’s Bertha Park, on the outskirts of Perth and Dykes of Gray in Dundee. Bertha Park secured the gold title for Best Sustainable Development while Dykes of Gray won silver for Best Public Realm.
Once complete, Bertha Park will comprise 3,000 homes across a range of tenures. Spanning 823 acres, the village has been designed to have everything a community needs to thrive, from cafes and shops through to greenspace, an orchard and additional schools included in the masterplan. It also features the first purpose built high school in Scotland for 20 years, one of 17 Microsoft flagship schools in the world.
Springfield revealed that judges were impressed that Bertha Park homes feature cabling for electric car charging, sustainable heating systems and high levels of insulation. New homes at the village qualify for green mortgages thanks to their EPC rating of B. The wider village boasts an established loch, ancient woodland and a biodiverse suds pond.
Springfield’s Dykes of Gray village in Dundee includes public art, green corridors, places for children to play and a community core complete with local businesses overlooking an amphitheatre.
Innes Smith, Springfield chief executive, said, “We’re understandably delighted to have our Springfield villages recognised at such a respected event. With steep competition from across the UK to win these awards is an enormous achievement particularly from such a high-profile platform.
“Sustainability is understandably a hot topic at present, and it has been a focus for us at Springfield for some time. We endeavour to create sustainable places for people to live, deliver energy efficient homes that are cost effective to run, engage with the communities to enhance our social impact while regularly reviewing our internal practices to mitigate our own impact on the environment. To have had our efforts recognised with two national awards with competition from housebuilders across the UK is an astounding recognition.
“With energy costs at the fore of everyone’s minds and with recent research finding that buyers of a new build home save on average £2,600 pa in energy bills each year at current prices, we couldn’t be prouder delivering such efficient homes and great places that allow our customers to live more sustainably amongst attractive surroundings. These awards are a fantastic endorsement for what our customers benefit directly from.”
