We recently celebrated the completion of 18 stunning new family homes at Great Hockham, including 10 affordable homes, in a partnership project with Breckland Council.

Michael Newey, Chief Executive, and Councillor Sarah Suggitt, deputy leader of Breckland Council, officially handed over new house keys to Lara Linge and Bethany Allen, the first two tenants to move onto the development on Wretham Road.

Affordable homes for local people

Eight of the homes will be for affordable rent. Priority will be given to people with a connection to Great Hockham or the adjoining parishes, who are in housing need.

Two of the homes will be available for shared ownership. The remaining eight homes will be sold on the open market.

Michael Newey said:

This kind of mixed-tenure development, with a blend of affordable homes and open-market homes, is increasingly the way forward, both because it makes such schemes financially viable, but also because it encourages a better integration within the community.

We are meeting a genuine need for housing in rural village communities, which will enable local people to find homes in those communities and thus stay close to their support networks and make places such as Great Hockham more sustainable.

The only solution to the pressing housing need we face is to build more new homes.  The delivery of those homes depends on building a coalition of the willing and the able, as has happened here at Great Hockham.

We are very grateful to the housing team at Breckland Council who helped the scheme through the housing needs survey and consultation, and Great Hockham Parish Council for their support.  This scheme was voted for unanimously by the Planning committee, which shows the benefit of working in partnership in this way.

Michael Newey, Chief Executive, Broadland Housing Association

Councillor Sarah Suggitt, Deputy Leader for Breckland Council added:

It’s fantastic to see these affordable family homes, especially new rental homes, being brought onto the market for local people. We have been able to deliver this project by working in partnership with Broadland Housing, ensuring our residents can retain local connections and build a future within the district.  I look forward to seeing the first people moving in and calling Breckland home very soon.”

The 18 new homes were designed by architects Ingleton Wood. Chris Stammers, Architectural Director, said:

We’re proud to continue our collaboration with Broadland Housing Association in designing this sensitive rural housing scheme at Great Hockham.

We’ve tried to echo the charm and strong rural character of the village in a community-focused setting, with the layout of 18 homes grouped in traditional building clusters which are positioned around key landscape features, such as the new attenuation pond and framed views of existing mature trees.

We hope we’ve helped to create a nice place to live that sits well in the countryside and is appropriate for this delightful village location.

Case studies: new tenants

Lara and her son Ted, who is one and a half, moved into their new affordable rented home in April, after spending a year living in her parents’ home in Watton.

“I am very grateful to be offered this home, as it was cramped and difficult living with my parents,” said Lara, who grew up locally.

“The new home is amazing, it is lovely inside, it’s laid out really nicely.  Not only have I now got a safe garden for Ted, but Great Hockham is a wonderful community with lots going on, and it will be a great place for Ted to grow up.

Living next door to Lara is Bethany Allen, who learned that she was to have one of the new homes in Great Hockham just three days after giving birth to her son Riley-Christopher. 

“I was so thrilled when I heard, I did my little happy dance in the middle of Watton, where I was shopping with my mum,” she said.

Bethany now lives in her new home with Riley-Christopher and her daughter Sienna-Rose, who is two.  She was previously living in a cramped flat in Watton.

“Where I was living was really unsuitable, I was struggling to get the pram down the stairs, and it had no outside space for the children,” she said.  “I am so excited to have more space, and a garden for the kids to play in.”