First ground cut on new Forest of Dean housing development
Directors from the UK's largest housebuilders swapped suits for high vis and hard hats to put the first spades in the ground on a new 230 home development in the Forest of Dean. Construction has now officially started at Merlin Gate in Newent, named in celebration of the neighbouring International Centre for Birds of Prey which protects a range of rare and endangered species. Barratt and David Wilson Homes are building a range of two, three, four and five-bedroom homes, along with two new play areas, large areas of public open space, new roads and infrastructure. Over 100 new trees are also being planted on and around the site. The mixture of homes has been designed to appeal to a range of people, helping to create a balanced new community on the edge of Newent. New roads on the development, planned to make the most of the outdoors and the countryside on its doorstep, will also all be named after birds of prey, following Barratt and David Wilson Homes' sponsorship of a merlin at the International Centre for Birds of Prey last year. The development is within walking distance of the town centre with a wide range of shops, restaurants, pubs and cafes. As well as providing new homes for the area, the project will support up to 700 new jobs and will be making significant community contributions including £45,000 towards local libraries in Newent. 28
138 homes will be available on the open market, 79 of which will be developed as David Wilson Homes and 59 as Barratt Homes. The remaining 92 homes - 40% of the total - will be affordable housing, made up from one-bedroom apartments and two, three, four and five-bedroom houses. Strict Covid safety procedures and precautions are in place on the construction site, including social distancing, temperature checks on arrival, hand sanitisation stations, and designated site access and walkways. Supporting with groundwork preparations on the site of the first homes, James Dunne, managing director at Barratt David Wilson Homes South West, said: "It's great to get construction underway here at Merlin Gate, bringing us one step closer to welcoming residents to the development. We're proud to be building much-needed new homes, taking care to follow strict procedures to ensure the construction site is operated safely. "Designed to create a balanced and mixed community, the wide variety of homes we're building will suit a range of people from first time buyers to growing families here in the Forest of Dean."
