Government is developing a construction industry which will deliver zero carbon homes, an industry worth £40 billion a year and able to create 80,000 new jobs.
The government is creating the industry that will deliver Carbon Free Homes, and an industry that will create jobs and career opportunities for a new workforce.
Yorkshire, as part of the ‘Construction Corridor’, is getting a £30 million boost from government going to top construction firms ilke Homes, Housing Minister Esther McVey has recently announced. The money is part of government’s drive to make the North of England the world-leader in the creation of modern, green homes.
Homes England will provide the funding to turbo-charge production at their factory in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. By next year, 2,000 modular homes will roll off ilke Homes’ production line, rising to 5,000 homes a year within the next 5 years – making ilke Homes a top 10 UK housebuilder.
Because ilke Homes’ factory manufactures homes using precision engineering, they are more energy efficient than traditional homes, halving energy costs compared to the average UK property – creating housing that’s good for the planet and good for the pocket. A factory environment also allows ilke Homes to ensure a high-level of quality and consistency is guaranteed for investors, developers and residents.
The result is homes that outperform those built traditionally, with ilke’s homes proven to be 100% more energy efficient than the average UK home. The investment from government housing agency Homes England will help drive these improvements further by allowing ilke Homes to scale up its operation.
According to the Housing Minister, the North of England has the potential to lead the world in the modern methods of construction that are transforming home building. When matured, the industry could be worth £40 billion a year and provide up to 80,000 jobs.
This £30 million investment in ilke Homes is a significant step forwards in the development of the ‘Construction Corridor’ – a new hub in the North that is front and centre of building the homes people need. Importantly, homes built using modern methods can be of higher quality, greener and built to last. The goal of the government is to create a centre of excellence in the north for Modern Methods of Construction to help speed-up house building to meet its target of 300,000 new homes being delivered each year by the mid-2020s.
Modern Methods of Construction are a combination of offsite manufacturing and onsite techniques that provide alternatives to traditional house building, allowing homes to be built quickly, be more energy efficient and better designed. It can deliver high-quality housing at pace. By manufacturing offsite, the precision-engineered homes produced by ilke Homes are delivered twice as fast as traditional methods of construction – while creating 90% less waste.
Dave Sheridan, Executive Chairman at ilke Homes, said that the funding would bring in further private capital, creating hundreds more skilled jobs allowing us to build more homes more quickly for first-time buyers. The £30 million is being allocated from the Home Building Fund, a £4.5 billion fund delivered by government housing agency Homes England.
Image: Leeds, UK / Benjamin Elliott
