A new public private partnership has been established to undertake the biggest city redevelopment project in the north of England - the transformation of the Scotswood area of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
This new joint venture – the Scotswood Urban Regeneration Vehicle - is a partnership between Newcastle City Council and developers Barratt, Keepmoat and Yuill (BKY).
Together they plan to invest £265m in the West End of the city and provide some 1,800 eco-friendly family homes as part of a new neighbourhood with commercial facilities, parks and public open spaces.
A year ago a £19m funding package was announced by strategic partners - the Homes and Communities Agency with a contribution of £9.8m and Bridging NewcastleGateshead, which is providing £9m. This funding is for site remediation work in advance of the house building which began last April.
Initial preparatory work began on site in April 2010. This is expected to take 18 months and will be followed by the first phase of new housing toward the end of 2011. The project is expected to take approximately 15 years to complete.
David Curtis, the Homes and Communities Agency’s executive director for the North East, Yorkshire and The Humber, said: “With views across the river, good transport links and state-of-the-art education facilities, Scotswood has real potential as a place to live.”
Roger Milne
3 March 2010
