Esh win £12.8M contract for housing scheme

Karbon Homes appoint firm for 63-home project in Bellingham. 

Plans to build new homes on the former Bellingham Auction Mart site in Northumberland were greenlit in 2022. 

The scheme will deliver: 

• 14 bungalows 
• 14 apartments
• 15 houses (for affordable rent & rent-to-buy tenures)
• 12 care-ready supported housing apartments (available for shared ownership)

Construction will start in the summer. 

The building of the new homes is expected to attract investment into the local area through Section 106 commitments, specifically: 

• £16.5k towards increasing primary healthcare infrastructure capacity 
• £16.5k towards amenity green public spaces and recreational facilities

A grant was secured from the North of Tyne Combined Authority via the Government’s Brownfield Housing Fund which will allow local authorities to focus investment towards brownfield sites in the region.

Maple Oak Living were co-developers of the scheme.

Esh Partners  

• Elliott Associates
• Portland Consulting Engineers
• ERGO Projects
• DRC Consulting
• SINE Consulting

Full scope

This scheme is part of Karbon’s £131.5 million strategic partnership with Homes England to deliver 2,200 affordable homes across the North East and Yorkshire.

The homes in Bellingham will contribute towards the 10% of homes Karbon has pledged to build in rural areas. 

“We look forward to getting work underway in the coming months to deliver new homes that will help address the shortage of affordable housing options in Northumberland, while also bringing a derelict brownfield site back into use,” said Chris Hale, pre-construction director at Esh Construction. 

“We understand the importance of rural communities remaining both affordable and sustainable for current and future generations while finding the balance in the design to ensure new homes blend into countryside living.”

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