8 Industry News


Peabody announces new director


Plans unveiled for supported housing community at Seaham Garden Village


Jonathan Cooper has been appointed the new director of asset investment and fire remediation at Peabody, the not-for-profit housing association. Jonathan will take the lead on looking


aſter residents’ homes, including planning and delivering improvement works and accelerated fire safety upgrades. He will play an integral role in the senior


leadership team of Peabody’s investment directorate, planning Peabody’s investment in residents’ homes over the next 30 years. His work will support the organisation’s


wider strategy of providing better services and creating homes and places that last. Peabody is spending more than £1m


every day to keep homes safe, warm and well maintained, with a total of £431m spent on homes, including £71m on building safety last year. As a chartered building surveyor and


construction manager, Jonathan brings with him a wealth of experience in a diverse mix of buildings, planning and delivering large-scale programmes of repairs and improvements. Te appointment follows the welcome


announcement in the recent government spending review that social housing providers will be given equal access to the government’s fund for cladding remediation work on tall buildings.


P


lans for 211 new supported housing apartments at the heart of the Seaham Garden Village have been submitted for


approval. Te new homes, designed to help people with


differing levels of care and support needs to live well and independently, have been put forward by affordable housing developer Karbon Homes, as part of its development of 750 affordable homes at the new garden village. Tis much-needed specialist accommodation


will include a 118-unit extra care scheme and two apartment blocks for over 55s. Te extra care scheme is set across four storeys,


laid out around a central private courtyard area, landscaped and designed to a high specification with appropriate facilities. Residents will also benefit from a private communal lounge and a private rooſtop terrace with sea views. Tree of the extra care apartments will be suitable


for bariatric care and 18 will be designed for those living with dementia. Te courtyard will be fully secure for the safety of those 18 households. Te scheme will also include a cafe, hairdressing


and treatment rooms, and multi-use spaces for activities, all of which will be open to residents living in the neighbouring apartment blocks. Tese 211 new homes will be connected to the


garden village’s new ultra-low carbon mine water heating network, an initiative from Durham County


Council, the Mining Remediation Authority and Karbon Homes, being delivered by Vital Energi. Tis will be the fourth phase of homes


Karbon has commenced work on to date, all of which are being delivered by lead contractor Esh Construction. Homes already under construction consist of a


mix of family homes and flats, a number of which will be available for social rent and affordable rent, with the remaining available for affordable routes into home ownership through shared ownership and rent to buy. Te 78-hectare garden village, located on the


A182 going into Seaham town centre received Garden Village status from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government in 2019. 1,500 homes will be built on the site in total,


alongside a commercial centre with a shop, a health and well being hub and a new school. Planning for the school was recently approved by Durham County Council, with construction set to start shortly. Te delivery of Seaham Garden Village is being


supported by funding from Homes England, through Karbon’s Strategic Partnership with the government’s housing delivery agency. Alongside the affordable homes, 750 homes are


being developed by national housebuilders Taylor Wimpey and Miller Homes for outright sale.


Housing Management & Maintenance October/November 2025


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32