“The Trust’s houses have benefited the village without a doubt. A lot of people have been able to stay here, keeping the community and the village going. Without the Trust houses, skilled workers like myself and the Bidwells who local people rely on would have left Ashdon.”
These are the words of Eric Bartlett, one of the original residents of “Tredgetts”, a scheme of 10 affordable houses built by the Trust in 1990 in Ashdon, a small, attractive village near Saffron Walden in Essex. The houses were funded without calling on any public subsidy and a fixed share of the equity was sold to local people.
Eric has lived all his life in Ashdon. But he no longer lives at Tredgetts. For Eric and his family, the scheme fulfilled one of its main purposes: to give local people a helping hand onto the home ownership ladder. Six years after moving in, Eric was able to leave his shared ownership home and buy a house in Ashdon on the open market.
Ruth Haynes has lived in and run the local Post Office for 16 years. She has seen the village change over the years with an influx of newcomers and a migration of local people. Getting to the heart of the matter, she says:
“These homes mean people can stay in the area they grew up in, which has increased or at least maintained trade. The locals tend to support village activities and amenities. Others have a different philosophy. They tend to go to the big supermarket and buy everything including such things as stamps, while the locals will shop at the local store, aware of its importance to the village.”
The success of the Tredgetts scheme paved the way for a further three schemes of affordable housing in the village. In addition to the original 10 houses built in 1990, four properties for rent were built in 1995. A further six for shared ownership and four for rent were built in 2001 and in May 2002, three rented properties will be completed.
As we have seen, the achievement in Ashdon is one that can be measured not only in terms of bricks and mortar but also by the positive impact on the lives of local people. It is also a testament to the strong relationship between the Trust and the local community that we have been invited back to the village again and again.
Ashdon is a landmark village on two other counts. It was the first shared ownership scheme completed by the Trust. (Since then the Trust has completed more than 400 shared ownership homes in 95 villages, without using any public funding, in addition to the 3,000 or so homes provided with grant funding.) It was also the first exception site to be developed in the district of Uttlesford. Helen Frost, Housing Enabler at Uttlesford District Council is enthusiastic about the benefits of affordable village housing:
“Uttlesford District Council is keen to assist villages to continue to thrive. Helping local people to remain in the village where they grew up in turn helps to sustain a community by ensuring there are people of all ages who need to use the village shop, pub, school and other amenities.”
Encouraged by the success of the first phase of development at Ashdon and by the support of Uttlesford District Council, the Trust set up its first regional office in the village in premises owned by the Parish Council. For nine years, the Trust did its bit to boost business in the post office, local shop, not to mention the village pub!
Because of this scheme, Eric Bartlett was able to move up the home ownership ladder. In contrast, some of the residents have lived happily in their homes since they were built twelve years ago.
Jeremy and Christine Curzon previously lived in a small cottage with their first child but realised that to expand their family they would need a bigger property, which they could not afford. The new houses built by the Trust offered the only chance for them to stay in the village – which is what they wanted to do. Christine had lived in the village all her life, as had previous generations of her family. Her husband remembers clearly the day the keys to their home were handed over:
“We had sold our house and were living in rented accommodation. Our second daughter had just been born and I had just changed jobs. I was absolutely elated.”
He also commented on how the houses have helped Ashdon in general:
“Without a doubt the houses have helped sustain the village. From the 14 houses at Tredgetts there are now 8 children who would not have been in the village otherwise. The houses have kept local people local.”
Richard and Ann Westbrook, also original residents, were in tied accommodation before buying a house at Tredgetts. But Richard was made redundant and they needed somewhere else to live. They had never owned a property before and shared ownership was the only affordable option for them.
There’s also John Bidwell who lives at number 10 with his wife, Fiona, and two children. He runs the local garage with his brother. His family have lived in the village for generations but staying in Ashdon was simply impossible because it was unaffordable. The Bidwells had just got married when the houses were being built and they provided the answer to their problem. When we asked what he thought of the scheme, John said: “It has kept younger people in the village which has changed completely since I was a child. All my friends have moved out now, unable to afford property. The Rural Housing Trust has helped keep the village going.” |
