Stonewater employees got into the community spirit by joining forces with a primary school and local developer to help clean up the streets.
Employees from the leading UK housing provider and the Vistry Group PLC teamed up with pupils from Newlaithes Primary School’s ‘Environmental Green Team’, as well as parents and teachers, in Horsforth on Wednesday 24 April, 2024.
Armed with litter pickers, they diligently collected rubbish from the areas surrounding the school and beyond, fostering a cleaner and more welcoming environment for all.
The Stonewater and Vistry collaboration extends beyond this community cleanup effort, with the two organisations currently in the process of constructing the Calverley Lane affordable housing development in Horsforth, slated for completion in December 2025.
The new scheme helps to address the local housing crisis by providing 152 much needed homes for customers through social rent, shared ownership and Rent to Buy options.
Linda Horner, Development Manager at Stonewater, said: “We are proud to support Newlaithes Primary School, which last year won the Plastic Free Schools Award and encourages green travel through Living Streets Walk to School Challenge.
“This is the second consecutive year we have teamed up with the school’s children, teachers and parents for a local litter picking initiative, which aligns with Stonewater’s dedication to sustainability and community well-being.
“It was great to continue to build stronger bonds with the school and wider community, especially as some of the families at Newlaithes may be future residents at the Calverley Lane scheme.”
Jeremy Roberts, Operations Manager at Vistry, added: “Collaborative efforts like this underscore our commitment to making a positive impact in the communities where we work and live. We’re excited to breathe new life into the old Leeds College site, creating a thriving community and homes for local families and individuals for many generations to come.”
The homes at Calverley Lane all feature energy saving technologies such as air source heat pumps, solar panels and electric vehicle charging points, and promote sustainable living.
The scheme will also benefit from an ecological area which, once complete, will increase biodiversity within the development. Residents and visitors will be able to take a walk through the area using a footpath, take in the nature and enjoy the associated wellbeing benefits.
Calverley Lane is also the first scheme in the North to champion the inclusion of Hedgehog Highways within gardens. By creating hedgehog sized holes at the bottom of the fences, hedgehogs will be able to roam freely via the ‘highways’ and bring further biodiversity to the local ecosystem.
The development itself is advancing quickly with construction underway on all 152 homes and some residents having already moved in.
The Calverley Lane site is also serving as a canvas for Stonewater’s Blunden Prize public art initiative. Yorkshire-based sculptor Patrick Walls, winner of the Blunden Prize 2023, will be holding community workshops to create a series of carved stone designs which will be incorporated into the benches being made as part of the public art initiative which will further enrich the community space on site.