Building Briefs – July 8th

• AS Homes submits early proposal for nearly 140 new Glasgow homes

The three-hectare site at 252 Tollcross Road in Parkhead has been unused since 2010, according to documents lodged with Glasgow City Council.

The housebuilder has proposed a development comprising around 138 dwelling houses, associated access and landscaping.

According to the early proposal submitted to the council, the site is “adjacent to a number of residential developments currently under consultation and through recent public consultation we are aware that the area is in need of further housing stock”.

The full planning application will likely propose low-rise, two-storey housing throughout the site.

• Revised proposals for 27 social homes in Dundee submited to planning officials

Revised proposals to build 27 homes for social rent in the Whitfield area of Dundee have been submitted to planning officials by Merchant Homes and Home Group Scotland.

The plans for 27 homes on land east of Haddington Crescent were previously approved by councillors in November.

A planning application has now been resubmitted with minor changes, the Evening Telegraph reports.

The development will form part of the council’s regeneration efforts in Whitfield.

• Barratt North Scotland site managers named best in the country for quality

Six site managers from Barratt North Scotland have won a top national award for the quality of the homes they are building.

Brendan Saba (Huntingtower, Perth), Barry Cooper (Osprey Heights, Inverurie), Marc Duncan (Countesswells, Aberdeen), Jeff Calder (Ness Castle, Inverness), John Dawson (Mains of Culduthel, Inverness) and Alan Wharton (Culloden West, Inverness) have been recognised by the National House Building Council (NHBC) in their annual Pride in the Job Quality awards.

Known as the “Oscars of the housebuilding industry”, the Pride in the Job Quality awards recognise the best run building sites in the country and are the highest accolade a site manager can achieve.

This year in total 84 site managers at Barratt won a Pride in the Job Quality award which is more than every other housebuilder. This is now the 15th year in a row that Barratt has won more of these prestigious awards than any other housebuilder.

In addition to spot checks from the NHBC, site managers are judged on their consistency, attention to detail, leadership, technical expertise and health and safety, with just 450 individual winners being chosen from over 16,000 entrants.

David Palmer, managing director from Barratt North Scotland, said: “These awards recognise only the very best new homes and well run sites. They are something that customers can look out for as a quality mark knowing their home has been built to the highest standard possible. To win more of these awards than any other housebuilder for 15 years in a row is a real point of difference which shows how committed we are to building high quality homes for our customers.”

This year also marks the tenth year Barratt has been awarded five stars by the Home Builders Federation (HBF) for customer satisfaction. For Barratt to be awarded five stars means that more than 90 per cent of its customers would be happy to recommend their home to a friend.

• Over 60,000 complaints lodged over pests in council houses

A total of 21,365 complaints were lodged with councils last year, up from 17,567 in 2017 but below the 2016 figure of 22,236.

The figures were released under Freedom of Information legislation to the Scottish Liberal Democrats, who have called on the Scottish Government to renew its efforts to improve poor quality council housing.

Caron Lindsay, housing spokesperson for the Scottish Lib Dems, said: “Although in some cases the presence of pests is unavoidable, the scale on which local authority tenants are reporting bed bugs, wasps, mice and other animals in their houses is staggering.

“It is completely unacceptable to house people in buildings that have cockroaches or other unhygienic infestations. Imagine how awful it must be to feel that you can’t let your baby play on the floor in case they pick up mouse droppings or some other nasty.

“Every person deserves a clean and comfortable home. Poor quality housing can take a huge toll on people’s mental and physical health.”

Ms Lindsay blamed the extent of the issue on years of cuts to local authority budgets.

She added: “The Scottish Government should use these statistics as yet another reason to get on with building more social housing and ensuring councils have the resources to fix poor housing before it falls into disrepair.”

• Revised plans for Aberdeenshire sports centre submitted

Scaled-back plans for the expansion of a sports centre in the Aberdeenshire town of Inverurie have been submitted to planners.

The development of the new Garioch Sports Centre had originally included tennis courts, a multi-use sports pitch and an allweather football pitch for Inverurie Loco Works FC, and an expanded gym.

However, after plans for Aberdeenshire Council to buy the Locos’ existing ground at Harlaw Park fell through, the funding for the 3G pitch is no longer available.

The Garioch Sports Trust has also said it has been unable to secure enough grant funding to extend the building, but insists its plans will still transform the area.

A report, which has been submitted in support of the latest application, which would cost between £3 million and £5m states: “The plans have gone through a number of iterations and while some of the previous elements have now been removed, the focus on the tennis facility and improved sports centre and health facilities remains an exciting development for Inverurie.”

The sports centre has received the backing of the Judy Murray Foundation.

In addition to the sporting amenities which will be included in the expanded building, there will be an early learning centre for youngsters.

Due to its reduced size, it is no longer being classed as a major development, so a decision will most probably be taken by planning officers.

• Aberdeen hotel partners with nursing home provider for city care home plan

A joint application from the Marcliffe Hotel & Spa and Meallmore was lodged with Aberdeen City Council proposing a 65-bed care home on unused land adjacent to the International School and five-star establishment on North Deeside Road.

If successful Meallmore aims to open the care home in autumn 2021.

The development, which would be secluded by trees, would have no impact upon the hotel – which will continue to operate as normal.

If successful, the proposed development will provide a range of accommodation and facilities for older people, including a private cinema, hair and beauty salon, cafe, lounges and dining areas.

The applicants say the scheme is “ideally suited” to the area and will benefit the community by providing job opportunities.

The design team was led by architectural and planning practice Halliday Fraser Munro.