Salford expands affordable housing portfolio

The city council has agreed to transfer 46 homes to its wholly owned company Dérive Group, loaning the organisation £5.7m to fund the acquisition.

Salford City Council is leading the delivery of the homes, which are still under construction on the former Irwell Valley High School site off Blandford Road. The 25 apartments and 21 houses were designed by PRP Architects.

Main contractor Seddon Construction will complete the homes in phases between November and March 2024.

Of the 46 homes, 41 will be managed by Dérive RP and made available through Salford Home Search at either social or affordable rent. The other five will be made available through the Local Authority Housing Fund members to help those in urgent housing need, as identified by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities.

Dérive will have 40 years to pay back the £5.7m loan from the city council. That loan comes with 4% annual interest attached to it. Dérive is anticipated to use rental income from the homes to pay back the loan.

This is the second transfer of homes to Dérive from Salford City Council. The first was batch contained 104 homes. The last 12 of this batch will be handed over by 30 November.

“Salford City Council is delivering the largest affordable housing programme that the city has seen for 60 years, providing a range of quality and sustainable homes to meet local needs,” said deputy city mayor Cllr Tracy Kelly, lead member for housing, property and regeneration.

Kelly noted the sustainability credentials of the homes. “The 25 apartments and 21 houses, which are being built on a former school site, will meet Passivhaus standards, meaning they’ll be highly energy efficient,” she said. “Not only will this help us move towards our target of carbon neutrality by 2038, but importantly it means residents will benefit from lower energy bills and warmer homes.

“The city is in urgent need of more affordable housing and the council wholly owned Dérive was set up to deliver our vision to invest in new homes.”

Cllr John Merry, chair of the Dérive board, welcomed the city council’s decision to grow the number of Dérive’s assets.

“The transfer of these properties is another great step in our journey to provide truly affordable housing for people and families in Salford,” Merry said. “The business arms of Dérive are steadily building a portfolio of homes as we expand operations.”

Identity Consult is Salford City Council’s employers agent for the Irwell Valley site.

Dérive was formed in 2019. The council-owned company’s subsidiary, Dérive RP, achieved resident provider status earlier this year.