Orchard Place in Stonehouse was originally home to an old factory which has since been demolished and for the past few years, the site has been left vacant. It was a partnered development with Two Rivers Housing to supply the locals with new affordable housing.

The Orchard Place development enabled the transformation of a negative piece of land into an attractive place for prospectus tenants to live.

The development consists of:

• 11 x one-bedroom flats split between 2 blocks
• A communal green space

In between the 2 blocks of flats a communal space has been planted in ground covering shrubs and trees. Not only will this soften the impact of the buildings but it is more ecological than seeding grass. The different types of shrubs and trees were carefully selected to create a micro-environment for the wildlife.

Both blocks were designed to be wheelchair accessible and comply with the DDA and HCA requirements. As well as this they needed to sensitively respond to the local vernacular. This was accomplished through the use of red facing bricks, cladding and grey concrete roof tiles.

Work commenced on site in Spring 2014 was completed on time in February 2015.

Orchard Place was nominated in the LABC Award’s 2015 and received a finalist spot in Best Social or Affordable New Housing Development.