Builder Bellway ramps up presence north of the Border

Housebuilder Bellway has acquired more than 55 acres of land with a development value of some £120 million as part of its continued expansion across the east of Scotland.

Bellway is planning more homes at its Heartlands site in West Lothian. Picture: Contributed

The firm said the sites – at Abbey Lane in Edinburgh city centre, Broxburn and Heartlands in West Lothian and Broxden in Perth – mark a “significant investment” for its regional operation, with further deals in the pipeline.

Major housebuilders have been building up their landbanks amid strong latent demand for new homes and a backdrop of low borrowing costs. However, they have also had to tackle slow and complex planning processes and skills shortages in certain areas.

Bellway said its new developments would also generate “significant community benefits”. In the past three months, the firm has committed to contributing £3.1m towards education and more than £1.3m towards affordable housing contributions and community facilities.

Following the latest land deals, it plans to build 160 homes on its Charlotte’s Gate site located on Glasgow Road, Perth, with a sales launch and homes available for reservation on 24 September from its Calais Muir Gate show complex in Dunfermline.

At Heartlands, West Lothian, the group is aiming to build a further 137 homes on an 11-acre site following the success of the first phase of 88 homes there. Reservations will begin for the new homes later this month from the existing Heartlands sales centre.

The company is also launching Chandler’s Way, a development of 176 homes, on the former Hall’s factory site in Broxburn in September. The first homes are expected to be ready for occupation next April.

Meanwhile, construction work is due to start early next year on Imperial Heights, a development of 139 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments in Abbey Lane in Edinburgh, just a stone’s throw from Holyrood Palace.

Willie McDermott, land director at Bellway, said: “We are delighted to announce these four exciting new developments which will create a total of over 600 much needed new homes in the east of Scotland whilst strengthening Bellway’s presence within the east of Scotland market place.

“These four new developments will also generate significant community benefits.”

Click here to ‘Like’ The Scotsman Business on Facebook