Empty homes £1m renovation project starts

Work has begun on the first phase of a £1m project in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire to convert vacant properties into affordable housing.

Meden Valley Making Places, backed by Mansfield and Bolsover councils, has started on the first four buildings.

It said the scheme would remove eyesores which could attract criminal behaviour and create much needed, energy efficient family homes.

They should be ready by March, with six more houses planned for phase two.

Organisers said one of the properties currently being renovated was a semi-detached in Mansfield's Alcock Avenue which had been the focus of complaints over squatting and arson attacks.

Meden Valley Making Places' chief executive Gary Kirk said: "Empty homes are an eyesore which can attract anti-social behaviour and which, if not tackled, can have a very detrimental impact on neighbourhoods.

"This scheme is targeting houses that have stood empty for a long time and it's wonderful to think that they are now going to become first rate homes for local families."

The properties will be owned and managed by South Yorkshire Housing Association which will also allocate them to tenants.