Housing development named after Denbigh plum

A new energy-efficient housing development in Denbigh has been named after one the town’s most ancient products.

Denbighshire Housing is building 18 two-bedroom and 4 four-bedroom semi-detached houses for social rent for Denbighshire County Council on land above Tan y Sgubor, Denbigh, the first new council homes to be designed and built for the Denbighshire area in 30 years.

The development will be named Llwyn Eirin to celebrate the registration of the Vale of Clwyd Denbigh Plum as a protected food name with Protected Designation of Origin.

The Denbigh plum is a truly ancient fruit, said to be cultivated by Carmelite monks in the town as early as the 13th Century.  The Vale has a long history of fruit production, boasting well over 200 orchards at its peak.  It was considered appropriate, then, to reflect the Town’s fruity heritage in the new development’s name.  Specimens of the Denbigh Plum tree will be planted in the development, to help the fruit tree thrive once more in its native environment.

The low carbon homes, which will be built and certified to the energy-efficient Passivhaus standard, are part of the Council’s target to provide 170 more council houses by 2022.

The frames and walls for the new houses are being made off site in North Wales by Creating Enterprise, a subsidiary of Cartrefi Conwy, using the Beattie Passive Build system and the main contractor for the development is Brenig Construction.

Cllr Tony Thomas, Denbighshire’s lead member for Housing and Communities, said: “Naming this fantastic new development after one of Denbigh’s oldest products is a way of honouring the town and helps increase biodiversity in the county which is a priority for the Council.

“Work is progressing well on site and, once completed, these homes will help meet the housing needs of residents by providing quality homes that are affordable as well as offering the highest levels of insulation to maximise energy efficiency to minimise carbon emissions to reduce household bills and protect future generations by reducing reliance on fossil fuels.  With this development we are honouring the past, supporting the present and protecting the future residents of Denbighshire.”

The Welsh Government has provided funding through its Innovative Housing Programme to enable the Council and Creating Enterprise to work together on this new way of building homes.

The houses will have solar panels on the roofs and will use pumps to transfer natural heat from under the ground to keep them warm so they won’t need a gas supply.

For more information about the project, click here.