A MULTI-million pound development of 120 new homes is officially underway for Great Wakering.

Sanctuary Homes, the development arm of Sanctuary Housing Association, has appointed Higgins to design and build 120 new homes off Barrow Hall Road in Great Wakering.

The £24.5 million contract will consist of 110 houses and a range of apartments of different sizes.

The homes will include a portion of affordable housing and range from one to four-bedrooms.

The design of the buildings will see dark roofs with brick.

As part of the development, landscaping designs will be included which will provide areas of “character”.

These include public squares and a boulevard along the primary highway.

Hedgerows, which are important for wildlife species, will also be enhanced with new planting to provide ‘ecological corridors’ within the site and beyond.

Open swales, ponds and basins form part of the sustainable drainage system.

A large wet feature within the public open space will be provided which will serve as an attenuation pond and encourage diverse wildlife.

A pumping station, which will be largely underground and hidden from view, will also be built.

The project will also include the creation of play areas and public open space, along with a new pedestrian and cycle way linking Barrow Hall Road with Southend Road.

Permission was granted in October, and Higgins were appointed to lead the project this week.

The homes are expected to be completed by Autumn 2021.

Steve Leakey, Managing Director of Higgins said, “We are really pleased to be appointed by Sanctuary Homes to provide brand new homes at Barrow Hall Road.

“We have a wealth of experience providing high quality housing and creating mixed-tenure developments that are inspiring, safe and enhance the community.

“We look forward to starting on site in the coming months.”

Neil Hookway, Rochford councillor for the Foulness and the Wakerings ward, said the full impact of the homes may not be seen until people move in.

He said: “We need a mix of properties, in this development there is, so hopefully that will prove to be ok.

“There were concerns about the impact on traffic flows, and the main access being into a country road.

“You’ve potentially got more traffic flow onto a road that’s quite narrow.

“There were concerns about the impact that might have.

“Those things have been concerns through the whole process and I imagine they will still be concerns of people through the whole building process until it’s fully built.

“Then we will see the full impact when the people move in.”