First residents move into new homes at Wellesley Court

A local Sutton family is the first to move into the brand-new Otway House development in Wellesley Court, which was formally opened by the Mayor of Sutton this Tuesday morning (8 November 2022).

Otway House, which is located at Wellesley Court in Stonecot Hill, is one of 28 new council homes being completed this year by the London Borough of Sutton in partnership with Buxton. The development has transformed underused land between the existing properties and the main road.

The development was funded by the Greater London Authority (GLA)’s Affordable Homes Programme which aims to deliver high-quality, energy-efficient social housing at affordable prices set at the Mayor of London’s London Affordable Rent levels.

The six, two-bedroom flats in Otway House have a low carbon footprint and are the first that the Council has constructed that will have triple-glazed windows and use energy-efficient air source heat pumps, helping to lower residents’ heating costs and reduce fuel poverty.

Michael Blatchford, who will move into a ground-floor property this week with his wife Rebecca and their two young children, said:

“Moving home for anybody is a big thing, but when you’re moving from a one bedroom to a two and you need the space, it’s exciting and emotional. It's every emotion you can think of. There’s no way of explaining it apart from happiness at the end of the day.

“We are closer to our own parents now and moving to somewhere where we have access to a proper garden of our own is more beneficial to us than anything else really.

“The dogs will love it, the kids will love it, we will love it and it’s just really exciting.” 

Sutton Housing Partnership (SHP), which runs the Council’s housing stock, will manage the properties. They will help provide much-needed new homes for local residents in temporary or overcrowded accommodation.

Otway House, the new development of 6 two-bedroom homes, located at Stonecot Hill

Eight properties at Bisham Close, Carshalton and Wrythe Lane, Sutton, have already been completed this year and new tenants have moved in. Radcliffe Gardens, Carshalton and Assembly Walk, Carshalton, will provide a further 14 new homes giving more families new homes before Christmas.

Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor David Bartolucci, said:

“We are proud to work with Sutton Housing Partnership to manage these new homes, which we have designed and built to a high standard and are environmentally friendly.

“We continue to work hard to identify opportunities to deliver additional social housing and affordable homes in the borough and address the housing need for families in temporary accommodation.

“I would like to thank colleagues at Sutton Housing Partnership and Sutton Council for their efforts in making this a reality.”

Steve Tucker, Managing Director at Sutton Housing Partnership, said:

“We are excited to welcome and help our residents to settle into their new homes.

“Providing affordable housing is essential at a time when many residents are struggling with the cost of living and prices continue to rise.

“We hope that our residents will enjoy living in these attractive, modern homes, and we are looking forward to the completion of other properties which are being built as part of the scheme.”