Nick Thomas-Symonds MP has visited Bron Afon’s newest independent living development, Glanwern House in Pontypool.
It is the first intergenerational scheme created by Bron Afon. The ten new homes are a mix of one-bedroom flats, two-bedroom houses and a three-bedroom house. They are all energy efficient and built to EPC A, featuring non-fossil fuel infra-red panels and an air source hot water system.
A new community hub replaces the old communal lounge and is accessible to everyone living in the independent living schemes and the new homes. It is designed to support and encourage intergenerational living, where families and community groups can come together in a great shared space.
Residents spoke with Mr Thomas-Symonds about the benefits of being able to live independently with access to the communal hub for social activities which include access to a hairdresser and beautician. The residents have plans to invite local community groups to use the new hub and talked to the MP about preparations for their Christmas lunch, to bring residents together and help combat loneliness.
The older residents also agreed that the new intergenerational approach to housing means they enjoy sharing the communal spaces with the children living at the scheme, who love playing in the communal gardens.
Bron Afon’s executive director of operations, Catherine Love said: “We are really pleased to hear residents plans for the community hub, and their focus on wellbeing and activities which bring people together.
“We are committed to delivering good-quality, sustainable and affordable housing for our residents to live comfortably and thrive. It was important to us that we created homes and spaces to meet residents’ needs, and it’s fantastic to see them enjoying the facilities which they helped to design.”
Nick Thomas-Symonds MP said: “It was a pleasure to meet the residents at Glanwern House and hear how they are enjoying a variety of active social and wellbeing activities.
“I am pleased to see Bron Afon delivering on its ambitions to provide affordable, energy-efficient homes. Glanwern House is a progressive development providing much-needed affordable housing in our local community.”
The scheme received support from Welsh Government via Social Housing (SHG) and Optimised retrofit Programme (ORP) along with an interest free loan from Innovative Housing Programme (IHP).