“How do you lift a roof onto a house?” was one of the many questions posed by Tickenham Primary School pupils when they visited Newland Homes’ Ryves Vale development recently.
As part of their school project on how new homes are built primary school pupils from the Reception and Year 1 class donned their hardhats as they took a tour of Ryves Vale in Tickenham. Here, construction is underway on 32 zero carbon homes. This is the first of their kind to be built at such scale.
Energy powers air source heat pumps
The children took a particular interest in the renewable technologies. They asked many questions about the solar panels on the roofs of the houses, which turn sunlight into energy. All the homes at Ryves Vale have been orientated to maximise solar gain. The energy generated by the solar panels is used for electricity and to power the home’s air source heat pump. This provides heating and hot water in place of a traditional gas boiler.
Primary school pupils keen to see ‘hedgehog highways’
The primary school pupils also took a tour of the show home garden. They were particularly keen to see the ‘hedgehog highways’ for themselves. These are small holes in the base of fences that create ‘highways’ to enable hedgehogs to roam freely. The holes allow hedgehogs to traverse over 380ms of the site without hinderance. Impenetrable fences impact on their health by preventing them from foraging for food.
Alison Bowen, Sales Manager for Newland Homes, comments: “It was great fun to welcome the children onto site and to answer their questions about construction. They asked some insightful questions and loved seeing the heavy machinery in action.”
Polly Youngs, class teacher at Tickenham Primary School, comments: “The children had a great morning at the building site. They particularly enjoyed seeing all the different machines that were busy working on building the homes. They also liked exploring the garden and looking at the bug hotels. Thank you for having us, Newland Homes.”
Energy Performance Certificates with an ‘A’ rating
Three, four and five bedroom detached homes are available at Ryves Vale. All properties achieve an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating in excess of 100. This places them firmly in the top energy performance band of A, which is achieved by only 2% of houses in the UK. The homes are highly energy efficient with reduced running costs, whilst also being good for the environment through lower carbon emissions.
A large wildflower meadow with natural children’s play equipment is being created as part of Ryves Vale. A special anniversary woodland is also being created. The planting of fast-growing native trees will store carbon, improve air quality, provide a haven for wildlife and a place for people to enjoy and connect with nature.
Tickenham Church of England Primary School currently has spaces available for new pupils. They welcome parents and families to come and look around. Call the office on 01275 853919 or email office@tickenhamprimaryschool.org.uk to book a tour.
Newland Homes has three developments underway in the West, providing over 100 zero carbon new homes. The company was the first traditional housebuilder in the UK to sign the United Nations Climate Neutral Now Pledge, which is a commitment to measure greenhouse gas emissions, implements means to reduce them, to consider offsetting and to report progress annually. It is on course to achieve at least a 50% reduction in its company carbon footprint by the end of 2024, and furthermore, it has been recognised by Carbon Neutral Britain as a carbon neutral business.
Prices start from £595,000 at Ryves Vale in Tickenham and tailor-made viewings are available daily between 11am to 5pm, seven days a week. Call 01275 338023 to book a tailor-made tour. For further information click here.
Newland Homes Limited is a property developer registered in England and Wales number 2582221.
Registered office: Brighouse Court, Barnett Way, Barnwood, Gloucester, GL4 3RT.
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