KEYS TO THE DOOR FOR FIRST COUNCIL HOUSE TENANT FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS

KEYS TO THE DOOR FOR FIRST COUNCIL HOUSE TENANT FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS

SUNDERLAND'S City Council's first housing tenant in almost 20 years has moved into her new home.

Leoni Simpson was handed the keys of the property in Pallion this week.

Leoni, who has been looking for a new home since the start of the pandemic, said: "I've been looking for somewhere for a while so I was over the moon when I was offered this. It's lovely inside. I've hit really lucky."

The semi detached house is the first of 10 empty properties purchased by the City Council so far as part of the Housing Delivery and Investment Plan, to be brought back into use and rented out as affordable homes.

Having previously stood empty for the past year, the house has been completely refurbished to bring it up to the high standard required by the council, ready to rent.

This is Sunderland City Council's first venture back into the rented housing sector since it transferred its housing stock to a registered housing provider in 2001. The council confirmed plans to once again become a registered social landlord late last year, with Cabinet approval in February 2020.

The transformation of empty properties back into family homes is just one element of a £59m programme of affordable housing projects across the city over the next five years.

These include the first council houses to be built in the city for almost 40 years - a development of 17 bungalows including 16 for people with disabilities, in Cork Street, Hendon - which began on site last week.

Councillor Rebecca Atkinson, Cabinet Member for Dynamic City, said: I am thrilled to be able to offer Leoni our first council property in almost 20 years. The property has been improved to a fantastic standard and I really hope she and her family enjoy living in their new home for many years."

Видео KEYS TO THE DOOR FOR FIRST COUNCIL HOUSE TENANT FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS канала SunderlandUK