IN Brief:
- Kedward Avenue has delivered 105 affordable homes on a former tower block site, as part of a wider programme bringing more than 540 homes across three Middlesbrough developments.
- All homes were built using timber frame, and 10 were delivered to a net-zero carbon specification with all-electric systems, PV, battery storage, and MVHR.
- The scheme combines modern methods of construction and low-carbon housing delivery within a live affordable housing regeneration programme.
Esh Construction has completed the £18m Kedward Avenue development in Middlesbrough, handing over 105 affordable homes to Thirteen Group on land previously occupied by three Brambles Farm tower blocks demolished in 2018. The project delivers a mix of houses, bungalows, and apartments across a site long earmarked for regeneration.
All homes were built using timber frame, giving the scheme a modern methods of construction backbone as Esh and Thirteen sought to balance build efficiency, repeatability, and energy performance. Esh delivered the site with support from Hall & Partners, BSBA Architects, iD Civils, and Billinghurst George & Partners, alongside funding partners and Middlesbrough Council.
A key feature is a 10-home net-zero carbon element within the wider development. Those homes use an all-electric specification with enhanced insulation, triple glazing, mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, photovoltaic panels, battery storage, and electric vehicle charging, with no gas connection on the plots. The homes were developed as part of Thirteen’s programme to test lower-carbon housing approaches that can be applied at wider scale.
Kedward Avenue is the second of three recent Esh schemes for Thirteen in Middlesbrough. Union Village in Gresham has already delivered 145 homes, while the £56m Hillside Gardens development in Grove Hill remains under construction. Across the three sites, more than 540 affordable homes are being delivered as part of a wider regeneration and housing investment programme in the town.
The scheme also reflects a broader shift in affordable housing delivery, where timber-frame systems, tighter fabric standards, and all-electric services are increasingly being combined on live developments rather than trialled in isolation. More on the project is available from Esh Construction.
