FAMILIES have started moving in ahead of Christmas at a development to help address the shortage of housing in Tenbury and the Teme Valley.

It is envisaged that up to 30,000 new homes will be needed in south Worcestershire by 2030.

There is a shortage of affordable housing for people from the local area.

A new development in Clifton-on-Teme is offering options to encourage people with limited resources to afford a home.

Work on the scheme in the village began earlier in the year.

This rural development was launched in the summer 2018, with some people now moving in ahead of the festive season.

The Meadows situated off Pound Lane is a mixture of two, three, four and five-bedroom homes.

It is one of a number of new housing developments in and around Tenbury in the past few years.

In support of the local community the developer, Lovell Homes, will be contributing nearly £500,000 towards transport recreation and education.

One of the new residents who has an exciting 2019 in prospect is Laura Martin who is expecting her first child next March.

She had been living in a one-bedroom apartment in Worcester but wanted a chance to move back into the country to be near family.

Like many families she wanted a garden and hopes to get a dog and plans to have a vegetable garden.

She works as maternity nurse.

“I loved this development from the beginning,” said Ms Martin.

“There is such a sense of community in the area.

“The garden is a great size, and I can’t wait to start planning where my vegetable patch will go and getting a dog!”

Located off Pound Lane, The Meadows Clifton-upon-Teme is made up of 35 two, three, four and five-bedroom homes.

The three- and four-bedroom homes start at £320,000 but are eligible for the Government’s Help to Buy Scheme. Two-bedroom homes start at £152,000.

Under the scheme the buyer has to find a five per cent deposit and then borrows 20 per cent from the Government and 75 per cent from a mortgage lender.

The Government element is interest free for the first five years and after that is charged at 1.75 per cent and after the sixth year is set at the rate of inflation plus one per cent.

It is only applicable to repayment mortgages and for new built homes up to £600,000.

The homes must be newly built and occupied by the buyer. It is not available for buy-to-let borrowers or for second homes.

While there is a national shortage of housing, the problem is especially acute in many rural areas where pay rates are lower than average and the price of property can be inflated by people coming into the area from outside.

This makes it difficult for young people born in the area to stay and they have to move away leaving a high proportion of older people. That, in turn, puts pressure on services like health and social care.