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Christmas & New Year show house opening |
22nd December 2008 |
The show houses at The Dairy, Old Catton and Gardeners Green in Hingham are now closed until 11am on Friday 2nd January 2009. However, should you wish to discuss a potential purchase or arrange a viewing appointment over the Christmas/New Year period, please contact either: Abel Homes on: 07836 338100 or TOPS on: 07881 907692 Abel Homes would like to to wish all their customers, past, present and future, a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year |
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Old Catton Public Artwork Commissioned |
2nd December 2008 |
Abel Homes Ltd has commissioned a Norfolk artist to create a standing stone to be installed on its latest site – as part of a new commitment to commission and provide a piece of public art on every site where it builds new homes. We have commissioned Aylsham stone carver Teucer Wilson to carve the stone for our site in Old Catton, which will mark the fact that it is the site of a former dairy. The stone will be erected on a landscaped area of the site, within view of all eight houses which are currently being built on the site, which is just off St Faith’s Lane. The stone – a 5 foot tall piece of York stone, will feature the words ‘The Dairy’ on one side, along with a relief carving based on an old butter mould design, and the quote ‘He who distributes the milk of human kindness cannot help but spill a little on himself’ carved on the other side. These words come from J M Barrie who is best known for writing Peter Pan. This commission is the second to be made by us under our public artwork pledge: the first, a bronze sculpture based on casts of gardening gloves by South Walsham artist Alison Atkins, will be unveiled at our site in Hingham in the New Year. Maggie Abel, Director at Abel Homes, said, “When we bought the site in Old Catton with the old farm buildings in situ, it seemed a shame that the memory of the old dairy would be lost with the construction of the eight new homes. "We believe that too many new houses are designed and built without any thought being given to creating new communities - that's why we have decided to commission Norfolk artists to make pieces of public art to act as a focal point for these communities." Aylsham stone carver and artist Teucer Wilson trained as a stonemason and architectural carver at Weymouth College in Dorset, before working for five years at the Richard Kindersley Studio in London. He moved to Norfolk to set up his own workshop in June 2000. He produces a wide range of work including carving, signage, memorials, lettering and more sculptural outdoor pieces. The Dairy is a small close of eight four- and five-bedroom detached family homes with traditional exteriors and contemporary interiors. We are bucking the housing market with this site, where five of the eight homes have already been sold. Further details can be found on our website. |
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Revised plans for our Drayton site takes into account local traffic concerns |
11th September 2008 |
Our flagship project of 22 highly sustainable homes in Drayton near Norwich is set to become a little step greener – thanks to a revised planning application. Planning permission to build 22 homes in 20 acres of woodland was granted by Broadland Council in February, but a new application has been submitted to the planners to seek permission to relocate the entrance to the site – to reduce the impact of traffic on a local school and community. The original entrance off Badgers Brook Road would have entailed cars driving past Drayton Community Infant School. Now, due to improvements in Highway Standards, we are proposing a new entrance directly off School Road – which means many residents will be able to access their homes without driving past the school. “Increased traffic in Badgers Brook Road was one of the main concerns amongst local residents when we consulted with them before we submitted the original planning application,” explains our Land and Development Manager, Jamie Bird. “We always try to take into account people’s comments, but unfortunately the old Highway Standards meant we had no alternative. “When the Standards changed, we started looking into whether we could amend the plans to meet local concerns. Although the level of traffic will be relatively light, the approval of this application would see the removal of traffic from a majority of School Road and eliminate it completely from Badgers Brook Road, which has obvious benefits to the local community. “The alternative access position will not only help the environment by reducing traffic movements, but will also mitigate the impact on trees by using the existing access road to the new homes. Fewer trees will be lost with this proposal. “In all other respects our proposal remains the same as the application approved by Broadland District Council’s planning committee last year, the same high standards of design and sustainability will apply” The revised plans were submitted on 12th September, and if approved, we hope to start construction on the site in the new year. |
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Monica, Tracey, Lena and Maggie have successfully completed the Moonwalk!!! |
20th May 2008 |
On 17th May 2008, Monica, Tracey, Lena and Maggie took part in the Playtex Moonwalk in London and walked 26.2 miles in their pink decorated bras. It took them in total 7½ hours to pound the pavements of London but amazingly they felt great the following day. There were no blisters, sore feet or legs or general fatigue –all the training in the Norfolk countryside obviously paid off. They would all like to say a big thank you to everyone who has sponsored them as they have raised nearly £7,000 so far for Breast Cancer Research, which is a great result! |
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Plans for 51 homes hatched |
4th April 2008 |
On 28th March 2008 ‘Lynn News’ reported the following story: Plans for 51 new homes hatched Plans for 51 new homes to go on the site of the former Bernard Matthews turkey hatchery in Castle Acre Road, Swaffham, have been submitted to Breckland Council. Little Cressingham-based Abel Homes has bought the 3.65-acre site and wants to demolish a redundant warehouse and empty bungalow on it and build a mix of flats and houses there. In total, there would be three five-bedroomed houses, ten four-bedroomed houses, 17 three-bedroomed homes, 14 two-bedroomed homes, three two-bedroomed flats and four one-bedroomed flats, plus about 75 parking spaces or garages. All the flats and eight of the two-bedroomed houses – representing about 30 per cent of the total site – would be affordable homes managed by a registered social landlord or housing association. Prices have not been set for any of the properties at present. There would be one main access onto the site from Castle Acre Road and the existing pond would act as a soakaway and overflow point. Breckland Council would be asked to adopt the play area and open space and Abel’s would provide a separate sum towards on-going maintenance there, he said. As part of energy-saving measures, 26 of the homes would have solar panels fitted and all the properties would have high insulation standards, Mr Bird added. To view the proposed site layout go to Future Developments under the Developments menu above. |
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Monica, Tracey, Maggie and Lena get ready for Moonwalk |
4th April 2008 |
On Saturday 17th May 2008 Monica, Tracey, Maggie and Lena, who all work at our office in Little Cressingham, will be taking part in the Walk the Walk Moonwalk in London, walking 26.2 miles through the streets of London in their pink bras. They have been training for several weeks now and can be seen most Saturday mornings around the Norfolk countryside, typically walking 12 miles. They hope to raise lots of money for Breast Cancer Research so if you wish to sponsor them please send your sponsorship cheque made payable to Walk the Walk Worldwide to our office or log on to www.justgiving.com/thejaywalkers. We are grateful to the individuals/companies listed below who have generously sponsored those taking part in the Moonwalk. Abel Moving Services Ltd Alan Cole |
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Terence Conran designs 'eco hamlet' in Norwich |
25th February 2008 |
You may have seen this article in the Sunday Times on 24th February, about Abel Homes' innovative 'eco hamlet' in Drayton, Norwich, which we are building, working with Sir Terence Conran's architecture studio Conran & Partners. The article focuses on Sir Terence's role in developing the concept of the 22-home 'eco-hamlet', which we are building in natural clearings in preserved woodland. |
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Go-ahead given for eco-friendly homes in Drayton |
18th February 2008 |
Planning permission was granted on 13th February for the homes in Drayton, on the site of the former Littlewood House, off School Lane. The plans are to provide 23 eco-friendly homes, with high levels of insulation, solar panels, rain water harvesting and water butts amongst the eco features. Five of the homes will be affordable. In addition to the homes, the plans include creating ten acres of Community Woodland, which will be handed over to a Woodland Trust by Abel Homes as an area for walks and public artwork for local people to enjoy. The Trust will manage the woodland with contributions from Abel Homes and other organisations. We will also be providing bat boxes, bird nesting opportunities, rockeries and other places for reptiles and amphibians to inhabit, as well as invertebrate homes such as ladybird shelters. We are very excited about the project in Drayton, the houses themselves are truly ground-breaking, and they will all achieve an Eco-Homes rating of ‘Excellent’. The provision of such a big area of community woodland will create and safeguard an excellent amenity for the wider community in Drayton. We have worked very hard to create a set of plans which balance the need for new homes against environmental and community needs. It’s because we are a locally-based company that we can work with our local communities to ensure that we can do this. We have worked with London-based architects Conran & Partners on designing the homes, which will consist of 17 three-, four- and five-bedroom homes for sale, and five two- and three-bedroom affordable homes. |
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Old Catton homes granted detailed design consent |
18th February 2008 |
Detailed design consent has been given for the eight detached houses at The Old Dairy in Old Catton, where work is about to start. The four- and five-bedroom homes, off St Faith’s Lane, have been designed by Norwich-based architects Ingleton Wood, and should take around a year to build. |
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Artists wanted! |
16th November 2007 |
Abel Homes are seeking to build a register of local artists working in three dimensons, to create installan at each of their new developments. For full information, see the press article from earlier this month below. |
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Our new site diary is launched |
15th November 2007 |
Abel Homes today announced the launch of our new site diary facility, where we will keep prospective home buyers and local residents informed of developments at each of our new sites. The first site to have a diary is at Hingham. See the link below for more details. |
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Planning permission granted for Hingham development |
23rd August 2007 |
Abel Homes has pledged to continue a dialogue with householders in Hingham following planning permission being granted for it to build 31 new homes in the town. Abel Homes, based at Little Cressingham, was granted permission to build the new houses - including eight affordable homes - off Bell Meadow. The company has undertaken widespread consultation with neighbours of the site during the planning application process, and now it says that it plans to continue this dialogue as part of its newly-launched Good Neighbour Charter - the first site on which it will be implemented. The company launched the Charter, which sets out promises about how it will try to minimise the impact of construction on surrounding homes and businesses, last month. It sets out a number of pledges to ensure that the builder will be considerate, clean, respectful, safe and environmentally aware as it builds the new homes. A copy will be delivered to every neighbouring property of the site, and is available on site and online to anyone else who requests it. “Towns like Hingham have a real need for new homes, and so we are pleased that South Norfolk District Council has granted planning permission for us to build there,” said Abel Homes Chairman Tony Abel. “However, we do recognise that any new construction will inevitably cause some concerns for those living nearby. That is why I personally have called on every property neighbouring the site during the planning consultation period - and why we are pledging to continue talking to local residents as construction starts. “As a locally-based and family-owned company, we believe it’s important to be a good neighbour and to recognise how we affect the community in which we operate. We can’t stop the disruption that a construction site causes totally, but our Good Neighbour Charter is designed to keep any inconvenience to a minimum.” Groundwork on the site will start in the next few weeks, with construction scheduled to last for around 18 months. |
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Lena joins Abels Management Team |
18th July 2007 |
Lena Frederiksen today starts her new role with Abel Homes as Sales & Marketing Manager. She joined the company in June 2004 as a Secretary / Administrator, quickly moving on to the role of Marketing & Sales Coordinator. Her enthusiasm, dedication and 'ability to make things happen' has now been rewarded with this latest promotion. Managing Director, Tony Abel, said that he was delighted to have Lena in the Management Team, especially with the planned growth of the company. 'Lena has the vision and the energy that we need in this role' he added. |
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A familiar face is welcomed back |
18th July 2007 |
Jamie Bird has re-joined the company as Land and Development Manager after a short period of absence to address a personal issue. Jamie's talent and experience is well known in the Land Acquisition and Planning sectors of the industry. MD, Tony Abel, said 'I am really very pleased to have Jamie back to drive forward land acquisition and planning issues at such an important time'. |
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Abel Homes - building a better future |
18th July 2007 |
Abel Homes, formerly Abel Developments, has today announced ambititious plans to more than treble in size over the next four years, together with a number of new initiatives and a new corporate identity to help us reach that goal. The initiatives include amongst others:
Managing Director Tony Abel said, 'We are determined to maintain the family run ethos, with the integrity and flexibility that we enjoy today. In the main, landowners feel very comfortable selling to us, as we have a reputation for doing what we say.' 'We need to be accepted as a good, reliable house builder that does the right thing in the community,' said Mr Abel.� 'It will help us buy land, help us obtain planning permissions, and ultimately help us to sell our houses.' For more details of the new inniatives and our new corporate identity, please download a copy of the full press release in either PDF format or as a Microsoft® Word™ document. |
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Larks Meadow, Dereham - selling fast |
5th July 2007 |
Over half of the properties at Larks Meadow Dereham are now sold or reserved. Please register your interest now to avoid disappointment! |
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Briar Gardens, Attleborough |
30th June 2007 |
The first phase of 4 homes have now been released at Briar Gardens, Attleborough. These are bound to be much sought after, so do not delay in requesting a brochure. |
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Please be aware that whilst every care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this information on this web-site,
it cannot be guaranteed to be so. The contents are intended as a preliminary
guide only and shall not form part of any contract, warranty or representation.
Furthermore the vendors reserve the right to alter specification and/or
design and to vary the price quoted without notice.
Our dedication
to creating high quality, individual houses may mean that some improvements
or changes to floor plans, elevations and/or materials used are inevitable
during the progress of our developments.