Leeds submits plans for 79 council homes
The affordable properties will be on the former Kingsdale Court flats site in Seacroft following the demolition of the long-vacant housing complex.
Leeds City Council has lodged a planning application for the redevelopment of the Boggart Hill site, which it acquired from private ownership before demolishing the existing flats.
The proposed scheme would deliver a mix of 20 two and three-bedroom houses alongside two apartment buildings providing 59 one and two-bedroom homes, and will be made available for people on the council’s housing register.
Designed by NPS Leeds, the development aims to transform the former site into a sustainable residential neighbourhood, with homes featuring enhanced insulation, ground source heat pumps and photovoltaic solar panels.
The plans also include electric vehicle charging infrastructure, cycle storage, new landscaping, tree planting, and communal outdoor areas for apartment residents. Each house would have its own private garden.
The proposed mix of homes has been shaped around local demand, with a focus on addressing the need for one and two-bedroom properties within the Killingbeck & Seacroft ward.
Subject to planning approval, the scheme will be delivered through Leeds City Council’s Council Housing Growth Programme, which has supported the delivery and acquisition of hundreds of new homes across the city in recent years.
The application follows consultation with residents and stakeholders as part of the council’s plans to replace the former Kingsdale Court complex with new affordable housing.
Built in the 1960s, Kingsdale Court was for many years blighted by poor housing conditions and dwindling occupancy levels as well as issues linked to crime and anti-social behaviour.
The council’s acquisition of the site’s 88 flats – all of which were privately owned – along with its freehold and associated management rights was concluded in May last year. The acquisition process had started in 2020 and involved lengthy negotiations with around 35 individual property owners.
Notable CHGP success stories in recent times include the delivery of a 33-home scheme at Brooklands Avenue in Seacroft and a 55-home development in the Ambertons area of Gipton.
CHGP projects currently under construction include the Middlecross development in Armley, which will provide 65 apartments for affordable rent by people aged over 55 with care and support needs, and a scheme at Hough Top, in Swinnow, near Pudsey, which will deliver 82 homes, also for affordable rent.
Cllr Peter Carlill, Leeds City Council’s executive member for transport and planning, said: “A lot of hard work has already gone into our efforts to regenerate this site, where the privately-owned and now-demolished flats had been allowed to deteriorate and decay.
“It’s great news, therefore, that we have reached the point where we have been able to submit a planning application for its proposed housing scheme.
“If approved, these affordable homes will give their tenants the kind of security and stability that comes with having a safe, warm and welcoming place to live.
“They will also provide further proof of the value of our Council Housing Growth Programme and the positive difference it is making to communities across Leeds.”
