East Lothian Council representatives were pleased to welcome new Housing Minister, Paul McLennan MSP, who toured the latest development of new council houses at the Letham Mains site, Haddington.

The development of 37 new homes includes three wheelchair-accessible bungalows, two amenity houses for older people and a mix of semi-detached homes and flats. They are being built by Taylor Wimpey East Scotland on behalf of the council.

New Housing Minister visits council houses under construction at Letham Mains, Haddington

Housing Minister Paul McLennan visits Letham Mains

Cabinet Spokesperson for Housing and Property Maintenance, Councillor Andy Forrest, said: “I was pleased to welcome the Housing Minister to this latest phase of the wider development at Letham Mains, which is providing 800 much-needed new homes for this area including affordable housing and, of course, the new Letham Mains Primary School. Letham also includes a local centre, community facilities and transport links. This site forms part of the council’s general commitment to build almost 2,000 new affordable homes between now and the financial year 2026/27.

Housing Minister Paul McLennan said: “My aim is for everyone to have a warm, safe, affordable home that meets their needs and these 37 new social rented homes in Haddington by East Lothian Council, supported by £2.2 million of Scottish Government funding, will make a real and lasting difference to the lives of the new residents.

“Scotland has led the way in delivering affordable housing across the UK, with more than 118,000 homes delivered since 2007 and we are committed to delivering on our target of 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, of which at least 70% will be available for social rent and 10% will be in our remote, rural and island communities.”

Tommy Stirling, Production Director for Taylor Wimpey East Scotland added: “We are pleased to have had the opportunity to meet the new Housing Minister, Paul McLennan, during his visit to Letham Mains. We are proud of our long and established relationship with East Lothian Council, which has and continues to deliver much-needed affordable homes locally at Letham Mains, Haddington.  This visit was a great opportunity for the Minister to see first-hand the high-quality affordable homes that we are building.”

The Letham Mains homes are scheduled for completion in two phases from late May and early June 2023.  They will be purchased by East Lothian Council with support from a Scottish Government Subsidy of just over £2million.

Published: Wednesday, 12th April 2023