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First families move in to straw bale co-housing |
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23 May 2013, 7:20 PM
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The first of 20 families have just moved into a radical new low carbon co-housing scheme. Lilac, located at Bramley, Leeds, is the UK’s largest development constructed from straw bales. It is also a genuinely affordable form of home ownership.
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It is the UK’s first mutual home ownership society, providing affordable homes that can’t be sold off for big profits, so the homes will remain affordable for subsequent generations. It is also a co-housing scheme where members share facilities including a laundry, communal cooking and eating space, a play area and office space. This cuts energy use and promotes a sustainable community. Residents are encouraged to grow food and provide a supportive environment for old and vulnerable people.
The scheme consists of six one-bedroom, and six two-bedroom flats, six three-bedroom and two four-bedroom houses plus the communal house, allotments and a public garden. The £3m scheme is funded by a loan, with residents purchasing a share in the society rather than individual homes. This is broadly equivalent to the build cost of the homes; residents pay 35% of their net income to fund their share. If they leave after three years they get their initial investment back; after three years their return is calculated according to average incomes in the area rather than house values, ensuring the homes remain affordable for locals.
The group prioritises social and environmental sustainability, which was the reason it plumped for straw bale homes. Straw bale homes are 25% more energy efficient than traditionally constructed homes built to 2010 Part L and 12.25 tonnes of CO2 are locked up in each house. Another benefit is that the straw and workers were sourced locally.
The homes were built using the Modcell system. This is a prefabricated system consisting of load bearing, storey-height square glulam frames up to 4m wide. These are filled with straw and lime rendered on both sides. The panels are taken to site with the ground floor assembled first. Floor cassettes are positioned over the ground floor structure followed by the next storey of panels. The roof structure is also formed from Modcell panels. Craig White, the architect who developed the system, says 16-18 panels are needed to build a three-bedroom house and a two-storey home can be erected in 2.5 days.
Modcell doesn’t have a factory so sets up temporary manufacturing facilities near construction sites. This reduces transport emissions and fits in with the ethos of benefiting local communities. Appropriately, Modcell uses farmers’ barns to produce the panels although the straw bales are not necessarily sourced from the same farm. Small straw bales 1m long, 45cm wide and 35cm high are used; these must be dense and dry.
Lime render is used on both sides of the panel during the manufacturing process and a finish coat is applied once the panels are in place. Lilac residents helped assemble the panels in the factory and build the homes on site.
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