Modular housebuilder ilke Homes is set to deliver up to 140 homes in Nottinghamshire after being selected by Nottinghamshire County Council to regenerate a brownfield site in Arnold.

The deal, which followed a competitive tender process, will see the redevelopment of the nine-acre site in Rolleston Drive in Arnold. The former depot was derelict for six years before being destroyed by fire in 2017. Innes England advised Nottinghamshire County Council, acting as its agent.

This marks the first time that Nottinghamshire County Council has released land for a factory-built housing development. The local authority announced last year it was supporting major infrastructure and capital projects costing over £200m to help boost prosperity for its residents and the local economy. It has secured an £11m grant from Homes England to prepare eight redundant sites that it owns for housing development to meet the growing demand in the county.

The scheme is ilke Homes’ third in Nottinghamshire. In July, the company signed a deal with Network Rail to build 40 homes in Beeston and, in February, they delivered nine zero-carbon homes in Newark for SME developer, Positive Homes.

The new homes will be manufactured at ilke Homes’ 250,000 sq ft factory in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, before being delivered to Rolleston Drive.

Because they are factory-built, these homes are more cost-effective to maintain, quicker to construct and have a lower carbon footprint than traditional brick houses. They can be built with less disruption on-site and require less complex groundworks, making them an ideal solution for local authorities who want to quickly regenerate surplus brownfield land, and an essential part of the government’s strategy to ‘build, build, build’ to meet housing need and boost the economy following the Covid-19 lockdown.

The government has shown its support for modern methods of construction (MMC) in housing. Last year, ilke Homes secured a £30m investment from Homes England to increase the capacity of its factory, as part of a scheme to boost MMC and deliver more affordable homes across the UK.

Tom Heathcote, executive director of development at ilke Homes, said: “We’re delighted to have been selected by Nottingham County Council to unlock this important brownfield site. Our housing technology means we can quickly deliver a high-quality scheme that brings this derelict site back into productive use and deliver much needed, sustainable family homes for the local community. It is our intention to submit a full planning application for an affordable led scheme of 2,3, and 4-bedroom houses by the end of the month.”

Kay Cutts, leader of Nottingham County Council, said: “We selected Ilke Homes as the purchaser for this site after receiving many bids from different housebuilders and developers during the tender process. The re-use of this site for housing will be a huge benefit to the community and ilke Homes already appear to be making progress with their planning application. The sale will realise a notable capital receipt for Nottinghamshire County Council.”

Tim Garratt, chairman at Innes England, said: “I walked past this site as a teenager on my way to Arnold Hill school. Several years on, I’m delighted to see this deal to bring forward a significant development forward for the Arnold community. It will not only see new family and affordable housing brought forward, but a major regeneration of a derelict site. It has been a pleasure working with ilke Homes and Nottinghamshire County Council and I am looking forward to seeing the homes upon completion.”