Outdated housing on Gorse Ride estate is set to be demolished and replaced by high quality new homes thanks to a £30million investment from Wokingham Borough Council.

The planning application for the first phase of the estate’s redevelopment is due to be decided on 30 September, which if successful will see residents in this cohort moved into temporary homes in early November while their new ones are being built.

This first phase focuses on Cockayne Court (which has been empty for some time) along with a selection of homes in Arnett Avenue and also 154 Barkham Ride. The planning application proposes replacing these with ten houses and two blocks of flats to create 46 new homes - 16 more than at present in that location.

If all the stages get planning approval, the overall redevelopment is expected see 208 properties replaced with about 290 new homes, which would be a mix of one and two bedroom bungalows and apartments, and houses ranging from two to five bedrooms. This extra housing would be created by removing unsightly and under-used garages and alleys.

All affected council tenants and home owners will be able (if they wish) to move into a new home on the renewed estate. Affected tenants would be offered their new home on a lifetime assured tenancy with broadly similar terms to their current council tenancy.

Affected home owners will be offered a range of options, including the opportunity to buy new homes on the estate (or potentially off site) with support through an equity loan scheme or similar help to ensure their new home is comparable with their old.

The borough council has worked in partnership with Wokingham Housing Ltd to submit the current planning application.