Tamara Estate, Saltash
The future for our homes on the Tamara Estate.
Cornwall Council has been successful in getting funding from the Government’s Homes & Community Agency to undertake some feasibility work looking at ways to improve the Tamara Estate.
The money will cover the early costs such as community engagement, initial planning and technical studies.
It’s important to understand that we are simply exploring ideas and opportunities at this stage.
Houses as seen from the park
Tamara Estate Parking Sign
The Council has been aware for a long time that the Tamara Estate needs some modernising and improvement. Some residents may recall back in 1998 when Devon and Cornwall Housing and Caradon District Council undertook some local consultation. The issues highlighted by residents at that time included:
- Homes have inadequate space standards.
- Poorly maintained public spaces and homes.
- Anti-social behaviour.
- Lack of parking.
- A feeling the estate had been forgotten about.
As a result of that consultation some changes were made:
- The derelict garage block on River View was demolished.
- Some traffic calming measures were put in place.
- Anti-social behaviour on the estate was reduced following an eviction.
- A large scale refurbishment of the properties was undertaken in 2000 including new kitchens, bathrooms, windows and central heating.
However, whilst there were plans for redevelopment of some of the housing, the funding to make it happen was not available.
We are now in a position to look at the estate again and consult on the potential for real change.
We need volunteers!...
It has been suggested that it might be a good idea to gather a small team of 6 volunteers to make a Friends of Tamara group. This would be a balanced mix of Cornwall Housing tenants and home owners from across the estate. You could work with us as part of the project team, maybe visiting a housing regeneration development and representing your community as ambassadors.
What are we doing now?...
In May 2019 we asked you, the residents of Tamara Estate, to tell us your thoughts and any concerns about the area and how you would like to see it in the future.
The responses we received covered everything from parking and public spaces, to property maintenance and community values.
Those of you who responded were very clear in describing what you like about the estate, and what you don’t.
What you like...
What you don't like...
The estate was built in the 1930’s to meet the housing needs of the community at that time. The room sizes and layouts as well as the way they were constructed and insulated were appropriate back then but standards have greatly improved these days and people expect better layouts, insulation and general living standards. They were built before car ownership was common which is part of the reason why the roads are narrow and there is not enough car parking.
There are parts of the estate with underutilised spaces, unlit pathways, isolated and unobserved play areas, and narrow/unsafe roads with insufficient parking. There are homes with steep narrow external staircases, damp problems and poor layouts such as downstairs bathrooms off kitchens. The Council would like to build modern, well-designed homes to meet different family sizes and safe communal spaces.
The Council is prioritising improving the quality of homes. We want to make homes where people feel safe and with lower running costs such as reducing heating bills through good design. We also want to make homes that meet the needs of people and families. Homes that people want to live in for the long term.
The comments you made have helped us to begin to build some thoughts and ideas about how Cornwall Council can help to make a real difference to the quality of homes we own on the estate and the feeling of the area in general.
Aerial photo of the Tamara Estate taken from Google Maps
What’s been done elsewhere...
For some time now, councils and housing providers throughout Devon and Cornwall have been renewing and regenerating older housing stock. A nearby example is Plymouth Community Home’s North Prospect development. This took a neighbourhood of traditional, but increasingly run-down council houses and created a new award-winning estate of affordable and open-market homes. Tenants who moved out the old homes were offered a brand new home in the new development. North Prospect is on a much larger scale than we might consider for Tamara but it gives an idea of how new affordable homes can replace old, and benefit tenants who want to come back to their community.
Renewal, before and after.
New affordable housing is being developed throughout Cornwall
NEW AFFORDABLE FLATS IN CORNWALL
CORNWALL COUNCIL HOUSING AT THE FORMER ST. LAWRENCE HOSPITAL, BODMIN
Our vision is to...
- Improve the quality of homes we own.
- Offer residents a better mix of property, e.g. 1, 2, 3 & 4 bedroom homes
- Mix the types of tenures to provide open market, affordable/social rented and shared ownership.
- Increase the number of homes.
- Reduce heating and other energy costs; better for you and better for the environment.
- Reduce the cost of managing and maintaining homes for everyone.
- Make sure that homes don’t suffer from noise problems
- Help make Tamara an even better place where people want to live, work and stay
For example, national space standards for a new 2 bedroom home for 4 people is 70M2
*National space standards for a new 2 bed 4 person dwelling is 70m2
Our ideas need your input!..
What do you see as a modern, well-designed home? What kind of home do you want to live in, what are your housing needs?
What do you see as the key features of a healthy and economical home?
What would make you feel safer and more secure?
How do we improve the estate that you live in and make it attractive to all residents?
How do we make Tamara better connected with Saltash and the wider community?
We need to know if you would support the idea of change here.
We know that you will have lots of questions that you will need answering for you to decide if you support it. We don’t have all the answers yet as this is the start of the process but we want to talk.
We need volunteers!...
It has been suggested that it might be a good idea to gather a small team of 6 volunteers to make a Friends of Tamara group. This would be a balanced mix of Cornwall Housing tenants and home owners from across the estate. You could work with us as part of the project team, maybe visiting a housing regeneration development and representing your community as ambassadors.
Architects impression of the renewed Tamara Estate