THE former John Bull pub in Trowbridge has now been demolished, ready for work to start building nine new affordable homes. 

Local housing association Selwood Housing purchased the site in March 2021 after the Studley Green pub had remained vacant for some years.

The current plans include six homes for affordable social rent and three for shared ownership, which offers a more affordable way of getting onto the property ladder.

There will be a mix of two and three-bedroomed homes and these are likely to be available for occupation in 2023.

The John Bull pub was built in 1950 but the site had remained vacant for a number of years.

Selwood Housing says it was “delighted” to have been given the opportunity to invest in the site and help to regenerate the local area.

The development received £648,000 part-funding by Homes England and will help provide much-needed affordable homes within the Trowbridge Community area, which has more than 500 households on the Wiltshire Council Housing Register. 

Paul Walsh, Selwood Housing group development director, said: “I’m particularly excited by the development at John Bull.

"It's a site I’ve known for years and had been a special place for many people, but now we can invest in building more local, affordable homes on this derelict site and improve the area. The first homes should be ready in early 2023.

"We’re hoping to involve Studley Green Primary School in the naming of the new scheme. We’ve also worked with local historians to capture the pub's history and to save it.”

Selwood Housing are particularly excited as this will be its first EPC A-rated development, the highest energy efficiency rating, helping towards its 2030 and 2050 carbon reduction targets. 

Economic and environmental factors were also considered during the demolition of the former pub. The demolition contractor estimated that 95 per cent of the demolition waste would be recycled in some capacity, with only the remaining five per cent of waste ending up in landfill. 

Selwood Housing, based in Trowbridge, owns and manages almost 7,000 homes for rent and shared ownership in the South West and is growing.

Its ambition is to deliver 1,000 more affordable homes by 2026, to help tackle the UK housing crisis. As a charity, its surplus is reinvested into new homes, existing properties and local communities.

For more information on this development, click here.