Breathing new life into Lyng

Lyng Community Association was set up in 2000 to breathe new life into a tired West Bromwich housing estate. Its Chair Wendy Bodenham talks to Housing about the work done to date and its vision for the future

When it was built in the 1960s the sprawling Lyng estate, which comprised over 1,000 properties, won awards for its design. But as with many a housing development built during this period it later proved to have many flaws.

“It was a very good site in the 60s because it was an award-winning design then,” explains Wendy Bodenham, chair of Lyng Community Association (Lyng CA). “But over the years it became very run down and was one of those estates that when you looked at it now it wasn’t suitable because it sort of harboured little alleyways and places where kids could hide and there were a lot of problems.”

It was in response to these issues that Lyng CA, now a thriving RSL, came into being – a partnership between the local community and Sandwell MBC with the goal of developing a mixed-tenure estate creating a thriving, mixed sustainable neighbourhood.

“It started because of a very run down estate which needed some drastic work to it and the council offered the tenants some improvements and the tenant group weren’t happy with what they were offering,” says Bodenham.

“So basically it was offered to the tenants as a group that if we could set up an association the council would give us a grant and we would redevelop the estate and would have the grant to enable us to build some properties which the association would then take charge of.”

The community has always been at the heart of the redevelopment plans and half of Lyng CA’s Board of Directors is made up of tenant representatives. Over the years the association has overseen the demolition of the existing estate and the beginnings of a large-scale new-build programme.

Two phases of new homes have been built to date and the association owns and manages 86 affordable homes. Work is now underway on the final part of its renovation, which will see hundreds of new homes built on the estate.

Lyng CA is working with Sandwell Council and private house builder Barratt West Midlands to deliver the multi-million pound scheme, which will create 364 homes, including 114 affordable properties for rent – with the remainder for private sale.

Major public open space, including a square and parks, and a new office for Lyng CA will also be created as part of the 18-acre redevelopment – which has received support and financial backing from regeneration agency Urban Living.

Adrian Farr, managing director for Barratt West Midlands, said: “Now is the time local people will begin to see important changes to the urban landscape.” He said that the partners “have worked extremely hard over many years to bring about the regeneration of this estate” and that some “have
been involved well before the first spade was put in the ground, in fact more than a decade ago.”

The properties will meet L evel 4 of the code for Sustainable Homes with features such as PV and solar panels. “Every phase we have done we have tried to improve the standards”, explains Bodenham.

The estate was initially home to scores of flats and maisonettes and there were very few gardens, so the aim of the redevelopment was to create houses with gardens and two-bedroom flats as opposed to small one-bedroom properties.

Barratt started on site in October and Lyng CA hopes to take possession of its first properties in June. The association has its own waiting list and has an agreement to take some nominations from Sandwell MBC. It is hoped that the redevelopment will attract new people to the area, as well as encouraging former Lyng residents to return to the estate.

“Anyone who used to live on the existing Lyng estate who wanted to come back and live there, we will give them consideration,” says Bodenham. “It was a thriving neighbourhood a few years ago and obviously we want to encourage people back who are used to living in West Bromwich and through no fault of their own really a lot of people got decanted off when it was being pulled down. We obviously want to encourage people to come back but we also want to encourage new life and fresh blood into West Bromwich.”

And it is not just the estate that is getting a new lease of life. The future could also see Lyng CA spreading its wings. “Our remit is very much that we own and manage the properties that have already been built and the ones that are in the process of being developed,” says Bodenham. “But we have not said that we will sit still.”