Topping out at Swindon Oakfield development

GreenSquareAccord CEO Ruth Cooke took part in the ‘topping out’ ceremony for Nationwide Building Society’s Oakfield project in Swindon last week, celebrating reaching the highest point of construction.

The £50 million Oakfield project is delivering 239 homes – 71 of which will be GreenSquareAccord homes for rent and shared ownership. The scheme is being built to leading environmental standards and future-proofed with a host of green innovations to help people live sustainably. It will also be one of the biggest off-gas housing developments. All properties are set to achieve EPC-A rating thorough a range of sustainable attributes such as air source heat pumps and photovoltaic solar panels.

It is hoped that the Oakfield community, which blends the best of green and intergenerational living, will become a blueprint of a modern, sustainably-built community – a place where younger generations can lay down their roots, families can grow together and older people can stay through later life. Oakfield is aimed at becoming a blueprint to help housebuilders create energy-efficient homes and communities for the future, with Nationwide offering to share learnings.

The highest point will, once construction is completed, become ‘the Hub’ – a shared space for the community to meet, share and enjoy.

Work on the Oakfield development began on site in April 2020 and is being carried out by Mi-space, part of the Midas Group. Construction is expected to take about three and a half years, with a showhome opening towards the end of 2021 and the first phase of new homes being completed in Spring 2022.