Ryedale District Council is celebrating its first new housing development in over a decade after the completion of eight self-contained flats.

Bay House, formerly the Railway Tavern, in Wold Street, Norton, has been brought back into use by the Council which purchased it in 2019 and has worked with a local contractor to transform the space into eight flats and a small office space.

The disused pub had become an eyesore having stood empty for a number of years and the new development provides good quality, self-contained, affordable housing which is in high demand.

The scheme, financed by the authority’s capital funding and specialist funding from Homes England, not only provides good quality, affordable accommodation but also improves the look of the area for neighbouring residents.

The flats will be allocated as move-on accommodation for local people that are currently in shared housing or supported accommodation and no longer require support.

The Council is currently in the process of allocating the properties to tenants.

Phillip Spurr, Director for Place and Resource, said: “We are very proud of this development in Norton.

“Our Local Plan Strategy highlighted a lack of affordable housing in Ryedale and this is a step towards addressing that imbalance.

“We know disused buildings that stand empty for a long time have a negative impact on the community and we’re glad to have been able to work with partners to restore Bay House to a high standard.

“Alongside this development we also have two flats let through a local letting agent in Malton in our ongoing commitment to improving housing in Ryedale for our citizens.”

A spokeswoman for Homes England said: “Despite the current challenges affecting the country, accelerating housebuilding remains our number one priority.

“We are committed to supporting Ryedale District Council that has ambitions to provide new homes and our investment through affordable housing grant allows us to do that.

“We’re delighted that this funding will enable Ryedale to deliver much needed new homes.”

The development of affordable homes is part of the authority’s Housing Strategy which also supports ambitions around climate change and green building.

Refurbishing the existing building rather than demolishing it to rebuild a new property reduced the carbon footprint of the development and further sustainability measures include wall insulation and photovoltaic panels which generate electricity for common areas and the office space.

As well as providing renewable energy this will also reduce the costs of bills for tenants.

The scheme also supported the local economy by awarding the contract to Malton company Transcore.