West Midlands Mayor backs affordable homes for older people in Warwickshire village

Older people in a Warwickshire village are to get the opportunity to continue living in their local community during retirement, thanks to an investment by Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands.

More than 42 affordable retirement homes are to be built on the site of the former New Inn pub in Rugby Road, Bulkington following £660,000 funding from the Mayor.

The apartments are being built by Keon Homes and once completed will be made available for the over 55s by housing association Midland Heart at affordable rents.

The announcement is the latest to be made by the Mayor as part of his drive to accelerate the construction of affordable new homes to help tackle the region's housing crisis.

The investment is from the West Midlands Combined Authority's (WMCA) brownfield regeneration fund, which is focused on redeveloping derelict sites, often referred to as brownfield land, for homes that are genuinely affordable for local people.

The Mayor said: For too many years, there hasn't been nearly enough investment in social and affordable housing, which has left us with an acute shortage of safe, warm homes that older and more vulnerable people can afford.

We need to fix the mistakes of the past by rebuilding our affordable housing stock and we're doing that through schemes like this one at Bulkington.

It will provide genuinely affordable homes for older people, breathe new life into a derelict site, and create valuable jobs for local people.This is about rebuilding communities and giving people places they can feel connected to and proud of.

The New Inn pub dated back to the early 1900s but closed in 2016 and was later demolished.

In its place will be apartments featuring energy efficient all-electric heating and solar panels, helping to keep fuel costs down for residents. There will also be charging points for electric cars.

More than 110 jobs will be created or safeguarded by the scheme including 15 apprentices working on site, five of which will be new roles.

Joe Reeves, deputy chief executive of Midland Heart, said: This is exactly the kind of development we need to see more of a disused site brought back into use to provide high-quality, affordable homes for older people in the heart of the community.

At Midland Heart, we're committed to building 2,750 new homes across the Midlands over the next five years, and developments like this help ensure more people can stay close to the communities they call home.

Matt Beckley, partnerships director at Keon Homes, concluded: Our business has been built on brownfield first', taking on complex sites and transforming them into communities that people are proud to call their home.

We are really pleased to be strengthening our relationships with the West Midlands Combined Authority and Midland Heart to deliver high quality, energy efficient affordable housing in Bedworth - a town that desperately needs it.

The WMCA's brownfield regeneration funds are used to support a wide range of housing and regeneration projects from the restoration and conversion of unique heritage buildings into new homes to mixed use developments around key transport hubs and town centres.

Access to the WMCA funding was provided by the Property Team at Frontier Development Capital Ltd (FDC) which works closely with property developers to arrange investments from the WMCA's regeneration funds.

ENDS

Notes to editors

About Midland Heart:

Midland Heart is a housing association, that delivers homes and services across the Midlands. It owns and manages over 34,000 homes and is dedicated to providing high quality, safe and affordable homes, combined with excellent services to over 70,000 customers. The organisation also employs over 1000 colleagues across the Midlands.

Midland Heart is committed to making its contribution to the national housing shortage by developing homes that are energy efficient, are affordable to rent or enable a foot on the housing ladder through shared ownership. 

For more information, visit www.midlandheartgroup.org.uk

About Keon Homes:

In just seven years, Keon Homes has grown from a start-up operation into a genuine leader in affordable housing, transforming the way sustainable homes are delivered to thousands of people.

2025 was its most active year yet, with 376 properties completed and a further 250 units in the process of being built across the Black Country, Birmingham, Coventry, Lichfield and Telford.

Work has begun on the £1bn Wolverhampton Housing Development Framework, with impressive progress being made at New Park Village and Lincoln Green, where over 300 properties are being demolished and making way for over 280 energy efficient homes with communities at their heart.

About the West Midlands Combined Authority

Led by the Mayor of the West Midlands, the WMCA brings together 18 local councils to oversee the transfer of powers and funding from Whitehall to the West Midlands.

The WMCA is putting these new powers from government back where they belong, in local hands, bringing the region together to build a healthier, happier, better connected and more prosperous West Midlands.

Billions of pounds are being invested by the WMCA to improve the region's transport network, transform its derelict industrial land into new homes and workplaces, support existing businesses and help grow the innovative, green industries of the future.

At the heart of this vision is a strong economy that is both green and inclusive, one that supports the region's ambition to be net zero carbon by 2041 and offers everyone the opportunity of a good quality, affordable home and the skills needed for a worthwhile job.

Mayoral priorities

The Mayor has four priority areas of work for the region: 

Jobs for everyone Investing in jobs, skills, training, and apprenticeships, reducing youth unemployment, and ensuring everyone has a job that pays well. 

Homes for everyone Building social and affordable homes and creating vibrant communities so that everyone will have a place to call home. 

Growth for everyone Helping businesses grow, supporting innovation and creativity, and making sure everyone benefits while protecting the environment. 

Journeys for everyone Connecting communities and making travel easier, safer, and more affordable for everyone.