WEAVER Vale Housing Trust is helping to build more than 4,000 new homes after securing a slice of a £51.6 million funding grant.

The trust is part of JV North, a consortium dedicated to building properties for affordable rent, shared ownership, rent to buy and specialist housing for rent.

The new funding from Homes England’s continuous market engagement adds to the £87.3 million JV North received in 2016 at the start of the Shared Ownership Affordable Homes Programme.

The JV North consortium will build 4,310 homes by 2021 compared to 2,758 it originally set out to deliver.

Gareth Rigby, director of property at Weaver Vale Housing Trust, said: “This new investment will help us support our current and future customers by meeting the growing demand for good quality, affordable housing.

“JV North has a proven track record when it comes to building new homes and we are committed to helping tackle the UK’s housing crisis by playing our part in delivering these 4,000 plus homes.”

“This funding will supplement the trust’s most ambitious development plan as we look to deliver over 500 new homes in the next five years.”

JV North chairman Nigel Wilson said: “There is a clear need to build more high quality homes quicker than ever before and our members are answering the call.

“Increasing the number of homes by over half is an incredible commitment and makes it one of the biggest grant-funded development programmes in the country.

“We already had an impressive track record of delivery, building the equivalent of one home every working day since forming in 2007 and this improves on the position further.

“In many ways, the hard work starts now and it will take a concerted effort to build this many properties in a relatively short period of time but it is a challenge members are embracing and fully confident of meeting.”

The additional homes take JV North and Homes England’s combined investment through the £1 billion mark since the consortium formed 11 years ago.