A Housing association has started work building and transforming a site into 74 homes in the centre of Braintree.

CHP is set to transform an old business park and gravel pit, in East Street and the development will be the housing associations largest land-led scheme to date.

The homes are due for completion in summer 2021 and will include a mixture of one, two and three-bedroom flats and houses for affordable rent and shared ownership.

CHP spokesman growth and partnership director Carl Hockey said: “Securing the land and planning consent to provide 74 new homes for the local area is fantastic and highlights CHP’s continued commitment to providing homes for people that they can afford, in places they want to live and call home.

“This scheme is part of out ongoing commitment to help tackle the housing crisis in Essex by building 365 new homes a year or a home a day. “

CHP is a locally managed and governed charitable housing association.

In the 2018/19 financial year, CHP built 330 new homes and started 700 new tenancies- most of which are for affordable rent and shared ownership.