Sovereign Network Group (SNG) has completed the first homes built to its pioneering Homes and Place Standard at Moonhill Rise in Exeter. These groundbreaking properties exemplify SNG’s vision for sustainable, future-proof living and set a new benchmark for residential development in the UK.
The Homes and Place Standard is a market-leading framework developed to assess quality and ensure every project prioritises sustainability, health, wellbeing and community creation. SNG designed Moonhill Rise to inform what “good” looks like across all its projects, both existing homes and new schemes, allowing further analysis to improve the home and place for SNG customers. It drives the approach to quality, urban design and SNG’s range of house types, and is now embedded across the organisation at all levels, from new build to retrofit.
All new build properties designed under the Homes and Place Standard follow a fabric-first approach, specifying the most environmentally friendly materials and technologies to minimise energy usage. The first homes at Moonhill Rise are part of a new portfolio of standard house and apartment types that have delivered greater than 75% carbon reduction, meeting the forthcoming requirements of the Future Homes Standard. The homes are therefore warmer when required, healthier, cheaper to run and better for the customers’ environment.
Moonhill Rise includes 33 Shared Ownership homes in a range of two, three, and four-bedroom house types. From the outset, all elements of the design were benchmarked against a set of demanding measures that include energy efficiency, cost-of-living, connectivity, health and wellbeing. The result is properties designed with the needs of modern living in mind, exceeding national space standards, designed for adapting living arrangements and providing generous storage to ensure both comfort and practicality. The homes feature large windows that allow more natural light to the interiors, contributing to a sense of well-being and creating uplifting living spaces.
Rolling out the implementation of the Homes and Place Standard comes at a transformative time for SNG. The group, which was formed from the merger of Sovereign Housing Association and Network Homes in October 2023, delivered 2,100 homes in 2023/4 and has set the ambitious target of delivering 25,000 homes by 2033.
Richard Young, Technical Director at Sovereign Network Group, commented: “The completion of the first homes built to the Homes and Place Standard at Moonhill Rise is a proud milestone for Sovereign Network Group and a testament to our commitment to raising the bar in housing design and quality. By putting customer needs at the heart of our work, we’re not just building homes, we’re building better futures for our residents and the communities they live in.”
Sustainability has been embedded into every aspect of these new homes. They are constructed from timber frame and equipped with solar panels, air source heat pumps, and electric vehicle charging points, making them highly energy efficient and environmentally friendly. In addition to focusing on individual homes, the development has been designed to foster community connections, with thoughtfully planned communal spaces including local play areas, encouraging interaction among residents.
New residents Chirag and Zeel Shah who recently moved into their new homes at Moonhill Rise commented: “The attention to detail in these homes is like nothing we’ve seen before. Our home feels so spacious and the large windows bring in so much light, something we’ve been particularly grateful for this winter. The Shared Ownership option also made owning a home like this possible for us, which is amazing.”
The Homes and Place Standard is now embedded across SNG, informing every decision from urban design to individual building specifications. By setting a benchmark for quality and liveability, SNG ensures its developments will remain places people are proud to call home. The standards will continue to evolve over time, ensuring that SNG continues to build places that truly work for people.
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