Affordable housing consortium Habiko has taken a major step forward in its ambition to deliver thousands of affordable homes across England after securing planning approval for its first residential development in Warrington town centre.
The partnership between Muse, Homes England and Pension Insurance Corporation has received the green light from Warrington Borough Council for the Academy Way project, marking the first approved scheme within Habiko’s long-term national housing pipeline.
Located on the former DW Sports site close to the town’s Time Square district, the 1.5-acre development will deliver 240 affordable apartments across two six-storey residential blocks. The scheme will comprise 162 one-bedroom and 78 two-bedroom homes, designed to provide high-quality rental accommodation within easy reach of the town centre and transport connections.
The approval represents an important milestone for Habiko, which launched in late 2024 with a commitment to deliver 3,000 affordable rental homes across England over the next 12 years. Warrington is the first scheme within the consortium’s wider strategy to secure planning consent, with additional developments currently progressing in Solihull, Chester and Liverpool.
According to Habiko, the homes will be offered at rents capped at least 20% below local market rates or within Local Housing Allowance thresholds, helping address growing affordability pressures facing renters across many parts of the country.
The development has been designed by AHR Architects and will centre around a landscaped communal courtyard intended to create a stronger sense of community and wellbeing for residents. Sustainability and low-carbon living have also played a key role in the scheme’s design, with the homes expected to help reduce tenants’ energy costs through improved efficiency and modern building standards.
Sarah Chicken, senior development manager at Muse, said the project reflects the partnership’s ambition to deliver affordable homes that combine quality, sustainability and accessibility while supporting local regeneration.
The Academy Way scheme also forms part of the wider regeneration momentum taking place within Warrington town centre, particularly around the Time Square area, where significant investment has been focused on residential, leisure and mixed-use development in recent years.
While construction timings for the project have not yet been confirmed, the planning approval signals the beginning of Habiko’s broader affordable housing delivery programme and underlines the increasing role of public-private partnerships in addressing the UK’s housing shortage.
As pressure continues to grow on local authorities and developers to deliver affordable and energy-efficient homes at scale, schemes such as Academy Way are expected to become increasingly important in supporting both housing demand and wider urban regeneration ambitions across the UK.
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