Plans in place to unlock regeneration of key brownfield site and build around 140 homes

The development of a long-stalled housing site in Shelton is taking a major step forward through a groundbreaking deal to bring new homes to Pyenest Street. 

The council is entering into a conditional agreement that will enable the site to be sold to housing developer Placefirst – subject to a bid for £12.3 million government money being secured. 

The move marks a breakthrough for a piece of land that has remained undeveloped for years because the cost of building on it far outweighs the value of the homes that could be delivered. 

Now, a detailed business case has been submitted to Homes England, setting out how gap funding would unlock the site and make development viable.  

The plan, approved by the council’s cabinet today (Tuesday), will enable investment to flow into Pyenest Street and allow work to move forward on creating around 140 new homes in the heart of the city.

A quarter of the homes would be affordable homes, discounted to 80 per cent of market rent. The plans contain a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments, as well as two and three-bedroom family homes. 

The site would be sold for a nominal £1, subject to independent valuation and the success of the Homes England funding bid. The council would not need to commit any local taxpayers' money to bridge the funding gap.  

The land will only transfer if funding is secured and the project can proceed, protecting the council while enabling progress. 

Placefirst specialises in regenerating complex urban sites and has put forward a scheme designed to work within the tight financial constraints that have held Pyenest Street back.

The approach supports the council’s wider priorities to regenerate brownfield land, hit its housing pipeline target of building around 5,000 homes in five years and drive investment into inner‑city neighbourhoods.

Councillor Finlay Gordon-McCusker, Stoke-on-Trent City Council's cabinet member for transport, infrastructure and regeneration, said: "For too long, the Pyenest Street site has stood as a visible symbol of decline at the edge of our city centre - derelict buildings, unsafe structures, fly-tipping, anti-social behaviour, and wasted potential in a location that should be a gateway to opportunity. 

"The simple reality is that this site has been undeliverable without intervention. Multiple council administrations have attempted to unlock it. The costs, constraints and technical challenges have defeated progress for nearly a decade. 

"Over the past year we have taken the difficult but necessary steps to change that -  including  engaging Homes England, intervening to reduce crime and disorder on the site, and identifying a delivery partner with a proven track record of transforming heavily-constrained brownfield land. 

"This plan represents the point at which ambition becomes delivery. By supporting Placefirst seeking viability gap funding and entering into the appropriate agreements, the council is doing what it has long needed to do - intervening decisively so this brownfield site finally delivers for local people rather than a continual blight on the neighbourhood.”