Mother-of-two speaks of ‘wow’ factor of home in new £33m Apex development

A mother-of-two whose family are among the last tenants of a £33m new housing development in Derry to have received a key has spoken of the ‘wow’ factor of her new home.

By Kevin Mullan

Published 3rd Nov 2022, 16:32 GMT

Updated 3rd Nov 2022, 16:32 GMT

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One of the last homes at Apex Housing Association’s recently completed new Beraghvale development is the new residence of Kerry Maguire and her family.

She said: “My first impression of our new house was wow! It’s the perfect size for me and my two children and has a great garden for them to run around in. The location is ideal, close to a large local shop and in a quiet neighbourhood.”

The new development – which was built by BW Social Affordable Housing (BW) – consists of 261 social homes with a varied house mix ranging from 2, 3 and 4 bed semi-detached homes, to 1 and 2 bed apartments.

Kerry Maguire with Joe Doherty and Kelsey Boyle from Apex on handover day

Kerry Maguire with Joe Doherty and Kelsey Boyle from Apex on handover day

Several of these are ‘Complex Needs Units’ which are designed to facilitate people with disabilities and families of up to six.

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Sheena McCallion, Chief Executive of Apex Housing Association, commented: "The delivery of such a fantastic development will bring many benefits to the families and individuals allocated a new home in this development.

"We look forward to seeing this new community thriving in the coming years. The standard of homes provided by BW has been excellent and will significantly improve the quality of life of many of our tenants.”

Representatives from Apex Housing Association and BW Social Affordable Housing pictured at Beraghvale in Derry, which was recently completed.

Representatives from Apex Housing Association and BW Social Affordable Housing pictured at Beraghvale in Derry, which was recently completed.

Ryan Boyle, Chief Operating Officer at BW expressed delight at the completion of the development, saying: “We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone involved from the team on the ground, the sub-contractors and all in the office for their approach to maintaining high standards and building quality houses.

"We would also like to express our gratitude to all of the team at Apex for their professional and collaborative approach to all aspects of the construction.”

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Located on the Skeoge Link, Beraghvale is the latest large scale construction project in the north west. The £33million scheme was supported by £19.6million Housing Association Grant funding from the Department for Communities and a £13.4million private finance investment by Apex.

A Gold Standard ‘Secure by Design’ scheme, the homes were designed to extremely high energy efficiency and sustainability standards with the development featuring a playpark, public open spaces and cycle paths throughout.

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