FAQs

Demolition won’t be until later in the project.  We’re starting by building some new homes first to allow some customers to move out of their existing homes and we don’t expect the first building to be demolished until late 2026 at the earliest.

We are currently waiting for approval from the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) before we can start this work. We hope to get approval and start later in 2025. We will provide an update as soon as we have confirmation.  This would mean new homes being available late in 2026 at the earliest.

We are currently looking at ways to speed up the phases, from our original proposals for four phases.  This is to help speed up delivery of these much-needed homes and to minimise the period of disruption for existing residents. We will keep you updated on this.

At present there are 192 properties. The redevelopment of Sawyers Close will see the existing buildings demolished and 413 high-quality new affordable homes built, both on the existing site and on open space adjacent, transferred to Abri by RBWM.

Our current provisional timing is for the final homes to be built by 2032.

The Hill Group, who are Abri’s construction partner on this project. Hill were selected because of their track record of building high quality affordable homes and their experience of delivering regeneration projects similar to Sawyers Close. You can find out more about them here.

We will work with our construction partner Hill and the local authority Highways department to ensure construction traffic and parking causes minimum disruption for customers and neighbours  Contractor parking will be largely contained within the construction sites.

Yes. Abri will pay for all moving costs, such as removals, and provide carpets and blinds in the new homes.

As part of the move, existing residents will also receive a home loss payment as set by the Government. This is currently £8,100 but is reviewed by the Government periodically.

Abri has also provided two dedicated resettlement officers to help all existing residents with the move.

We are currently working on the timing of the moves, but we estimate all existing residents will be moved between late 2026 and early 2030.

Most existing residents will move direct from their existing property into their new home.

Where we may have to temporarily rehouse people, we will do so either on site at Sawyers Close or off site locally, depending on customer preferences, and will provide help with these moves.

Yes, all existing residents are guaranteed a home in the new development.

All Sawyers Close residents have been assessed and will be allocated a property based on housing need.

There will be 20 wheelchair units in total which will be a mixture of one and two bed properties.

We will provide rent and service charge information in plenty of time ahead of any moves to allow existing and new residents time for consideration.

152 homes.

Marketing of Shared Ownership units normally start 12-18 months before the completion date.

The current moving dates for Shared Ownership properties is 2032.

You won't be able to register an interest for shared ownership until around 18 months before the homes are completed – currently estimated in 2032.

Find out more about Shared Ownership

There will be a total of 357 car parking spaces. 

Most of the parking within the site will be concealed within podium car parks, with street parking given over to visitor parking, delivery bays and some on-street parking.

At the request of the local authority, the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead Council (RBWM), parking on site is minimised to promote sustainable travel modes.

A ratio of 0.8 parking spaces per dwelling is proposed which reflects the existing car ownership levels of residents.

Additional parking spaces will be given over to car club and short-term delivery parking.

Yes - The electric vehicle charging strategy will be in line with RBWM requirements to encourage electric car usage.

The proposed parking bays will be located in a convenient and accessible location within the podium parking area. The bays will be equipped with electric vehicle supply equipment including charging stations, cables, and plugs to enable electric owners to charge their vehicles while parked.

No.

The priority will be for residents. There will be some parking available for visitors.

Abri is committed to enhancing the natural environment within the new development and in line with planning consent we will also put back at least 10 per cent more planting and wildlife habitat than exists at the moment.

This will include native and flowering species to support local wildlife populations with a mix of flowering species, offering food and habitat to bees and other invertebrates, which in turn will provide food for visiting birds.

Any trees that are being cut down have always had their removal included within the planning consent for the site.

The existing Community Orchard is to be relocated into the central space creating a formal, focal and unique identity for the public realm. The exact location will be decided once the building phases for the regeneration have been confirmed.

Likewise, the existing Community Garden will be relocated to the new development for all residents to access.

Alongside this, there are also plans for a sunken garden to be built as a landscape feature in the regeneration.

The new play area has already opened as of October 2024.

There is also a temporary Community Centre which is now open for the community to use during the redevelopment. This will be replaced by permanent Community spaces later in the regeneration, with improved facilities that will also be available to the wider community.

Yes, there are plans for a cycle hub. We will keep people updated as plans progress.

Furthermore, there will be new pedestrian and cycle routes through the new development accessible to all, such as those using wheelchairs.

Where there are shared cyclist and pedestrian paths provided, pedestrians will be prioritised over cyclists.

We will also ensure the cycle infrastructure joins the proposed cycle lane along Maidenhead Road.

Driving positive change in the lives of our residents and the wider community is really important to us, and social value is how we measure that benefit. It goes beyond the financial or economic benefit, and helps us quantify our contribution to the wellbeing, quality of life, and social cohesion of individuals and our communities.

Did you know we ask our suppliers to "give something back" by way of a social value return? It’s how we use our buying power to generate additional support for our residents and communities.

So, when we buy things, we make sure that supplier commits to giving back to our communities through social value, either through a monetary donation or in kind. This can be materials, funding, equipment, employment opportunities or volunteering hours.

The programme is still being finalised, but there will be opportunities for apprenticeships, as well as the opportunity for local community organisations to request redecoration or repairs or volunteers for events they may be holding or for a garden project in a community area.

There will be opportunities for schools to hold events or for various trades to speak to children about topics such as what it is like to work in construction.

There are many forms social value can take, and we would love to hear from you to find out what you feel is missing from your community or if there is something you would like to be involved in. Please email us at SawyersCloseTeam@abri.co.uk

Our contractor partner Hill has committed to delivering £3.5m of social value over the life of the project, an average of £500,000 per year.

The programme will run for the duration of the regeneration project

The new name will be ‘The Granges’. This has been created through a period of consultation with  stakeholders. We’re working through designs at the moment but it won’t be long until you see these come to life on signage and will feed through the whole development as it progresses.

At present, Sawyers Close remains the name of the existing site.