PLANS for the first wave of sustainable "smart homes" at the Vaux site in Sunderland have been approved by Sunderland City Council.

A significant milestone for the Riverside Sunderland masterplan, the approval represents the first stage of a phased plan, which will eventually deliver four new neighbourhoods, housing 2,500 residents in a sustainable community at the heart of the city.

Managed by Igloo Regeneration on behalf of Sunderland City Council, the Vaux site will see homes, built using the latest technology and methods of construction, sitting alongside the orchards and allotments of Kingsley Gardens and nearby Riverside Park.

Igloo, the council and the wider design team, including masterplans and lead architect Proctor and Matthews Architects and MawsonKerr, landscape architect Camlins, Town Planning and Engineers at Cundall and engagement specialists Kevin Murray Associates are working closely with the community in Sunderland to ensure that the plans for the Vaux site weave into the existing fabric of the city.

Igloo’s chief executive, Peter Connolly, said: “The people of Sunderland have really embraced what we’re trying to do at Vaux, so planning approval is a massive step forward for the city and its focus on sustainability, and on its vision to be carbon neutral by 2040.

“The world has changed so much in the last year, people value their homes more, and recognise how important low carbon and smart technology will be as our lifestyles change, as well as the benefits to our own wellbeing and that of local wildlife.

"We believe that what we have planned for Vaux will continue to embrace this realignment that communities and individuals are facing in terms of true work/life balance, localisation and wellbeing as we emerge from the pandemic.”

Peter McIntyre, executive director of city development at Sunderland City Council, said: “We’re aiming for something really different at Vaux – homes that will not only change the city centre, but that will transform the way our residents live.

“We’re delighted to have taken this important step forward, which paves the way for the first new residential neighbourhood, that will be completed by 2023, in time for our Future Living Expo, an event where we will showcase and celebrate new ways of living and the role new innovations can play in delivering a better quality of life for our people.”