WORK is due to start on the construction of 12 affordable homes, which are being put up as part of a plan to build more than 500 of them across County Durham.

County Durham Housing Group is behind the new properties in Matterdale Road, in Peterlee.

The dozen properties, which will each have three bedrooms, will be constructed by North-East company T Manners and Sons Ltd.

Tom Winter, development manager for County Durham Housing Group, said: “The Matterdale Road project will be our first in the Peterlee area to begin work on site. We should be seeing shovels in the ground within weeks.

“The new homes have been conceived to closely match demand in this part of Peterlee.

“The Rent to Buy opportunities will help local families move up the housing ladder, in an affordable way, and contribute towards the long-term future of the community.”

The new homes are the latest element of the housing group’s plan to build 545 new properties across County Durham.

The programme began in 2017 and is set to continue until 2021.

Work is due to start on the homes in Matterdale Road in the autumn and tenants will start moving in next year.

All 12 homes will be available under the ‘Rent to Buy’ scheme, a government initiative designed to ease the transition from renting to buying a home by providing subsidised rent.

Simon Manners, joint managing director of T Manners and Sons Ltd, said: “We are delighted to continue our relationship with County Durham Housing Group by developing these new homes.”