NOVUS SUPPORTS WHBC’S NICER NEIGHBOURHOODS INITIATIVE

We’ve joined forces with Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council to improve and enhance communal spaces for a pilot scheme under its new Nicer Neighbourhoods initiative to create safer, greener and more connected places to live.

Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council’s Nicer Neighbourhoods project pilot area covered two sites in Welwyn Garden City. For the first site at Briars Wood, the communal garden has been enhanced to create a more welcoming, family-friendly space by opening up space for children to play as well as installing new benches, rotary dryers and herb-filled planters. The larger site at Heronswood Road and Haynes Close also benefited from new rotary dryers, benches, and herb planters plus new footpaths were laid at the back of the block of flats, making it easier for residents to walk safely between buildings.

Alongside the outdoor improvements, both sites also received deep cleans of internal communal areas and new noticeboards which were installed to help keep residents informed about local opportunities and community updates.

We’ve been working with Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council since October 2022 on a five-year contract worth £9 million per year to provide a range of upgrades across the council’s portfolio of 10,000 homes in Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield. The scope of works includes kitchen and bathroom replacements, installation of new windows and doors, rewiring, roofing and external redecoration with the latest tranche of works set to complete by the end of March 2026. As part of our social value programme, as well as supporting the new Nicer Neighbourhoods Initiative, we’ve has also donated £500 to the council’s Borrow It initiative which gives residents the opportunity to borrow fully PAT-tested tools to carry out small DIY jobs in their homes.

Simon Wilson, Operations Manager at Novus Property Solutions said: “Giving back to the communities in which we operate has always been a core value and at the heart of how we do business here at Novus. We were delighted to be able to support Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council as part of our social value programme and it was a real privilege to see the positive impact of the Nicer Neighbourhoods project on residents and the local communities.”

The Nicer Neighbourhoods initiative is an ongoing programme aimed at developing a long-term improvement plan for how the council manages its housing estates. Each project is developed with residents’ input to improve shared spaces who are also invited to take an active role by becoming Community Champions to help guide the development of future Nicer Neighbourhoods locations.

Cllr Gemma Moore, Executive Member for Housing, said: “Creating Nicer Neighbourhoods is a priority for the Council, and it is wonderful to see how collaborative working with our residents and colleagues at Novus has made such a difference to the communal areas in Briars Wood and Heronswood Road and Haynes Close. Works such as these help instil a sense of pride in local communities and I am sure that residents will enjoy using these much-improved spaces. Well done to everyone involved and I look forward to seeing similar transformations across the Borough.”