Persimmon Homes Essex region are at the forefront of sustainable development has showcased how innovative technology is being used at their latest site in Heybridge, near Maldon.

Persimmon Homes’ invited John Whittingdale MP for Maldon to the Willow’s Reach development in Broad Street Green Road, where work recently started on 281 zero-carbon ready homes, including 140 homes for the community.

The site will be the Persimmon development nationally to benefit from ground source heat pumps, which pump water through underground channels and use the ground’s natural heat source to fuel homes.

The show home is already under construction and a timber frame method has been employed. Precision-manufactured structures arrived at Willow’s Reach ready to be assembled, reducing on-site labour and the risk of weather delays. Timber frame buildings are proven to retain heat more effectively than traditionally built homes, making them more efficient long term.

Richard Hush, Managing Director for Persimmon Homes Essex, said: “We are at the forefront of this new technology, this is the first time ground source heat pumps have been used across Persimmon sites and we are the first housebuilder locally to use these.

“We want to build homes that are energy efficient and future proof, using the very latest in green technology to give the families moving in the confidence that they will not need to adapt their homes in the years to come to meet new requirements.”

John Whittinngdale MP said: “We have a real need for housing in Maldon and this site will help to meet that need, delivering homes for local people, particularly first time buyers who are wanting to stay close to where they grew up or where their relatives are living.

“The technology used here is very much up to date, these homes are fit for the future and will have minimal impact on the environment, which we are keen to see.”