WORK has started on an innovative £2.3 million housing scheme for over-55s to buy or rent.

The project, at Danesmoor Drive in Bury, is the brainchild of St Vincent’s Housing Association and Bury Council, and is their first ‘"Housing our Ageing Population: Panel for Innovation" (HAPPI) scheme.

The initiative has received funding from the Homes and Communities Agency and the Department of Health, and is due to be completed in April 2016.

Danesmoor Drive aims to offer a haven of "later living" with easy access to local shops, surgeries and amenities, and good public transport links to the town centre.

The development comprises 16 one and two-bedroomed apartments for affordable rent, and three two-bedroomed bungalows for sale on a shared ownership basis.

The new homes offer contemporary style and energy efficiency, with private balconies to each apartment. There is also a communal lounge and garden, with onsite parking.

Cllr Rishi Shori, Bury Council’s cabinet member for finance and housing, said: “This is a fantastic project which the council is proud to be fully behind. St Vincent’s are building top quality, affordable accommodation with services and amenities close by, and I am sure this will be hugely popular among over-55s.”

Charlie Norman, chief executive of St Vincent’s Housing Association, added: “This is St Vincent’s first HAPPI scheme and I know it will be of great benefit to Bury and the locality. The HAPPI schemes are entirely designed to suit the needs of older people who wish to remain completely independent and active."

For more information: go to http://www.svha.co.uk/happi-homes