A MULTI-MILLION-pound project to overhaul tatty council homes in a Southampton estate has been completed.

The new development at Cumbrian Way in Millbrook has seen ten in a dilapidated block replaced with 50 new properties and a One Stop convenience store.

The £3.7m development is part of the council’s ongoing estate regeneration programme, launched by the previous Conservative administration.

Labour has since taken over the programme and vowed to press on with plans, which included a major overhaul of the Townhill Park estate.

But Labour housing chief Cllr Warwick Payne recently faced resignation calls over his handling of the programme, with concerns that Townhill Park had stalled and the city council admitting that the plans were behind schedule and over budget.

Cumbrian Way was one of several sites lined up for regeneration, with its six council and four private homes earmarked for demolition.

The plans for the site continued under the council’s current Labour administration, and construction firm Drew Smith started on site in March 2013.

The flats are currently being occupied by their new tenants, with 16 being private two-bed apartments, 22 run by housing association Radian and 12 in shared ownership with the organisation.

More than £40,000 was put into the project by the Partnership for Urban South Hampshire and a further £787,000 by the Homes and Communities Agency, with the rest stumped up by Radian.

As part of the development there have also been improvements made to the area around the site, with new ‘Billy and Belinda’ bollards providing a safe route to school via the Boardwalk, and a new one-way road design has been introduced on Helvellyn Road.

Cllr Payne said: “This development is a wonderful example of how we can work with our communities to provide solutions that meet their needs.

“This sensibly designed scheme has been considerately delivered by our partners to provide real benefits, with excellent housing, new shopping and safe routes for our children.”