Housing minister Paul McLennan joined North Ayrshire provost Anthea Dickson for the official groundbreaking of 202 homes on the site of the former maternity unit at Ayrshire Central Hospital, Irvine.

The £50 million proposal – supported by £24m Scottish Government grant - will see a mix of general needs houses, amenity bungalows and homes suitable for wheelchair users being built.

Mr McLennan said: “Everyone deserves a safe, warm and affordable home that meets their needs. I am pleased to say that this new development in Irvine will be backed by £24m of Scottish Government funding over the next few years. 

“This development will help to address housing need in the area by transforming vacant land into more than 200 new energy-efficient homes. This was made possible by working together with our partners in North Ayrshire Council and NHS Ayrshire and Arran.”

Councillor Alan Hill, cabinet member for Communities and Islands, said: “This is a landmark development for North Ayrshire Council with work now starting on what will be our largest development of new council homes.

“We have an ambitious building programme and these properties will help take us further towards our target of building 1,643 homes across North Ayrshire.

“As well as providing modern, energy-efficient homes for hundreds of families, it will also help breathe new life into what had become a derelict site.

“We have worked closely with the local community and the NHS as neighbours to ensure the design blends in seamlessly with the architecture of the adjacent Ayrshire Central Hospital.”

The development is being delivered by contractors Ashleigh (Scotland). Euan Clark, commercial director at Ashleigh, said: “We are delighted to commence works on the latest affordable housing development for North Ayrshire Council on the site of the former Ayrshire Central Hospital in Irvine, comprising over 200 much-needed new build homes. 

“The council continues to be a hugely valued client of ours and projects like this allow us both to provide various employment and supply chain opportunities, alongside a number of wider role and community benefit initiatives.”

North Ayrshire Council said it is fully committed to addressing the challenges of climate change, and there will be a range of sustainable features across this site, including air-sourced heat pumps to provide heating and hot water, solar PV panels, triple glazing, mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, and electric vehicle car charging points at every property.

It is currently expected that all homes will be completed by the end of 2027.