Provost of North Lanarkshire, Councillor Jean Jones, unveiled the plaque at the site of the former St. Aloysius Primary School, which has now been transformed into a modern council housing development.

Almost 600 new homes have been completed by the council as part of its ambitious NL Homes programme; which will now see the council more than double its current commitment of new homes to 5,000 (including 550 buy backs) to be delivered by 2035. The Chapelhall site, delivered by Cruden Building and Renewals Ltd, comprises 30 homes - a mix of flats, bungalows and houses.

Inviting Provost Jones into her new home was tenant, Carolyn Winning, who said: “I had lived nearby in a four-in-a-block property for around 20 years and was a bit nervous about making the move to my new home. I haven’t looked back since.

“I love my home. The modern kitchen, space and layout is fantastic and having a back and front door is great. I’m really looking forward to spending my first Christmas here and I’m cooking for 10 as my family was quick to nominate me for providing this year’s Christmas dinner.”

Provost Jones said: “I’m delighted to be involved in the official opening of these new homes and it’s lovely to hear about our tenants’ positive experiences. It’s a privilege being welcomed into Carolyn’s home and seeing first-hand the high quality design and finish of our new builds. I wish all our tenants a very happy future in their new homes.”

Councillor Allan Graham, convener of enterprise and housing, warmly welcomed guests to the official opening. Attending the event were local elected members councillors Paul Di Mascio and Sandy Watson, representatives from the council’s housing service and developers Cruden.

Councillor Graham added: “North Lanarkshire Council is proud of the difference it’s making in providing more affordable homes across its communities. We’ll continue to roll out our NL Homes programme, which has now been further expanded, to improve the lives of our residents.”

All homes are built with energy efficiency in mind to help minimise running costs for tenants. In addition, the new builds also boast dementia friendly design features, including contrasting colours between kitchen units and flooring.

They meet Housing for Varying Needs standards and are Secured by Design accredited, which involves Police Scotland architectural liaison officers having input into the layout and design to ensure the council build’s safe and secure environments.

Gordon Lee, partnering and procurement director for Cruden Building, said: “Working in partnership with North Lanarkshire Council, we are pleased to deliver this exciting new housing development at Chapelhall, consisting of 30 modern houses, cottage flats and bungalows. These high-quality homes are built to Silver Standard energy efficiency levels, providing residents with warmer homes that have fewer carbon emissions and are cheaper to run.

“Throughout this build, it was important that we gave back to the local community. We worked closely with local companies, provided an apprenticeship placement, created a number of work placement and training opportunities for local people and provided donations to local community groups.”

The Scottish Government contributed towards the development costs at each site.