The Welsh Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government has paid a visit to Monmouthshire Housing Association’s newly improved and retrofitted homes at Newland Way in Wyesham.

During the visit, Jayne Bryant MS, along with Wyesham councillor Emma Bryn and deputy leader of Monmouthshire County Council Paul Griffiths, met with residents and project partners to hear more about the upgrades and see first-hand the impact the works have had on residents’ homes.

The £1.2 million project, completed in partnership with Monmouthshire County Council, began in 2024 to transform 14 two-bedroom apartments, improving energy efficiency and helping residents reduce their energy bills.As part of the works, the roof covering was replaced and strengthened to allow the installation of solar panels, concrete walkways and staircases were demolished and replaced with metal ones, external wall insulation was installed with a combination of brick slip and render finish and drainage, and ventilation were upgraded. As a result of the upgrades, all MHA apartments at Newland Way have now achieved an EPC rating of A.

Ms Bryant, said: "It was great to visit Newland Way and see for myself the difference these improvements have made for the people who live there.“This is exactly the kind of project that the Welsh Government's Optimised Retrofit Programme was designed to support, and it shows what can be achieved when housing associations, local councils and contractors work together. We want every social home in Wales to be warm, safe and fit for the future, and projects like this bring us a step closer to that goal."

Throughout the works, residents were placed at the heart of the project and Newland Way resident, Sheila Thomas, said: “The work that has been done is amazing and it has completely transformed the place. The team was always helpful and any time we had a problem they came straight away to sort it out.

“My home now feels warm, cosy and genuinely beautiful. People passing by have even commented on how brilliant the flats look.”

In addition to improving the homes themselves, the project delivered wider benefits for the community through MHA’s Community Benefit Funding. Through the scheme, contractors contribute towards initiatives that support the local community alongside the main works.

At Newland Way, Cardo Group set aside funding to install new waste and recycling storage units and added raised planters to enhance the shared outdoor spaces for residents. Using the volunteering days available to MHA staff, members of staff spent a day constructing these waste and recycling stores and will also plant the raised beds later this spring.

CEO at MHA, Gwyndaf Tobias, said: “We’re incredibly proud of what has been achieved at Newland Way. Through strong partnership working with our supply chain, we’ve been able to deliver innovative, energy‑efficient upgrades that make a real and lasting difference to people’s lives.“

Supported by more than £400,000 from the Welsh Government’s Optimised Retrofit Programme, the retrofit works were delivered by the contractor Cardo Group and operations director Rob Martin, said: “With the upgrades residents at Newland Way will benefit from warmer, more comfortable homes and lower energy bills.