A £42m city-centre tower has delivered 207 homes for affordable rent on a long-stalled brownfield site, in a scheme its backers say signals far bigger ambitions for the region.
BREE Construction (formerly United Living) has completed Saxton Heights, billed as the largest all-affordable high-rise of its kind in Leeds. The tower rises over 20 storeys in the city centre and has delivered 207 new apartments, every one of them set aside for affordable rent. The first residents are expected to move in over the coming months.
The £42m scheme stands on the site of an old car garage that had long sat empty, and the partners behind it have presented it as proof that disused city-centre land can be turned over to genuinely affordable housing at scale.
The 207 apartments span one to four bedrooms, with four of them designed specifically for wheelchair users. City-centre living and sustainability shaped the design in other ways too: the building includes 200 cycle spaces, intended to make it easier for residents to get around without relying on a car.
The plot has a complicated recent history. It had previously been earmarked as a Build to Rent development, only for that scheme to stall and leave the land idle. Development consultancy Identity Consult spotted the opportunity and introduced the site to Vico Homes, the social housing provider that now owns the finished tower, which BREE built end-to-end.
What followed moved unusually fast.
“It is particularly rewarding to see this project delivered as the site was a stalled Build to Rent scheme that we introduced to Vico Homes, who were keen to bring a different affordable housing offer to Leeds city centre. Through close working between Identity Consult, Vico Homes and their solicitors, we were able to acquire the land and sign up a construction contract in five months, a process that could typically take 12 months or more.", Pete Johnson, Senior Director, Identity Consult”
For the consultancy, the tower is a notable entry on its books. Identity Consult has described Saxton Heights as a significant milestone for its residential portfolio, and says it contributed to the delivery of more than 1,600 homes over the past year. The firm employs 72 people across five offices.
Saxton Heights is one of the largest projects yet delivered by the team now trading as BREE Construction, which took the scheme on before the rebrand and saw it through to completion in 2026 under the new BREE name. The post-MBO change of trading name did not interrupt construction; the contract, the project team and the on-site delivery method all carried over unchanged.
“BREE strives to create sustainable housing solutions that have a positive impact. We are delighted to have delivered this project on behalf of Vico Homes, providing much-needed affordable housing for local people and families in Leeds.", Kevin Morris, National Construction Director, BREE Construction”
The completion sits alongside BREE's wider new-build delivery record: more than 7,700 homes built or under construction across 83 schemes nationally, and around £1.3bn of residential contract value delivered or in delivery to date.
The development was made possible in large part by public funding. The West Yorkshire Combined Authority invested £1.2m, while Homes England provided grant funding through its Affordable Homes Programme.
“Affordable homes provide the stability needed to open up a world of opportunities for families. I am committed to delivering a new generation of homes for local people here in West Yorkshire so that they can get on in life. Sites like Saxton Heights are just the beginning. What was once an old car garage is now over 200 affordable homes. In partnership with Vico Homes and Leeds City Council, we've shown we can turn brownfield land into good quality affordable and accessible homes for local families.", Tracy Brabin, Mayor, West Yorkshire”
“As the government's housing and regeneration agency, increasing the supply of quality affordable homes remains one of our key objectives. This development in Leeds is a prime example of how the agency works with local partners through the Affordable Homes Programme to build the homes people need and create new thriving communities.", Shahi Islam, Director of Affordable Housing Grants, Homes England”
Leeds City Council welcomed the homes as a meaningful addition to local supply.
“We know that there is still more to do, and so I'm delighted that Saxton Heights is now finished and ready to welcome its first residents. It will make an important contribution to ongoing efforts, across public, private and other sectors, to ensure that the housing needs of all local people are being properly met. Affordable homes of the kind we see at Saxton Heights can have a transformative impact, not just on individual lives but on surrounding areas and communities as well.", Cllr Mary Harland, Executive Member for Housing, Leeds City Council”
For Vico Homes, Saxton Heights is the largest project it has delivered to date, and the provider has been clear that it sees the tower as a statement of intent.
“This is about more than a new building. It's 207 affordable homes people in Leeds need, right in the heart of the city. We're growing fast, with ambitious plans to deliver 10,000 new homes over the next 10 years. We've made it happen through strong partnerships and we're excited about what we can deliver next, together.", Martyn Shaw, Chief Executive, Vico Homes”
That message was echoed by Joel Owen, Vico Homes' director of development and growth, who described Saxton Heights as the provider's biggest project yet and again pointed to the ten-year goal of 10,000 new homes.
The completion drew together senior figures from each of the organisations involved. Among those pictured together to mark the milestone were Andrew McConnell OBE, Vico Homes' board chair; Sue Young, the provider's executive director for homes and growth; Graeme Borchard, project director for BREE Construction; Ben McLaughlin, senior manager for affordable housing delivery at Homes England; and Councillor Nkele Manaka, Leeds City Council's support executive member for housing.
With the first tenants due to arrive shortly, attention now turns to what comes next. Vico Homes has positioned Saxton Heights as the opening chapter of a decade-long programme to add thousands of affordable homes across the region, and the partners behind it point to the scheme as a template for bringing other stalled or underused city sites back into use.
