13 May 2025, High Wycombe – Paradigm Housing Group and LIFE Build were joined by Emma Reynolds, MP for Wycombe, for a ‘breaking ground’ event at Paradigm’s Desborough Road development site in central High Wycombe. The visit signalled the start of building Paradigm’s new housing on the site of the former W M Burch furniture factory, which closed in 1994.
The site is being built for Paradigm by contractor LIFE Build and will provide 22 shared ownership houses, which are due to be complete in early summer 2026. The homes have been designed to be highly sustainable, all using timber frames with high-insulation materials and high-specification glazing. The homes will be heated and have hot water provided by air source heat pumps to ensure energy efficiency and include electric car charging points as well as off-road resident parking.
Paradigm Chief Executive Matthew Bailes commented, “Most of our new homes come from development partners that already have planning and detailed design finalised. Desborough Road is different for Paradigm, as we worked on the scheme from scratch and then let the building work to LIFE Build. We would love to do more of these in the future, so we are looking forward to seeing this progress.”
Emma Reynolds said: “I often hear from constituents about their housing challenges, so I was pleased to attend the ground-breaking event for Paradigm’s new shared ownership homes on Desborough Road. These are a great first step on the housing ladder for young families. Fixing the housing crisis is a government priority – we have pledged to build 1.5 million new homes over five years.”
“LIFE Build is delighted to be working with Paradigm Housing”, Ken Adams Chairman of LIFE Build said. “It’s important that local businesses work together for the benefit of the local community, we are very proud that we have been chosen to be part of this project to construct 22 homes and we look forward to the day when we can hand them over for the families of High Wycombe to enjoy.”
The final scheme will include a total of 20 three-bed homes, and two two-bed homes, all of which will be available for purchase under the shared ownership scheme to ensure they are affordable to new buyers.
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