Building the Homes People Need In Salford

We talk to Muse Developments’ Martyn Green about sustainability in Salford and about building diversity as well as homes.

Martyn, can you tell us a bit about your role at Muse?

I am the Northern sales manager for Muse and my role is to coordinate the residential sales teams on various sites we have. Additionally I work on the future residential schemes to ensure we deliver future-proof homes that reflect the changing times and needs of our homeowners.

Muse is one of the UK's leading names in urban regeneration – what are the company's main priorities in this area of work?

It’s a people first business, we want to build buildings that communities need, and really engage with, we don’t just knock everything down and build new we try to integrate the buildings into the existing community to enhance and create a sustainable location that is fit for everyone’s purposes whether they live or work there.

Your latest scheme is Novella – tell us more!

We chose the name Novella as it means novel or story and our tagline is “What’s your story”. This is a residential scheme on the boundary of Salford and Manchester City Centre. The homeowners we expect to buy here will be diverse, and at different stages in their lives, the building will offer flexible living in a fabulous location for all – you will definitely be able to create your own lifestyle if you live here no matter what makes you, you.

Novella

What's the most striking design feature at Novella, do you think?

If you discount the river, Its got to be the residents’ ground floor amenities – included in the service charge you get 24-hour concierge, a residents’ gym, wellbeing suite, a live-work hub with a residents’ lounge are and a snug, and at night you can book these spaces if you want to entertain friends or family. There is even a private dining area you can book for birthdays or special occasions.

Muse talks about a desire to enhance social prosperity within communities, how do you work to achieve this?

I touched on it before, it’s not about knocking everything down, it’s about careful integration, streetscapes, developing for the people, we build communities and whether you live or work there, or both, you feel part of something bigger, this encourages emotional/personal/professional growth, and engagement.

What else do you think could be done to ease the pressure on the housing shortage across the UK?

It’s more housing, it has to be, there is such a shortage and it’s going to take a long time to catch up. But the housing has to be thoughtful, fit for purpose, sustainable, affordable, well made – we can’t just throw up house to fill a void we need to build homes that people feel safe in, can call home, be proud of, and fit their purposes whilst being affordable and not impacting too much on the environment.

What are the main changes you've seen in buyer priorities since the start of the pandemic?

Space, buyers want space, internally and externally, they are looking for places to pop a desk and a chair to set up a home office, and then they want to be able to get out if they are locked in, so gardens, terraces, balconies, or to be near to parks or beaches.

What do you see as being the 'next big thing' in new build developments?

Its sustainability, it’s all we talk about at present, Net Zero carbon homes, PassivHaus, homes that don’t impact on the environment, recycling, innovation – it’s the future and at Muse we are heavily invested in it. Our future schemes will put sustainability front and centre and I am really excited to be part of that.

And finally, what's in the pipeline for the next 12 months at Muse?

Our immediate priority in Salford will be the delivery of Novella and Atelier, two Salford-based apartment schemes which have significant interest in them. Later this year we will start on some very exciting schemes in and around Salford so watch this space!

Find out more about Novella from Muse Developments.

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