Lincolnshire Employment Accommodation Project (LEAP) is refurbishing its head office to create 15 new one-bedroom, energy efficient flats as part of a £1.9m funding deal from Unity.

LEAP bought its first four properties back in 1995 with £250,000 National Lottery funding. Today, it provides 77 bed spaces across Lincoln and Gainsborough and has homed 1,500 people in housing crisis. It  also provides bespoke education, training and services to support their clients’ to lead independent lives.

Heidi Walton, CEO at LEAP, said: “We help a range of people, from those fleeing domestic abuse to those who have mental health issues. The support we offer is anything from how to cook for yourself to providing the skills needed to find employment.”

Homer House, purchased in 2010, consists of eight flats, ten hostel bedspaces and office space. The bedspaces have not been utilised for many years due to a change to services. Therefore, LEAP considered it an underutilised resource and wanted to convert the office space into additional accommodation.

Heidi said: “We’d been with a high street lender since we formed. In recent years we felt they treated us as high risk. They didn’t support us because we’re a charity but we have a more stable income than most businesses. When it was time to refinance, we decided to find an alternative lender. Unity was recommended by one of our trustees. When I met relationship manager, Sukhie Gakhal, I knew straightaway Unity was the bank for us. Sukhie could see what we’re trying to achieve and was fully supportive.”

While Lincoln suffers from an acute shortage of affordable housing, Gainsborough is in the top 3% of deprived wards in England. LEAP provides short-term accommodation for up to two years and its mission is to equip tenants with the necessary skills to go on to lead independent lives. Heidi said: “We don’t want to create dependence on us. It’s all about creating independence. People know that they can’t stay with us forever, but we work with them towards their end journey.”

LEAP is also committed to ensuring its properties meet high environmental standards. It installed 80 solar panels at Homer House when it bought the property in 2010 – the largest solar roof project in Lincolnshire at the time. This latest redevelopment will see air source heat pumps installed in all 15 flats.

Many of LEAP’s other properties have solar panels, LED lighting and motion sensors to reduce electricity wastage. Heidi said: “Our aim is that all our properties will be an EPC grade C or above by 2028.”