Go Haywire this Spring

Photo: Elisabeth Broekaert

Are you a book fan? Yes? Then you might like to know that the Hay Festival is taking place now and runs until Sunday 3 June.

If you have some spare time over the coming week why not have a day out?

Part of the UK’s summer social calendar, the Hay Festival is perhaps the best known literary festival in the UK, if not the world.

Held annually in the town of Hay-on-Wye – famous for its bookshops – the festival has proved so successful that it has spawned other festivals around the world in Columbia, Denmark, Mexico, Peru and Spain.

It doesn’t matter whether you are into history, biography, literary fiction, theatre or crime fiction; there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

The Hay Festival brings readers and writers together to share stories and ideas in sustainable events around the world. The festivals inspire, examine and entertain, inviting participants to imagine the world as it is and as it might be.

Featuring over 600 of the world’s greatest writers, global policy makers, pioneers and innovators
in 800 events across 11 days, the festival showcases the latest ideas in the arts, sciences and current affairs, alongside a rich schedule of music, comedy and entertainment for all ages.

A galaxy of literary stars gathers to launch new work including appearances from Margaret Atwood, Ian McEwan, Michael Morpurgo, Jaquelin Wilson, Lauren Child, Germaine Greer and Bear Grylls.

If you are thinking of visiting the festival go to the festival website to plan your visit.

Some of the star attractions at this year’s Hay Festival Nights include music performances by Jake Bugg, Laura Mvula, Imelda May and the Hackney Colliery Band, plus comedy from the likes of David Baddiel, Dara O’ Briain, Russell Kane, Tony Hawks and Jeremy Hardy.

There is plenty for the children to do and there are lots of events that will appeal to the whole family. Off-site there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy some of the most beautiful countryside in Great Britain.

How to be a good neighbour

This Friday is European Neighbours Day. Neighbours' Day keeps growing with new partners. The celebration is the opportunity to reconnect with the values of solidarity, conviviality and friendship that should be at the forefront of neighbourly relations.

The initiative, originally set up in Paris in 1999, aims to foster community cohesion and create better neighbourhoods where people enjoy living.

The day is about coming together with neighbours in a community activity, which could be anything from enjoying a communal lunch to watching a sporting event or movie together as a community.

You don’t need to confine your neighbourliness to just one day though. The Allison Homes team has come up with some tips on being a good neighbour. They will come in handy when you move into your new home in one of our developments.

• Introduce yourself to your neighbours when you move in and establish a good relationship. Getting to know one another will help should any problems arise.
• Volunteer in your local community. Whatever your interests, talents or skills may be, there are opportunities for everyone. It will impact positively on your life, as well as the lives of those you volunteer for. It offers you a chance to become involved in a project or with an organisation you really care about or develop a new skill. It's also a fantastic opportunity to meet new people.
• Respect your neighbours. Try to keep noise to minimum and don’t leave litter on the streets – that’s not nice for anyone. And remember, keep safe on your journey home and don’t travel alone.
• Love your home. Try to keep everything looking neat and tidy and stay on top of any home maintenance requirements, especially anything that has a visual impact on your neighbours.

Make sure you get involved with the community as soon as you can after you've moved in. Keep yourself informed about community events like fetes, jumble sales and charity events. These are all excellent ways to get to know the members of your community, and really start to feel at home.

Keep your neighbours in the loop. Be sure to let your neighbours know if your house is going to be empty for a considerable period such as holidays. This means they can keep an eye out for anything suspicious and that they know they are next to an empty property.

Always let your neighbours know if you’re planning anything that may affect them, such as a party. Try and hold it at the weekend, keep the noise to a reasonable level, and agree a time to end it by. Make sure your friends leave quietly and you clear up any debris.

Find out when the bin day is. It’s the local authority’s responsibility to provide a waste collection service, but as residents we all need to make sure that we help it run effectively. This is by far the issue that we hear up and down the country that irks residents the most. No-one wants a street with rows of overflowing bins.

Keep pets under control. If you have a dog, make sure your garden is dog-proof, so your beloved pooch doesn’t poo all over your neighbour’s lawn. It you have a noisy dog, take steps to control it.

Generally, be helpful and friendly!

Join us at the Spalding Beer and Music Festival 2018

Allison Homes is sponsoring a barrel of ale at the Spalding Beer festival. The festival starts on Friday 25 May and runs over the weekend until Sunday 27 May.

To celebrate, we have launched a competition on our Facebook page.

Visit  https://www.facebook.com/AllisonHomesUK/ and leave us a comment about your favourite beer for a chance to win two tickets and £10 to spend on beer.

We will be enjoying a pint along with the locals at The Castle Sports Complex, Albion Street, Spalding.

There will be a range of over 70 different real ales on offer to suit most tastes from 29 different breweries. A range of real ciders will also be available. The drinks menu is available here.

Live music will entertain the crowds throughout the weekend and the line-up includes local singer-songwriter Meg McPartlin, comedy skiffle outfit The Ouse Valley Singles Club, Another Girl Another Planet, The Chris King Robinson Band and The Hound Dogs. Click here for the full line-up. There will something for everybody.

Go here  to buy tickets. The beer festival has been organised by the Spalding and District Roundtable.

You will be supporting loads of very worthy causes.

Cheers!

It’s competition time! Win £100 voucher

It’s Fun Friday. As part of New Homes Week our sister company Larkfleet Homes has launched a competition to celebrate.

They're giving one lucky person the chance to bag themselves a voucher for notonthehighstreet worth £100!!

To enter, SHARE on our Facebook or Twitter pages a picture to show your favourite room within your new build home (any new build home, not just a Larkfleet home) before Midnight on Sunday 20th May.

You must tag #Larkfleet to enter the #competition - Good Luck!

Twenty years ago, the World Wide Web was still only seven years old, Google had just launched, and mobile phones still resembled bricks - and we used them to make calls.

The average house price in the UK was £75,806 and annual inflation stood at 3.4 per cent.

In 1998 just nine per cent of households had internet access, compared with over 90 per cent in 2018. Just 20 per cent of households owned at least one mobile phone and there were around eight million subscribers. That figure is now greater than 95 per cent with around 90 million subscribers.

In the 1990s we were in love with quirky furniture like Japanese futons and inflatable armchairs from the US. Kitchens tended to be orange coloured pine with granite tops and walls were stencilled. Bathrooms often featured a corner bath, bedrooms featured floor to ceiling mirrors and bold floral patterns were everywhere.

The 1990s saw a range of colours from aqua marine, peach, lemon yellow and camo colours, reflecting the grunge and graffiti zeitgeist and the calming nature of zen as well-being began to increase in importance in people’s lives.

As Sunday trading laws relaxed in the 1990s and out of town shopping centres sprang up, DIY boomed. People spent more time and money on home improvement.

Our outdoor living spaces became more important to us in the 1990s. TV programmes like Changing
Rooms and Ground Force became so popular that B&Q’s sales of decking increased from 5,000 to 16 million units by the end of the 1990s.

Home tech such as microwaves, DVDs and CD players increased. Computer games consoles from Sega, Sony and Nintendo were becoming ubiquitous. Apple launched the iMac in 1998 but Windows from Microsoft still dominated the burgeoning home computing market.

On the drive, cars included the Ford Fiesta, Ford Mondeo, Vectra, Astra Corsa and car of the year the Ford Focus. Peugeot launched the 206 and in the affordable luxury/executive car bracket Jaguar launched its new S-type, designed to compete with the ever-popular BMW 5 Series. Audi launched its TT coupe and roadster models while Volkswagen unveiled a new VW Golf-based version of its Beetle – still popular 20 years on.

Popular culture in the 1990s was as eclectic as ever and heavily influenced by the US. In music 1998 was the year Robbie Williams was entertaining you, Fresh Prince was getting Jiggy wit’ it and Celine Dion’s heart went on, and on and on…

On TV young adults (and some older ones) were enjoying South Park and Buffy the Vampire Slayer while children’s favourite The Wombles made a comeback. Comedy classic The Royle family debuted while soaps introduced storylines which began to challenge society rather than simply entertain. Coronation Street introduced the first transsexual character in a British soap while EastEnders’ memorable Mark Fowler HIV storyline ran on. If that wasn’t depressing enough we also watched England crash out of another World Cup Final at France ’98.

Much of what began in the late 1990s remains today in more sophisticated forms. The 1990s set the basis for what we see today in modern homes. Broadband has replaced internet dial-up in our homes. TV is on-demand and Virtual Reality assistants like Siri and Cortana help us to shop and fill our fridges and cupboards with groceries. In fact, most of us do the bulk of our shopping online now.

New homes, which began to be built in more sustainable ways in 1998, now often feature solar panels - a standard feature of new Larkfleet and Allison homes - and other energy saving features include ground and air source heat pumps.

Hybrid and electric cars such as the Toyota Prius or Tesla are likely to be seen on our driveways as electric charging points are fitted in integrated garages.

All in all, we have come a long way in 20 years – although we need to slow down and look around to realise it.

This week is New Homes Week – a week-long event organised by the Home Builders’ Federation to promote the advantages of buying a new build home.

Alongside other activities we are running a survey to get the thoughts and experiences of house buyers.

We are keen to hear from anyone currently searching for a new house or who has purchased a new house in the past twelve months.

Go to www.tiny.cc/larkfleet-survey to take part in the survey.

Complete the survey and we will enter you into our prize draw for a chance to win £500. Agree to a follow up interview and you will be entered in a second draw to win a further £500.

The Allison Homes team is always working to develop new ways to provide the best possible products and services to our customers. We want to know what house buyers really think of the housing market and what they want from housebuilders like us.

Your views will help to shape the way we meet the needs of home buyers in the future.

We have teamed up leading media organisations First Time Buyer Magazine, What House and What Mortgage to develop and deliver a comprehensive survey to find out what you, our customer, is really looking for in a new home.

The survey covers everything from the type of property people are looking to buy or have bought (whether it’s for their own use or an investment) through to topics such as location, size and energy efficiency.

It takes less than ten minutes to complete at www.tiny.cc/larkfleet-survey. The survey is being managed by independent marketing company OlsenMetrix Marketing and all the data collected will be anonymous.

Take Larkfleet Homes' New Homes Week Facebook poll

As part of New Homes Week our sister company Larkfleet Homes is conducting a poll to find out exactly why it is people like you prefer to buy a new home rather than an older home.

To take part in the poll visit our Facebook page.

There are many reasons why it is better to buy a new home than an older previously occupied home.

Here are just a few of them:

• A fresh start - A new home is fresh, bright and clean, untouched by previous owners, it provides a blank canvass on which to stamp your own style and personality from day one.  The price is right - Most house builders price their homes to sell swiftly and may offer generous incentives and help with moving costs to provide unbeatable value for money.
• Greener and cheaper - Today’s new homes are built to the latest environmental standards, are more energy efficient than older homes and could reduce utility bills by more than £500 a year.
• Peace of mind - The quality of house building construction and service has grown significantly in recent years. Many house builders provide a comprehensive customer-care service and added peace of mind is provided by the 10-year warranty issued by organisations such as the National House-Building Council.

Our poll will hopefully demonstrate the many benefits of buying a new home and highlight the most popular.

We will tally the results at the end of the week and publish the results on our blog and on social media.

Make your views count. Visit Facebook to take our poll.

New Homes Week Meet the Team Monday - Behind the scenes at Allison Homes

This week is New Homes Week. As part of a series of activities throughout the week we would like to invite you behind the scenes at Allison Homes to meet the team that makes dreams come true.

There are two things about Allison Homes that you might notice immediately.

One is our CEO Karl Hick - the 'public face' of The Larkfleet Group of Companies, which includes us and our sister company Larkfleet Homes. The other is our high quality new homes in locations in the East Midlands and East Anglia.

While it is fair to say that Karl is the driving force that helps us deliver our developments he is supported behind the scenes. Firstly, there is Karl’s wife and joint MD Helen Hick (pictured above with Karl).

Then there is a small army of staff including architects and planners, construction staff and contractors, craftsmen and trades people from across the industry, site managers, sales people and admin staff. In fact, we currently employs more than 100 full time staff. And we support many times more jobs than that through our contractors, sub-contractors and suppliers.

It’s the staff and the 'supply chain' who make Allison Homes tick and deliver the quality new homes that people have come to expect. It really is a team effort.

• Architects and planners - Allsion Homes designs its developments carefully. Planning, landscaping and the built environment are all carefully considered. There is full submission to the local council of all drawings and documents relating to the development prior to commencement on site and there are several pre-commencement meetings.
• Site managers –  each Allison Homes site is overseen by a site manager. He or she has responsibility for everything from health and safety and ensuring that the roads are kept clean to liaising between contractors and customers as new homeowners take possession of their new property.
• Contractors, subcontractors and tradesmen – these are the guys and girls who build your new Allison home. Highly skilled bricklayers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, plasterers, painters and decorators and tilers and roofers work together to bring each new home to completion from foundations and groundworks to topping off the roof.
• Sales staff – once the houses are ready to be occupied (or, more often, before they are ready as people buy 'off plan') they need to be sold. That’s where our sales teams come into the frame. Our director of sales oversees the team of sales executives who liaise with our customers to deliver the best possible levels of service.
• Admin staff – keeping everything running smoothly we have our admin staff who help to ensure that everything is in its place and there’s a place for everything. From accounting to personnel there is a small army of unseen (by the customer) individuals without whom nothing much would happen.
• Last, but not least, we have the teams behind our marketing activities including web designers, graphic designers, social media experts, copywriters and marketers who present our wares to the public – all overseen by our director of marketing.

It’s like the rolling credits at the end of a blockbuster movie. All these people are working hard to get you into your dream home - a large group of people in distinct roles all working together as part of a team to deliver the best possible product.

What better reason do you need to buy new? We’ll make your dream a reality.

Why buying new gives you peace of mind

You can’t beat the peace of mind you get when you buy a new home, the peace of mind that you don’t get when you buy an older home.

You can be confident that you’re doing your bit for the planet with the added peace of mind that you are living in a safe, secure home.

Green living – Many new homes come with energy-efficient heating systems, solar power, excellent insulation and double glazing as standard.

Incentives – Many housebuilders offer great incentives for their new builds. Government-backed schemes such as Help to Buy are readily available on many new developments.

Security – New homes will have better locks than older buildings and often come with security alarms and lighting. Fire safety is also improved by using fire retardant materials and fitting smoke alarms.

Warranties – New build properties come with insurance backed warranties from the National Home Building Council or Local Authority Building Control. This give s you added peace of mind that you won’t be hit with unexpected bills for repairs.

Relax – you won’t have to worry about DIY or maintenance, so you can enjoy your weekends without having to worry about repairs.

We will be promoting the benefits of buying a newbuild home during New Homes Week next week. Organised by the Home Builders Federation, the week will give you plenty of food for thought if you are thinking about buying a new home. Check back regularly for buying tips and advice, polls and competitions.

To find out even more about buying a new home in Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, Rutland or further afield take a look at our website.

Enjoy your own Eurovision party

This weekend is the 63rd Eurovision Song Contest which will be broadcast live from Lisbon in Portugal.

The first contest was broadcast to millions of TV viewers in 1956 and has been going strong ever since. It has given us some iconic songs and TV moments. ABBA won in 1974 and have enjoyed success ever since. The song Volare is one of the most covered Eurovision songs with stars like Dean Martin and Cliff Richard releasing versions of the tune. And who can forget the moment that Bucks Fizz ‘revealed all’ when they won the song contest in 1981?

Many of us regard the whole thing as a bit ‘kitsch’ but what a great excuse to have a party!

The BBC has launched a Eurovision 2018 Party Pack. It includes a sweepstake kit and your own semi-final and final scorecards. Have some fun keeping score and betting on your favourites.

Invite your guests to come in fancy dress – either national dress of participating countries or mimicking some the outlandish get ups that the performers have worn over the years.

Keep your guests’ glasses topped up with Mateus Rose, Vinho Verde or Super Bock beer and treat them to some classic Portuguese food. Grilled meat, sardines and Peri Peri chicken are popular.

Seafood is a must. Shell fish and salt cod are a Portuguese favourite. Whatever you choose to serve keep it simple - the music and the broadcast should be the focus of attention.

The Semi-final is on Friday night and the Grand Final will be broadcast live on Saturday night (12 May). You could have two bites at the party cherry - so get your party packs ready, make sure your telly is front and centre and enjoy the action.

We will!

Next week is New Homes Week and the team at Allison Homes is pulling out the stops to make it a special week for our customers. The event is backed by the Home Builders’ Federation, an industry body of which we are members.

New Homes Week is the chance for you to find out more about the massive benefits that buying a new build home gives you.

These range from the superb finishing touches and quality specifications of an Allison Home, to the many excellent deals and offers house builders can offer you, including a 10-year warranty as standard. The peace of mind you get when buying a new build home is unrivalled.

And don’t forget the hugely popular Help to Buy equity loan scheme and the new Help to Buy ISA, that could be the difference between being able to afford your own home and renting for another year or more.

We will be running a series of themed days throughout the week. Visit our website and social media and you could scoop yourself £100 in shopping vouchers.

Here’s a taste of what’s going on:

On Tuesday we will be conducting a social media poll on ‘New’ versus ‘Old’. The results of the poll will be totted up at the end of the week and we will report the findings here so watch this space!

We have come up with our top five home ownership tips and we will be publishing them as part of our Wednesday Wisdom activity.

Curious about what home buying was like 20 years ago compared with today? On Throwback Thursday we will be comparing the consumer trends of 1998 with those of today.

On Fun Friday, share a picture of your favourite part of your new build home! We are offering a £100 Not On The High Street voucher as a prize for the best one.

Keep an eye on our social media. There could be a few surprises during the week.

Here comes the sun!

It looks set to be a fine weekend according to the Met Office. Not only that, we could be in for one of the warmest early May Bank Holiday weekends on record.

The changeable weather of the past week or so is being pushed northwards by high pressure moving in from the southwest. This is bringing a good deal of fine and dry weather for many for the weekend, the weathermen say.

Today and Sunday will be dry and warm with sunny spells for most of England and Wales with temperatures reaching mid-20s Celsius, although it may be rather misty around some coasts in the south and west. Scotland and Northern Ireland will be breezier and cooler, with some rain around.

By Bank Holiday Monday, most of us will be seeing sunshine at times and it will be very warm with temperatures in the mid and perhaps high 20s Celsius with the chance areas in the south east could reach 26 or 27 °C.

According to Met Office data, the warmest early May Bank Holiday Monday on record is 23.6 °C recorded on 3 May 1999 in Martyr Worthy (Hampshire), Worcester and Malvern. The warmest early May Bank Holiday weekend as a whole on record is 28.6 recorded on the 6 May 1995 at Cheltenham (Gloucestershire), 2 May 1981 in Grantown-on-Spey (Morayshire) and 30 April 1988 in Kinbrace (Sutherland).

Chris Bulmer, Deputy Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office, told us: “We can’t promise wall to wall sunshine for everyone this Bank Holiday weekend, however, it’s looking like most of us will get some prolonged warm sunshine at times. Parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland will be cloudier with the chance of some rain, mainly in the west.

“The best of the sunshine and the highest temperatures are expected across England and Wales away from the coast and for Bank Holiday Monday itself it is possible that temperatures could be record-breaking.”

With the widespread sunshine this weekend comes a fantastic opportunity to get out and explore the events and attractions right here on our doorstep whether enjoying a trip to the seaside, countryside or on a city break. There are so many amazing year-round activities and experiences for visitors to enjoy whatever the weather, right across the country. Have a look at our locations for some info on amenities in your area.

It also looks like the good weather this weekend will be good for gardening. So far this spring, weather conditions will have delayed some tasks in the garden. With a fine forecast for the three-day weekend across most of the UK, gardeners should feel excited they will have the time to invest in their gardens and have time to spend relaxing with families and friends enjoying the fruits of their labours. A perfect end to National Gardening Week.

A word of warning though! The sun is strong at this time of year, so if you are outside make sure you protect yourself from the strong UV rays and stay hydrated. You can find tips and advice on this from the NHS here.

We are still in the tree pollen season as well. Levels are expected to rise again in the sunshine over the Bank Holiday Weekend so make sure you have your antihistamines handy. Hay fever tips and advice can be found here.

Fancy getting involved in National Gardening Week?

As a regular reader of the blog you’ll know that some of us in the Allison Homes team are keen gardeners. We don’t need much of an excuse to talk about all things horticultural.

So, we were  pleased to learn that this week is National Gardening Week (30 Apr-6 May). Organised by the Royal Horticultural Society, NGW is probably the UK’s biggest celebration of all things gardening.

Thousands of people, gardens, charities, retailers, culture and heritage organisations and groups have got involved since the RHS organised the first week seven years ago.

The theme for this year is all about sharing a passion for plants. The RHS is running activities and events to inspire and help you, including tips, creative ideas and suggestions for plants to grow indoors and outdoors at all four of its gardens. You can find out more here.

If you want to join in the celebrations, there are events and activities being run up and down the country. From beginners’ workshops to guided walks, face painting to garden parties, there’s something for everyone and everyone is invited. Here’s a list of events throughout the week.

Want to get involved? You could throw a garden party. You could also get out and give your neighbourhood park or local street a tidy up. National Gardening Week is encouraging people to run events and registering online. No matter how big or small your idea, the organisers love to have you involved. You can register here.

If you don’t fancy doing something big, there are plenty of things you can do yourself or with your family to get into the spirit of National Gardening Week, from growing tomatoes on your windowsill to sprucing up your driveway. Here are a few ideas.

Whatever you decide to do, have fun. A long Bank Holiday Weekend is approaching, and the Met Office tells us the weather is improving, so there is no excuse not to get out there and get gardening.

Get into local history

This month is Local and Community History Month. It’s an ideal time to get into the history of your local community or your wider local area.

Have you ever wondered about some of the more interesting buildings in your town or village? Why is that house called Dragon House? What’s the story behind those old photos adorning the walls of the local pub? What was happening locally during WWII?

Local and Community History Month gives you the perfect opportunity to find out. You could also visit places of interest in your area, local museums, country houses, churches – the list is endless. We have listed below some of the websites of local history groups and societies which have links to many places of interest listed.

The aim of the month is to increase awareness of local history, promote history in general to the local community and encourage all members of the community to participate.

Activities happen across the UK and include trips, library exhibitions and local lectures. It is a great way for groups to highlight local history and for local people to get involved.

Each year the event goes from strength to strength. Here is a searchable database of events organised by members of the Historical Association.

Local councils have plenty of information on local history. Peterborough’s Vivacity website has a website here and the first port of call should be the local library.

For those living in and around Stamford pay a visit to the Stamford and District Local History Society website.

In Rutland check out the Rutland Local History and Record Society and in Lincolnshire check out the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology.

In the East Midlands the Nottinghamshire Local History Association has a wealth of information while Northampton Heritage is also interesting for those living in the county in places such as Corby.

In Taunton check out the South West Heritage Trust for details of museums and local history education in the region.

In East Anglia have a look at the Norfolk County Council website and in Suffolk check out the Suffolk Local History Council. 

Joining a local history group is also a fantastic way to make new friends and join like-minded people in an enjoyable hobby.

Whatever you’re interested in finding out about your local area – Local and Community History Month is a fantastic opportunity to get involved. And with bank holidays at the beginning and end of the month there is plenty of time to get out and about.