Caledonian Court, Peebles
Work started on site in February 2025 at Caledonian Court, Peebles, previously known as Tweedbridge Court.
This much anticipated project will provide 22 new homes in Peebles, with 14 three bedroom lower colony homes and 8 two bedroom upper colony flats.
This long time derelict site will not only provide housing for local people due to the local letting’s initiative in place, but it will also generate lots of community wide benefits, as Eildon and The JR Group (the appointed Building Contractor) work with local groups to reflect the needs of the town.
Neil Wilson-Prior, our Director of Property Assets said ‘We are keen to get started with this project and help to address the housing emergency that has been declared in the Borders and across Scotland.
“This development is a fantastic opportunity to also bring many benefits to Peebles including our support of local initiatives, and we’re already working with Cycling without Age whose volunteers offer a fantastic service in the town. Caledonian Court will provide storage for the Peebles Trishaw, to enable local elderly people to get out and about in the community. We are delighted we can help out with this fabulous project.”
Gary McGregor, Managing Director for The JR Group said: “It is great to be starting work on this modern, energy efficient development following the confirmation of vital funding to enable works to move forward. Caledonian Court sits on a prime location within Peebles, where the affordable housing provision needs to be increased, so we are proud to play our part in bringing these plans to fruition and breathing new life into this area of the town. “
“This is our first project with Eildon Housing Association, so we look forward to building a strong working relationship with them and progressing with the development over the coming months.”
We are committed to keeping the community updated on this project throughout the build and are hopeful that new tenants can move into their homes by Summer 2026.
The old dangerous derelict Tweedbridge Court building site before and after demolition
Latest progress update
JR Group will start piling works on Tuesday 22 April 2025 which is due for completion week commencing 5 May.
Residents in the area have been sent a letter with an update on this.
Between the 22 – 23 April – there will be artic deliveries of materials and plant for piling works. To allow access for transport, residents have been asked to avoid parking on the corner of Dukehaugh. Thank you so much for your co-operation with this.
Questions and Answers on this development
Margaret Blackwood Housing Association, who managed the former Tweedbridge Court development decided the old building was no longer fit for purpose around 20 years ago. Following many years of trying to redevelop this site for a range of different purposes, they decided to end their interest in the project. Eildon then purchased the site to ensure it could be regenerated and we demolished the derelict building as it was an eyesore and a health and safety risk.
The site has a range of constraints, not least is the proximity to the river in a zone which is considered at risk of flooding for the purposes of planning consent for new buildings. Therefore, the need to use the footprint of the previous building and raise the levels to deal with the flood risk meant that it was not possible to regenerate this site for the purposes of sheltered housing.
When we have a new development, we develop a Local Lettings Initiative to address housing need within the specific community, and we commit to working with local community interests to progress this. The Local Lettings Initiative will set out our approach to meeting specific local needs and achieving a balanced mix of tenants. This will also give preference to local applicants who live in and contribute to the local community.
Our current Allocation Policy has just recently been reviewed and the new version will be implemented from 1 April 2025.
We anticipate that there will be high demand for these homes, and we will look to work with local groups to find out if there are any particular housing pressures or unmet housing need in Peebles. Typically we get 80-100 bids per home, which demonstrates the incredible need for homes in the Scottish Borders.
As a tenant with us you will be given a tenancy agreement with your rights and responsibilities.
Rents for our properties are set using the Eildon Housing Association Rent Policy. A rent policy is a legal requirement for all registered housing associations.
We are a non-profit organisation. We have to charge a basic rent to cover our costs. These include:
- One-off repairs and maintenance
- Regular maintenance
- Provision for covering future major repairs and modernisation
- Loan charges
- Housing administration
Our Rent Policy takes account of our business requirements, good value for tenants and rents charged by similar landlords. Find out more about our rent charges.
Works began in February 2025 to set up the site.
Indicative timing for completing the development and new tenants moving in, will be late summer 2026.
To find out more, please contact our Allocations team on 03000 200 217 or by emailing allocations@eildon.org.uk