Newcastle City Council invests in houses of many colours

Keim Mineral Paints have been used for external re-decoration as part of a multi-million pound Newcastle housing regeneration programme.

Back in 2003, Newcastle City Council presented a new private sector housing strategy, which was at the centre of wider regeneration plans for the whole of the City.  The thrust of this strategy was to improve the poor housing conditions at the lower end of the market. 

The areas of Elswick Triangle, Arthur’s Hill and Wingrove Terraces which are all located in the Inner West area of Newcastle were declared a renewal area in 2006.  There are approximately 2400 households in this area.  The Neighbourhood Renewal Assessment process indicated that the 3 areas had emerged from a period of relative housing weakness and appeared capable of benefiting from inward investment.

Keim Mineral Paints were selected as a partner for the regeneration programme on the basis of their environmental credentials, one of the objectives of the project was to ensure property maintenance and management supported environmental sustainability.

Part of the Inner West Phase 3 programme included Bishops Avenue, which was named the ‘Street of many colours’ as every house was painted in a different vibrant colour using Keim Mineral Paints, making it a landmark almost overnight.

It wasn’t just the buildings that were brightened up, the change had a major impact upon the atmosphere of the area, it gave everyone a lift, brought out the community spirit and made people smile, turning the area into an attractive urban space with buzz. 

“The change caused a bit of interest at the time as Bishops Avenue is just off one of the main roads out of the City and is very noticeable.  There were a few jaded properties, painted and unpainted so we appointed an artist who came up with some ideas and opted for the colourful facelift.  It was presented to the property owners as our suggested treatment for their homes and we were amazed that they all loved it – in fact it was probably the easiest ‘consultation’ session we’ve ever done, which, considering the transformation we were proposing, was pretty amazing in itself,” said Craig Wilkinson, Senior Home Improvement Officer, Newcastle City Council.

The original buildings’ envelope was brick but a number of them had unpainted pebbledash render with previously painted heads and sills.  All of the existing pebbledash was removed and the surfaces re-rendered using Keim Universal Render.

Keim Universal Render is a ready to use, easily applied renovation and thin layer wall render for use on all mineral substrates.  Comprising a hydraulic lime and white cement binder with silica and mineral fillers its composition enables the render to accommodate a high degree of movement, thermal expansion and contraction, whilst at the same time preventing surface crazing and cracking. 

The smooth render surfaces  were then painted with a two-coat Keim Granital system.  The renowned Granital mineral silicate masonry paint system was used to ensure that it would last for many decades.  The Keim Granital mineral paint system has been developed as a result of Keim’s 130 years of experience, research and development into mineral architectural protection products. 

In addition to being harmless to the environment in terms of manufacturing and application, Keim mineral paint is odourless and highly breathable, allowing any moisture vapour within the underlying surface to pass through without blowing the paint off.  Mineral paint is incombustible, resistant to mould, algae, acid and alkaline conditions, completely lightfast and does not attract dirt due to its lack of electrostatic charge.  Its microcrystalline structure provides a high light reflectance surface where, even on dull days, a building can appear bright and vibrant.

The areas of High Cross and Bilbrough Gardens were declared a renewal area in 2007, since this time a comprehensive programme of improvements to properties has been carried out.  Comprising 597 dwellings, many of which are Tyneside flats, approximately 60% were built before 1918 and were desperately in need of investment and improvement.  The last major refurbishment scheme in the area took place over 30 years ago.

Even though crime was perceived as being a major problem in the area long term residents still liked it, enjoyed living there and wanted to see the area improved.  80% of the dwellings required repairs within the next 10 years, and 6% were in need of substantial repair.

The overall aim of the High Cross and Bilbrough Gardens regeneration was to deliver an improved and desirable place for the community to live, and to profoundly change the image of the area.

Bilbrough Gardens comprises 91 properties in total.  12 pairs of 2-storey, semi-detached flats and houses with an inner faced clinker block construction were pre-treated, rendered and decorated.  Some of the clinker blocks had been previously painted, but were in a poor condition and the unpainted surfaces were very friable.  To counteract this the matrix binder was replaced using Keim Silex OH, a consolidant that penetrates surfaces to strengthen the crumbly fabric of the building.  Where required Keim Universal Render was used to fill out the uneven surfaces and was then used for complete rendering of the properties prior to decoration using Keim Soldalit. 

“Keim Mineral Paints transformed the appearance of Bishop’s Avenue and as we had used Keim in the past we were intent on using them for Bilbrough Gardens too.  The technical composition of Keim mineral paints makes it difficult to use an alternative as we are guaranteed longevity, reliability and durability.  Keim adds value as the render won’t crack, which was one of our key requirements, we wanted a low maintenance and high performance decorative finish,” Craig Wilkinson concluded.

“Colour is important in all of our lives.  It is often taken for granted; but interest in colour has never been as great as it is now.  The world would be a sad and boring place if it were only grey and monotone, without colour.  The impact that coloured house exteriors has had on the Bishops Avenue community proves the point,” said David Pratt, Managing Director, Keim Mineral Paints.

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