Sometimes it’s the small things – like finally getting a good night’s sleep – that show the difference a new home can make to someone’s life.

In the heart of Port Talbot, people are settling into their new apartments at Eagle House, close to the train station and shops. The development of eighteen 1 and 2-bedroom apartments has transformed the street scene. But more importantly it’s transforming the lives of the people who are living there. As one tenant told us:
“Thanks for all your help with everything. I’ve really settled in and had my first good night’s sleep for months.”

The original Eagle House dated back to the 1800s. Over the years it had been a pub, a hotel, offices and even an Air Training Corps base. But in recent years it had stood disused and was starting to attract antisocial behaviour.

Now, new tenants are making new lives there and benefitting from some of the most high-tech energy saving technologies, which are helping tenants stay warm while keeping bills manageable.

Each home has an air source heat pump to heat water efficiently together with solar panels and battery storage, funded through the Homes as Power Stations (HAPS) project via Neath Port Talbot Council.