Topping out ceremony at new Â£15 million scheme for older people in Northampton

Dave Allen (Area Manager at Homes and Communities Agency), Nathan Brough (Regional Director at Keepmoat), Shirley Davies (Executive Director Housing Management at Northampton Partnership Homes), Steven Alder (Manufacturing Operations Manager at Fusion), and Tony Tench (Chief Operating Officer at Housing and Care 21).

A new Â£15 million older people's housing scheme in Northampton has reached the highest point of its structural build.

Community regeneration firm Keepmoat and national housing provider Housing & Care 21 celebrated the milestone by hosting a traditional topping out ceremony for partners, which saw a bespoke steel tree placed on the roof.

Foxfields extra care scheme, in Upton, is being developed by Keepmoat on behalf of Housing & Care 21. The development will feature 77 one and two bedroom apartments for the over 55s, as well as 32 flats for sale, and 11 commercial units for rent to local businesses.

The tree, made by steel supplier Fusion, was designed specifically for the topping out ceremony and reflects the building’s steel frame construction.

The topping out tradition can be traced back to Viking times, when Scandinavian builders carried out the tree ceremony to bestow good luck on the future occupants.

The steel tree will be ‘planted’ within the external communal area of the development when completed in May 2017.