A BARRHEAD woman who faced the prospect of becoming homeless can now look forward to the future after moving into the first social housing development to be built in the town for a generation.

Evelyn Milligan, 60, endured an uncertain time as a number of health issues led to her losing her job.

However, she is now beginning a new chapter in her life as she settles into a comfortable flat in Barrhead town centre.

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The impressive development in Robertson Street and Cross Arthurlie Street was the first of three East Renfrewshire Council sites to get underway and is now home to four families and nine tenants.

Evelyn told the Barrhead News: “Having worked my entire life, I had to give up my job in 2018 due to a number of health issues. My housing benefit wasn’t enough to cover my rent, so I was going to be evicted by my landlord.

Barrhead News:

“I had searched for private properties that I could afford and wasn’t finding anything suitable, so you can imagine my delight when I took the call from the housing team offering me this flat.

“My sister and I were in tears. I had visions of having to move away from my family, to a place where I would be isolated, but here I am in a lovely flat, with nice neighbours, in a great location and, most importantly, I feel safe.”

The development in Robertson Street and Cross Arthurlie Street is made up of four three-bedroom houses and nine one-bedroom flats, which are the first of more than 200 social houses to be constructed in the coming years.

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Other sites that are to benefit from new social housing include Fenwick Drive and Blackbyres Court.

Councillor Tony Buchanan, leader of East Renfrewshire Council, said: “Hearing Evelyn and other tenants tell us how much of a difference the new houses and flats have made to their lives highlights how important our work to deliver much-needed social housing is.”

Councillor Danny Devlin, East Renfrewshire’s convener for housing and maintenance, added that he is “delighted” to see how the development has changed Evelyn’s life for the better.

He said: “Our aim is to create communities and homes, not just houses, and I am really pleased to see the progress made so far with this ambitious project.

“I look forward to seeing more homes complete and hearing more positive stories like this one.”