This month: Timber-frame fire, Gateway shortfall, Urban Splash quits EP race and more

• The shortfall in homes was more than 4,000 in 2005-06, the latest year for which figures are available. In 2004-05, the shortfall was also about 4,000. The document shows there were about 400 completions between 2004 and 2006. The predicted shortfall for 2006-07 is again 4,000 units. The figures are revealed in the government’s Thames Gateway Costed Delivery Plan, which has been two years in the making. It is due to be launched next week at the Thames Gateway Forum. The document also reveals that between 2001 and 2006, about 14,000 homes were built at the London end of the Thames Gateway – less than half the government’s target of about 36,500. A spokesperson for the communities department said: “Over 90% of new development is on brownfield land and can involve intensive remediation… We remain confident that we will deliver the target of 160,000 new homes by 2016.”

• A fire has destroyed the first homes built at Telford millennium community in Shropshire. The homes were constructed with timber frame. Four three-storey homes burnt down earlier this month. The fire is the latest in a spate of blazes to have ripped through timber-frame buildings in the past 18 months, including projects in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire and Colindale, north London. However, major housebuilders including Persimmon and Countryside have said they will continue to use timber frame. The Telford site belongs to Bryant Homes, part of Taylor Wimpey, where construction of 700 homes began in early 2007. A Taylor Wimpey spokesperson said it understood the fire had been started by arsonists who broke in.

• Developer Urban Splash has pulled out of the competition to build English Partnerships’ first zero-carbon village. The high-profile company won a place on the seven-strong shortlist to build 150 homes on the 6.1ha Hanham Hall site in Bristol in August. But a spokesperson for Urban Splash said it would not proceed as it could not provide a suitable proposal in the competition’s tight eight-week timeframe. Hanham Hall is the first site to come forward in English Partnerships’ Carbon Challenge competition, which is meant to fast-track the housebuilding industry’s response to climate change. The six teams left are: Artisan H, Barratt Homes, Edward Ware Homes, Gleeson Homes, Places for People and Taylor Wimpey.

• Milton Keynes is set to get thousands of new homes following a land acquisition deal by Making Places, a joint venture between land regeneration firm Cofton and property group Places for People. The 2,500 homes will be built on a 365-acre site on the eastern edge of Milton Keynes, which will also include shops and health and community services. The £350m Brooklands scheme already has outline planning permission. Construction work will start in March 2008, with the first new homes available by spring 2009.

• Trafalgar Square in central London is set to get its own eco-house for Christmas. The full-size exhibit house will be the perfect model of a green home and will include interactive displays. Over Christmas the public will be invited to use the exhibition to learn more about how to make their homes more environmentally friendly. The house has been commissioned by the London Development Agency as part of its climate change action plan.