FIVE communities are in for a share of a £20m windfall which will see the construction of more than 200 homes.

The Durham Villages Regeneration Company (DVRC) has already delivered about £40m worth of investment in and around former pit villages.

And yesterday, DVRC revealed that it has secured a further £20m which will be used to build houses in Brandon, Cassop, Newton Hall, Sherburn Hill and West Rainton.

Although the majority of properties will be for sale - primarily for the first and second-time buyer - one in five will be for rent or shared ownership.

It is anticipated that construction on the first sites will be under way by early summer.

DVRC is a partnership between the City of Durham and national regeneration specialist Keepmoat.

During the past ten years, both organisations have been involved in the construction of 565 affordable homes for sale and almost 260 for rent or shared ownership.

The building project has helped kickstart the social and economic regeneration in the villages, helping people, once under pressure to relocate in search of work, to remain part of the community.

Haslam Homes, a Keepmoat company and specialist in regeneration projects in the North-East, is responsible for delivering construction of the houses.

About 65 per cent of sales are to people living within a ten-mile radius of the houses, with more than half sold to first-time buyers.

By realising the full market value of land on which the homes are to be built, and by sharing in the profit generated by sales, the council will be in a position to invest in capital projects.

Already £5m has been spent on initiatives such as Annand House in Meadowfield, a bus turning for schools in Bowburn, public art in Ushaw Moor and a community and leisure centre and bowling green in Newton Hall.

In additiion, work recently began on a £12.3m swimming pool and leisure centre in Durham.