Award-winning housebuilder Cruden has unveiled proposals to deliver much-needed affordable homes on the site of the former Postings Shopping Centre in Kirkcaldy Town Centre.

The Shopping Centre was opened in 1981 and demolished in 2023.

Design proposals include a mix of affordable housing tenures, including properties for those aged over 55. The development will comprise a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, including a series of colony houses.

Homes will be owned by Kingdom Housing Association alongside Fife Council as part of a long-standing partnership to deliver affordable housing across Fife.

The proposals aim to regenerate a brownfield, derelict site, creating a new, affordable, residential-led hub at the heart of Kirkcaldy Town Centre that will improve and encourage greater connectivity through the site to the High Street.

Significantly, the development will help address Fife’s housing emergency and breathe new life into the town centre, supporting local businesses.

Cruden has now submitted a Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) to Fife Council. This signifies the formal notice of intent to submit a planning application following a minimum 12-week period of consultation.

In accordance with statutory regulations, a comprehensive pre-application consultation programme will be undertaken. This includes the holding of two public consultation events, which will take place on 18th June and 26th August at Kirkcaldy Galleries.

It is intended to submit a formal planning application to Fife Council in September/October.

Rory Stephens from Cruden said: “We are delighted to be bringing forward these much-needed affordable homes to Kirkcaldy for Kingdom Housing Association. Regenerating this current brownfield site will bring vitality to the town centre, supporting local businesses and encouraging greater connectivity through the site to the High Street.

Through the consultation process, we are looking forward to receiving input from the local community, who will play a key part in shaping our proposals.”

Tricia Hill, Development & Sustainability Director at Kingdom Housing Association, commented: “The new homes in Kirkcaldy will bring much-needed new affordable homes to the area in an accessible town centre location.

We are looking forward to working with Cruden on this much-anticipated development, which will deliver homes for Kingdom and Fife Council, helping to address the current housing emergency.”

Cruden is one of Scotland’s largest development and construction groups. Established in 1943, it has built or modernised over 135,000 homes in central Scotland. Cruden manages operations out of three main offices in Edinburgh and Glasgow and is currently active across multiple sites throughout the Central Belt and Scottish Borders.

Kingdom Housing Association (KHA) is a Registered Social Landlord with charitable status.
KHA is based in Fife and works across East Central Scotland, providing housing to meet a wide range of needs.

Over the years, it has developed over 7,500 affordable homes, the majority of which are for social rent. However, it also provides Mid-Market Rent (MMR), affordable housing for sale and factoring services. Kingdom employs around 380 staff and has a turnover of circa £20m per annum.