See inside first homes on town’s growing 5,000 estate as families move in

The first of thousands of families have officially moved into their new homes as work on a town’s 5,000-home estate continues.

Thetford's Kingsfleet development has welcomed its very first residents, after Hopkins Homes handed over keys for its newly-built properties.

The housing developer is responsible for the first phase of the estate, which lies alongside the A11 dual carriageway on Norwich Road in Croxton and will see 343 homes, including a mixture of houses and flats from one to five bedrooms.

With nine families already living on the estate, Hopkins Homes said it has focused on making it "a nice environment to live" and so far the new homeowners "absolutely love it".

Ursula Cooke has lived in the town for 10 years and moved onto the new site with her two children on January 17. She said her new home is "beautiful".

Ms Cooke said: "I have moved into a town house which has three floors and I absolutely love it. I really enjoy sitting by my window and looking out at the greenery.

"The development itself is still in its early stages and there are only a small number of houses built so far but from what I can see the actual lay out and the design of it is really nice."

James Miickachel is a dad-of-two and a lorry driver who has just moved in with his family after previously living on the Abbey Estate. He said his favourite part about his new home is his garden.

Mr Miickachel said: "I had researched what company to go with and I knew Hopkins has a good reputation for solid buildings.

"We are very happy with it and I love that we have a bigger garden."

Pigeon Investment Management obtained planning permission in 2016 for up to 5,000 homes, three primary schools, open space, significant employment areas, community and health care facilities.

Lee Barnard, sales and marketing director, for Hopkins Homes, said: "In terms of progress it is still a building site but we have been concentrating on getting all the open spaces and green areas in and those who have moved in are very happy."

Mr Barnard added: "The development itself is quite large so it will take us a number of years to fully finish all 343 homes.

"A lot of effort goes into delivering these developments and they can be quite complex, there are lots of things that need to come together. But to know the homeowner is happy is all we want."