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West Front 2004

They were never council houses in the traditional sense.Ìý They were inherited by St.Edmundsbury Borough Council when it was set-up in 1974, but tenants were never chosen from the housing waiting list. The local authority still owns them and they're being redeveloped by a private company on leasehold.Ìý

The West Front housing dates from the 16th and 17th centuries and was converted from the ruins of the Abbey creating the unique mixture of old and new.Ìý It's thought Abbot Samson from the Benedictine Abbey lived on the site before the dissolution.

Inside the West Front, 2006

The scaffolding and tarpaulins went up in 2004 to protect the buildings, but redevelopment work only began in September 2005.Ìý John Hogg says they've had to work out what they're dealing with "Some of the houses are built on one of the old Abbey churches and we've found some of the original vaulted church ceilings.Ìý Much of the ruins would have extended as far as what are now the tennis courts in the Abbey Gardens.ÌýÌý We can't be sure because so much was destroyed, but we think we've found evidence of a raised walkway that the Abbot would have used.Ìý It certainly got the archeologists excited when we found it behind some plaster!"

Some of the old brickwork

Developer Walter Hawes says it's hard to be accurate, but the final house prices won't be cheap "They're hard to value because they are unique - you can't simply walk around the corner and find a similar development.ÌýÌý The cheaper ones will be £500,000 and the rest will follow.Ìý A lot of money is being spent on the renovations and that's reflected in the price.Ìý The market will do what the market will."