SUPERFANS of Braintree rave band the Prodigy can bid for a tenuous bit of Keith Flint history.

Keith, who tragically died two years ago, went to Boswells School in North Springfield, Chelmsford, after his family moved to Essex in the mid-1970s.

Now the former caretaker’s house next to the school is going under the hammer.

Auctioneer Paul Bridgeman said: “Tread in the footsteps of the Prodigy’s Keith Flint – the late rock star was a colourful presence at the school – by putting in a bid for School House in Burnham Road.

“The house will make an ideal family home or has potential for room lets for teaching staff at the school – and there’s even a fishpond.

“The three-bed property, in a popular residential area to the north of Chelmsford, may also offer an opportunity to extend or re-configure, subject to all necessary consents being obtainable.”

There are more than 100 lots up for grabs at the Clive Emson land and property auction on Wednesday, February 10.

Meanwhile, home building in mid Essex slowed last year despite a spike in activity over the summer as coronavirus restrictions were lifted.

In the Braintree district, work started on around 570 new homes between January and September last year, according to data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

That was down by five per cent compared to the same period in 2019, when there were roughly 600 new home builds.

But construction increased between July and September as the coronavirus pandemic eased with work starting on around 230 homes – up from around 100 between April and June, when the country was plunged into lockdown.

In the Maldon district, work began on just 90 new homes over the same period. That was a massive 72 per cent fall on 2019, when there were about 320 new home builds.

Construction tripled as the pandemic eased with work starting on around 30 homes – up from around ten between April and June.

Across England, work started on 91,000 new homes in the first nine months of last year, a 26 per cent fall from the same period in 2019. Between July and September there were 40,000 new house builds, up from 18,000 between April and June.

The Home Builders Federation says the increase was buoyed by the lifting of house selling restrictions in May.

Spokesman Steve Turner said: “Since the restriction on house sales was lifted we have seen very high levels of demand for new homes.

“Construction has continued apace to meet this demand but inevitably delays have occurred as a result of staff absences and supply chain blocks.”

Mr Turner said the industry was “still some way” off the Government’s target to increase housebuilding to 300,000 a year by the mid-2020s.

A spokesperson for the MHCLG said: “We delivered 244,000 homes in 2019/20 – the highest in over 30 years – and doubled the number of homes started in the last quarter compared to the one before.

“During the pandemic we have taken decisive action to support the industry, allowing construction sites to operate and reopening the housing market safely.”