By Councillor Mrs Temperton to Councillor Turrell, Executive Member for Planning and Transport:
The residents of Bracknell Forest have a real concern about the availability of affordable homes to rent and to buy. There is building going on all around the borough and the Council’s policy is for 25% of the completions to be ‘affordable’. In the first quarter of this year, only five ’affordable’ homes were completed, in the second quarter only eight. The latest plans accepted for the Old Wick Hill site has allowed just six ‘affordable’ homes from a total of 61. This is only 10%.
What is being done to ensure more ‘affordable’ homes are built to both rent and to buy?
How is the Council ensuring that these homes are indeed ’affordable’ for the majority of our existing residents?
If the cap on Council borrowing is lifted, as it seems likely, will the Council build so-called ‘social housing’- homes at lower rents?
Minutes:
Councillor Mrs Temperton asked Councillor Turrell, Executive Member for Planning and Transport the following published question:
The residents of Bracknell Forest have a real concern about the availability of affordable homes to rent and to buy. There is building going on all around the borough and the Council’s policy is for 25% of the completions to be ‘affordable’. In the first quarter of this year, only five ’affordable’ homes were completed, in the second quarter only eight. The latest plans accepted for the Old Wick Hill site has allowed just six ‘affordable’ homes from a total of 61. This is only 10%.
What is being done to ensure more ‘affordable’ homes are built to both rent and to buy?
How is the Council ensuring that these homes are indeed ’affordable’ for the majority of our existing residents?
If the cap on Council borrowing is lifted, as it seems likely, will the Council build so-called ‘social housing’- homes at lower rents?
Councillor Turrell replied that the council’s planning policy position with regard to Affordable Housing was that on sites of more than 15 new homes, where planning permission was required, the Council expected to see the delivery of 25% of those homes being Affordable. He clarified that this was in line with the Government’s definition of what constitutes affordable housing but the 25% was subject to viability.
He added that over the life of the current Local Plan (since 2006) the Council had secured above this target at 27 % affordable housing of total completions.
He explained that this was due to some schemes being completely affordable and others bringing forward more than the 25% requirement for example at Jennets Park. He added that recent examples of policy compliant scheme were Blue Mountain and Amen Corner North. A recent example of a fully affordable scheme which was granted permission was the 200 affordable homes for Market Street, Bracknell.
He noted that there were circumstances where affordable housing could be offset and the Council was obliged to take this into account as this is a national policy. This had been the case at the Wick Hill site where there were existing buildings on this site and a reduction in provision to 10% was therefore obtained legitimately?.
He stated that there was a clear and long-standing record of delivery? of Affordable housing in Bracknell Forest and the consultation on the new Local Plan would include the suggested planning approach to Affordable housing.
Councillor Birch contributed that as part of the housing stock transfer to Bracknell Forest Homes it was agreed to provide 250 affordable homes out of the capital receipt however 400 homes had been provided. In February 2008 it was agreed to close the housing revenue account and there was no intention to reopen it. He added that Downshire Homes had been in operation for two years and had bought existing affordable homes with the rent covering the purchase cost so the Council was already investing in social rent accommodation.
In response to a supplementary question from Councillor Mrs Temperton about why Wokingham Borough Council was able to deliver significantly more affordable homes in the last two years Councillor Turrell replied that this was as a result of many factors. It depended what permissions were put in, which permissions were granted, which sites were delivered (as development was not delivered at a consistent pace) and that Wokingham is a bigger borough than Bracknell Forest.