Agenda item

Housing Delivery Strategy 2020-2025

To consider the draft Housing Delivery Strategy 2020-2025 and, where appropriate, provide feedback for the Executive on 5 December 2019.

Minutes:

Members considered the draft Housing Delivery Strategy 2020-25 and provided feedback on the strategy prior to it being finalised for the Executive on 5 December 2019.

The Director of People Services gave an overview of the Housing Delivery Strategy. The Executive Portfolio Holder for Housing and Benefits Councillor G. Knight was not present at the meeting.

The strategy document was an important step towards delivering the Corporate Plan 2020-25 housing objective to develop and implement a housing delivery strategy. It outlined the Borough’s housing priorities, considered affordability issues as well as the planning policy background and construction challenges.  An all-Member briefing had taken place on 26 September. The strategy set out six objectives to enable more households working or living in the Borough to have a home that is affordable to them. Underpinning these objectives was a commitment to partnership work with housing associations, public landowners, investors, developers and others. An Action Plan 2020-25 was set out in the document.

Councillor S. Walsh declared a non-pecuniary interest in respect of his capacity as a partner of a property management company.

Committee Members had a number of questions and comments in the discussion that followed:

·       Affordable housing – Members noted the Council had a good track record of meeting the Government’s affordable housing target each year but the target for delivering affordable housing on Council land was still small. Members asked if affordable housing schemes could be expanded on current development projects such as Cromwell Road in Redhill town centre.

Members asked if the objective to deliver housing to meet local needs through planning policy (objective 6) could set out more detail about how the plans for building affordable housing were linked with transport strategies and support for local businesses through employment opportunities.

Members asked whether the aim to provide more affordable homes could be set out in the housing vision so it was clear for residents that the housing strategy was not only about building more homes. Clear statements setting out the legal definitions of affordable housing, affordable rented and shared ownership and shared equity also would be helpful for residents who did not feel schemes were currently affordable for them. It was noted that if more affordable housing was not built then young people would move outside the borough to Croydon and Crawley where there was more social rented housing.

It was noted that the Council had increased the affordable housing requirement on greenfield sites to 35 per cent in the Core Strategy. The Corporate Plan committed Reigate and Banstead Borough Council to deliver a minimum of 30 per cent affordable housing on all Council development schemes. Members asked if the 35 per cent target could apply for the Council’s own schemes. They also commented whether the 35 per cent figure could be achieved on greenfield sites due to the high cost of land. Members pointed out that building on the green belt led to additional costs to put in infrastructure such as roads and other services. It was more cost effective to use existing land and buildings such as converting space above shops into residential flats.

·       Council Assets – Members asked about the strategy to use Council land and assets to deliver additional housing and how much of it could be used for this purpose. It was noted that officers were currently working on an assessment of its lands and assets. It owned a modest number of sites across the Borough and was identifying if there were innovative ways to unlock the potential of land the Council did own.

In response to these questions, officers identified that the Action Plan 2020-25 set out an outline timetable on the six objectives. Work underway included appraising Council land and looking at developable sites. The Council was also working on bids with partner organisations such as Raven Housing Trust which brought in not just resources but also access to new skill sets of experienced professionals in this area. An affordable housing development manager had been recruited with a specific brief to work on the affordable housing strategy.

Achieving 30 per cent of affordable housing on the Council’s own land was a minimum target and the aspiration set by the Executive was to achieve a higher figure. Executive Members had discussed this housing strategy at a recent awayday and proposed budget plans would be set out in the Service and Financial Planning report to the Executive on 7 November 2019.

In addition, Members raised the following issues:

·       Environmental sustainability – increased insulation meant new and upgraded houses would be more affordable as heating bills reduced. It was confirmed thatthe Housing Delivery Strategy would include reference to environmental sustainability and the current work to develop this strategy.

·       Permitted development rights – Members had concerns about proposals for offices to be converted to housing where developers did not need to provide affordable housing units or to upgrade building stock. It was noted that officers were working hard to address these issues. Members had lobbied local MPs to bring about a change in planning legislation.

·       Private rented sector – Members noted the increase in the average rental property in the Borough which had risen by 29 per cent between 2011 and 2017 and asked if a standard for private rents could be set. It was confirmed that unfortunately the Council did not have control over private sector rents but it was looking at delivering some private sector rented tenures on a site by site basis.

Members agreed to feedback the Committee’s observations set out in the Minutes to the Executive meeting on 5 December 2019. In addition, the Committee recommended that the six objectives set out in the Action Plan 2020-25 be prioritised with key dates for delivery, including the people and resources that would be required to achieve these aims.

RESOLVED that: the Housing Delivery Strategy 2020-25 be noted and the observations of the Committee taken into consideration for the Executive on 5 December 2019.

Supporting documents: