Agenda item

Purpose: To consider the Draft Housing Strategy, which is due to go to Executive for approval on 25 March 2021.

(Councillor Dillon declared a personal and prejudicial interest in Agenda item 8 by virtue of the fact that he was an employee of Sovereign Housing. As his interest was personal and prejudicial he left the meeting and took no part in the debate or voting on the matter.)

The Commission considered a report (Agenda Item 8) concerning the Draft Housing Strategy.

Councillor Hilary Cole noted that the Housing Strategy covered the period to 2036. She acknowledged concerns regarding the impact of Covid, but suggested it was not wise to delay, since the impacts were unknown and unquantifiable, and the strategy would be regularly reviewed. She noted that it linked to other key strategies, such as the Environment Strategy and the Minerals and Waste Plan. In relation to the consultation, she noted that 477 people had ignored the instruction to read the survey before completing the survey, which resulted in responses being abandoned. As a result only 271 responses were viable for data analysis purposes. She stressed the importance of adopting the strategy.

Janet Weekes made the following points in relation to the strategy:

·         It would replace the current housing strategy adopted in 2010.

·         It was a Corporate priority.

·         A peer review had been undertaken in 2019.

·         It enabled the Council to set out its future strategic plans.

·         Although not a statutory requirement, it would meet a range of statutory duties.

·         It was a high level strategic document linked to other strategies and operational policies.

·         The Housing Strategy would run up to 2036.

·         The consultation ran for 6 weeks, with 271 valid responses received and a consultation report had been produced.

·         Extensive communications had been carried, including use of social media.

·         Key themes from the consultation included: affordability / more affordable housing and environmental / climate considerations.

·         The Strategy was scheduled to be adopted at Executive in March 2021.

She highlighted a number of key challenges:

·         How best to influence the housing market

·         It would require more than just building new homes

·         Mitigating the effects of welfare reform

·         Understanding and addressing the housing need of residents

·         Responding to ever-changing needs, including the effects of Covid-19

·         Delivery of the housing strategy via a delivery plan

She concluded by highlighting the two priorities in the strategy:

·         Priority 1 – Enable every resident to have access to a home that meets their needs

·         Priority 2 – Reduce homelessness

Councillor Tony Vickers noted that 83% of housing was privately owned. He commented that owner-occupied housing was falling and private rented accommodation was growing. He stated that this could lead to insecurity of tenure and there was a need for stability. He was pleased to see measures to incentivise landlords to make arrangements for homeless individuals to retain their security, but asked for further information and confirmation that sufficient resources were in place to address this.

Janet Weekes explained that pressure bids had been submitted to ensure sufficient resources would be in place to implement the strategy.

Councillor Steve Masters noted good progress made in addressing homelessness and asked if there would be a continual need to ask for extra funding from outside the Council. Councillor Hilary Cole stated that the Council had been successful in securing previous Government funding and would continue to bid for available grants in future.

Councillor Masters also asked if the strategy provided the Council with the ability to secure high environmental standards from developers. Councillor Hilary Cole explained that the new Local Plan would address this. She stated that the Council was always keen to enforce high environmental standards in housing, but it was dependent on Central Government rules.

Councillor James Cole suggested that the Housing Strategy should have a third priority, reflecting the Climate Emergency declaration. Councillor Hilary Cole reiterated that the emerging Local Plan would strengthen environmental policies and that it was unnecessary to have a third priority in the strategy.

Councillor Tom Marino asked about the drop in the number of disabled facilities grant paid from 2015 to 2016. Janet Weekes explained that the Council had not achieved spend and the number of grant applications were lower in that period.

The Chairman praised the strategy and indicated that it was superior to the previous version. He suggested that further details should be included on the Council’s Joint Delivery Vehicle and the proposed Council-owned housing company. Also he suggested that research should have been undertaken prior to writing the strategy to identify the level of demand for affordable rent and discounted home ownership products from young people and key workers.

RESOLVED that the report be noted and passed to the Executive for approval.

Councillor Lee Dillon rejoined the meeting. His query about the survey was answered by Councillor Hilary Cole as per the discussion earlier in the meeting.