Report by Service Lead – Affordable Housing (attached).

The Committee considered a report by the Service Lead – Affordable Housing (circulated previously), regarding Funding to Deliver Affordable Housing via Community-Led Housing Models.

The Service Lead – Affordable Housing highlighted the following:

·         There were eight formal Community Land Trusts in North Devon with two Parishes considering becoming Community Land Trusts.

·         This gave the opportunity to provide around 141 affordable homes led and driven by local people in small communities.

·         Government had not renewed the Community Housing Fund and so other ways of funding this initiative had to be found.

·         The Community Land Trusts network, Middlemarch, Officers of North Devon Council and Team Devon had all been lobbying Government to continue funding.  A discussion had taken place with a Housing Minister who recognised the importance of Community Land Trusts to deliver housing and ways the Government could tackle the loss of funding.

·         £3.8 million would be the total required sum to borrow to complete the remaining 8 projects in the pipeline

·         Table 1 at paragraph 5.1 of the report listed the 8 future projects that required funding.

·         Table 2 of the report detailed the potential revenue and capital sources available to fund future projects which totalled £611,602.

·         Officers would continue to work on identifying funding sources and report this back to a future committee meeting.

Councillor Pearson re-declared an “other registrable” interest and left the room after she had addressed the Committee.

In response to questions, the Chief Executive advised the following:

·         The 67% drop in available privately rented accommodation had not changed. 

·         If you looked at a map showing where the Community Land Trusts were you would find a big cluster in North Devon.  This was testament to the hard work by the teams to get them up and running.

·         The loss of available accommodation to rent was not all as a result of holiday homes but also due to Landlords leaving the market.

RESOLVED that:

(a)  the allocation of £611,602 from funding sources as outlined in section 5, table 2 of the report be approved for the delivery  of additional new build social rents delivered through community-led housing models across North Devon, namely:

(i)            Parracombe build costs gap-funding alongside Registered Provider/Homes England funding as set out in 4.9.1 of the report; and

(ii)          Ilfracombe build costs contingency alongside Registered Provider/Homes England funding and Brownland Release Fund as set out in 4.9.1 of the report.

(iii)         One year of set-up grant of £600 for each of the 9 Community Land Trusts/parishes in the community-led housing pipeline;

(iv)         The residual balances of capital and revenue funding available as set out in section 4.10 of the report be used to help further schemes progress be noted;

(b)  Officers continue to work to support the formation of Community Land Trusts in the North Devon community-led housing programme and continue to identify funds available to progress their work;

(c)  When the identified Community Land Trusts in the North Devon community-led housing programme were in a position to proceed, further reports come back to Committee if additional funding was required, outlining the level of support available;

(d)  Negotiations with Devon County Council commence regarding establishing a joint funding pot for community-led affordable housing using the Devon County Council element of funding from the potential Council Tax levy on second homes; and

RECOMMENDED that:

(e)  Council approve to vary the Capital Programme by £520,985 and funds be released, subject to a Grant Agreement upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed by the Proper Officer and Senior Solicitor and Monitoring Officer.