PROOF - Planning InSite 2016

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carterjonas.co.uk 1 Is affordable housing being squeezed as ‘market’ properties take precedence? Carter Jonas has researched the implications and identified potential solutions… “processes and policies need to change for this issue to be resolved...” THE RACE TO ZERO? Affordable Housing: A race to zero? Available at carterjonas.co.uk Trying to solve the shortfall in new housing provision is not a new problem; politicians have been arguing about how to solve the issue for many years. New development building rates are the lowest they have been post-war. Between 2009/10 and 2014/15 new dwelling completion rates averaged at 115,000 units, almost a third of the rate of the 1960s. In 1970, 300,000 new houses were built in the UK and were split 50/50 in terms of local authorities and private developers. When the Tory administration came to power in 1979, it began to push certain industries into the private sector to take the burden away from taxpayers. From then, until 1992, all public funding and delivery of public housing stopped – and the affordable housing market has never recovered. WHERE DOES THE PROBLEM LIE? The decision by the Conservative Government, along with the introduction of Section 106 agreement (which eased planning obligations), was to ensure that there would be a steady increase in the levels of housing provision to account for local government no longer delivering properties. Instead of numbers increasing, it flatlined and has stayed the same since the 1960s. Tim Shaw, head of Central London development at Carter Jonas, believes several factors are responsible for the shortage: “The figures are telling us that moving everything into privatisation frankly doesn’t work. The private sector house building market has resisted, or has not been allowed to deliver more than the 150,000 units per annum. Some of that is down to market forces – there have always been peaks and troughs in the British economy – that slows down building, and another factor is the mindset of local authorities,” he explained. 12
In a detailed report on affordable housing, Carter Jonas noted: “There is no quick-fix solution to the lack of house building in England, either in the ‘market’ or ‘affordable’ housing sectors, but whilst it is a long-term challenge it does require urgent policy and industry action.” A HOUSING REVOLUTION? The report sets out three separate components that could help address the current shortage. It suggests that products, processes and policies need to change for this issue to be resolved. The ‘Help to Buy ISA’ and ‘Starter Home’ schemes are both valid ideas from the government, and although they help with demand and getting people onto the property ladder, they don’t contribute to the supply. “We don’t have a problem with demand, we have a problem with supply. New schemes to help people on the property ladder are great things to do, but it doesn’t solve the crisis, all it does is increase demand – it isn’t adding to supply. It is assisting an element of our nation to get on the property market – it’s not helping to create new dwellings,” said Shaw. Off-site provision is one suggestion that could alleviate the problem. “There has been a limited mindset for building off-site properties. Local government has resisted this process as they don’t want enclaves of private developments or just affordable housing,” said Shaw. “But we are now seeing London authorities allowing off-site units because they are getting two-to-three affordable units for every property on site,” he added. Current guidance is set by RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) and is followed as best practice. “This guidance is on the side of the developer, it puts them on the front foot,” explained Shaw. “It doesn’t allow local government to make the best possible arguments and negotiate preferable arrangements for affordable housing. “If there was an agreement within local authorities to set a minimum threshold for affordable housing that must be delivered, something Tower Hamlets has done, then developers will only tender for the work if they can achieve that target. “We need the number of new dwellings to increase on a national level. There’s a very obvious way to do it: policies need to change to be more in favour of local government. Once the policies change, then the mindset in local government needs to adjust, so there can be off-site provision. If we don’t do that, we won’t get the numbers we need,” concluded Shaw. <strong>Planning</strong> <strong>InSite</strong> 13
Page 1 and 2: PLANNING Spring/Summer 2016 The lat
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS 08 04 THE NEWS The big sto
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Page 7 and 8: LITTLEMORE PARK CLIENT: OXFORD UNIV
Page 9 and 10: 1. WHAT NEEDS FIXING? “There is a
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