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Risky Ploughs Into Housing Promises
The government will meet its manifesto commitment to build 1 million homes over this Parliament, the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has promised – with...
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Lofty Plans And Extensions – Gove’s Long-Term Plan For Housing
Michael Gove has set out plans for regeneration, inner-city ‘densification’ and housing delivery across England – along with plans to make it easier for homeowners to add an extension or convert a loft.
Gove said: “New freedoms to extend homes, convert lofts and renovate new buildings will help to convert existing properties into new accommodation. A review into the extension of permitted development rights will make it easier for homeowners to build upwards and outwards – with new extensions and loft conversions – whilst ensuring neighbours’ interests are protected.”
Densification refers to the government’s plan to get more people living in the same space. According to Gove, English cities have a much lower density of population in comparison to Western European cities.
Gove also announced (on 24 July) a commitment to regenerating another three cities/towns. Cambridge, central London and central Leeds have been added, bringing the total to 23.
Work to ‘level up’ towns and cities across the country has already begun in Sheffield and Wolverhampton. Gove, who is the Levelling Up Secretary, also outlined plans to continue working with local partners in Barrow, to help make Barrow a new ‘powerhouse’ of the North.
56,000 new homes
Gove also announced that £800 million had been allocated from the £1.5 billion Brownfield, Infrastructure and Land fund to unlock up to 56,000 new homes on brownfield sites. He said: “We are funding Homes England with £550 million, which, with income generated, will mean a total investment of £1 billion. We are also providing landmark investments of £150 million to Greater Manchester and £100 million to the West Midlands.
“Additional reforms to the planning system will speed up new developments, put power in the hands of local communities to build their own homes, and unlock planning decisions – with a new fund of £24 million to scale up local planning capacity, and an additional £13.5 million to stand up a new ‘super-squad’ of experts to support large scale development projects.”
Regeneration of 20 places – the three
Proposals will see Cambridge pushed to become Europe’s science capital. At the moment, property prices in the area are some of the highest outside London. The plan is to open up building, including on agricultural land, that will bring prices down an attract labour which is in short supply.
Any development of this scale will have substantial infrastructure requirements. The government will deliver as much of the infrastructure and affordable housing as possible using ‘land value capture’ – a euphemism that means agricultural land will be bought for more than it is worth today.
City quarter
Cambridge City Council, Anglian Water, Land Securities and Homes England will work together to accelerate the relocation of a water treatment works in north-east Cambridge (subject to planning permission), unlocking an entire new City quarter capable of delivering approaching 6,000 homes.
London
Described as a ‘Docklands 2.0’, up to 65,000 homes are planned across multiple sites of significant scale including at Thamesmead, Beckton and Silvertown.
London could also benefit from the Affordable Homes Programme being directed towards regeneration for the first time, with up to £1 billion available in London alone. £1 million has been made available to research new ways that industrial land can be released for housing.
Leeds
New funding has not been specified beyond the £40 million that is already being provided to West Yorkshire Combined Authority to support development of greener, quicker and more reliable travel for white collar workers and to ‘identify’ the remaining barriers to delivery for key housing growth sites within the city rim, which could make 20,000 new homes available over the next decade.
Put it in Barrow
Gove also said: “We have plans to continue working closely with local partners in Barrow-in-Furness, to help make it a new powerhouse of the North – extending beyond its current boundaries with thousands of new homes and space for new businesses to benefit from the scientific and technical expertise already clustered there.
56,000 new homes
“We are also investing £800 million from the £1.5 billion Brownfield, Infrastructure and Land fund to unlock up to 56,000 new homes across England, to transform disused sites while protecting our green spaces. We are funding Homes England with £550 million which, in real terms, will be an investment of up to £1 billion through the reinvestment of receipts back into the fund.
“As set out previously, we are also providing £250 million to Greater Manchester and West Midlands Combined Authorities.”
Picture: Head of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Michael Gove, thinks making it easier to convert lofts and add extension is a good idea to help with the housing crisis.
Article written by Cathryn Ellis
27th July 2023