CDC praised for affordable housing (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

CDC praised for affordable housing

A RURAL watchdog has praised Cotswold District Council for its community spirit in earmarking valuable land for affordable housing and ploughing money from second homes back into the district.

The comments by the Countryside Alliance were made after a report by the Commission for Rural Affairs showed many local authorities were ignoring the funds generated by second homes.

But in the Cotswolds, where the number of second homes is five times the national average, funds from council tax on holiday homes is used for numerous different community-based projects.

Delly Everard, Wessex director of the Countryside Alliance, said other councils could learn a lot from CDC.

She said: "CDC has obviously taken the stance that it values second homes but doesn't want them to elbow out the highly valued local rural community.

"We would like to see more local authorities acting on its model and put money generated from second homes back into rural communities."

This week CDC announced £100,000 from the second homes pot would be put towards affordable housing projects across the district.

Originally £100,000 of second homes funding was earmarked to build flats for the elderly on a site in Tetbury.

But after talks with several housing associations it was decided there was not enough specific need for flats.

The site will now be used to build 11 affordable properties which will be offered to young people, although the council had considered renting them at full market price.

Peter Martin, deputy mayor of Tetbury and CDC councillor, said the decision to transfer the leasehold of the site to Bromford Housing Association and to reuse the money for other affordable schemes was the right one.

He said: "The site was going to be sold off to the highest bidder and I was very pleased that they changed their mind.

"It is bang on the money, it is exactly what the council should be doing. Young people need to be able to live somewhere. I know it is only 11 units but it is the first real number of affordable homes in the town for more than 11 years."

Councillors also decided to plough the £100,000 into several other different projects.

Now £54,000 will be used to cover the costs of employing someone for 18 months to help people with the Homeview scheme after research revealed certain areas of the community were struggling to access it.

Three smaller schemes have also benefited, including Night Stop - a voluntary scheme whereby ordinary people have young people in need to stay with them for one or two nights - which received £8,000.

Other schemes, such as a rent deposit guarantor service and a homeless prevention service, also received funding from the second homes money. The remaining £26,000 is for Gloucestershire Housing Association to bring empty homes back into use.