Affordable Housing for Bassetlaw

I have been reading the reports made to the District Council Planning Committee meeting from early September, especially those concerning the proposed new developments near Tiln Lane Retford for 175 houses and near Gateford Park, Worksop for 750 houses. A page turner it is not but, for all that, buried deep in the reports, there are some interesting nuggets.

Out of the over 900 houses being planned in these two developments, only 46 units will be affordable homes for social housing. This is against a background of a Council House Waiting List in Bassetlaw of over 3600 families (2013 figure) and an abysmal record of new Social Housing provision in Bassetlaw, just 10 house in 2013, all by Housing Associations.

Bassetlaw District Council and the Councillors who approved these scheme should hang their head in shame. How the Council provide homes for the other 3000+ families still on the Waiting List?

The Council has a policy, adopted in January of this year, that states that 15% of all developments in Worksop should be affordable homes (which for the new Gateford Park has been waived!) & for Retford the figure is 25%. Given the size of the waiting list, this is a nonsense. From a quick check with colleagues in different parts of the country, figures of between 30% & 40% are the norm and they also say that they have ways of enforcing this even when developers try to wriggle out of this requirement.

While it may be too late to do much about these two developments in terms of affordable & social housing, Labour-run Bassetlaw District Council needs to look again at its policies in this area and get on with making sure there is adequate social housing for those that need it.