STANSTED: Go-ahead for affordable housing
1:37pm Friday 24th October 2008 in Where I Live
UTTLESFORD District Council has approved a decision that will see the creation of more affordable housing and a new homeless hostel for people in the district.
Councillors have agreed that council-owned land at Manor Road in Stansted – and at other sites in Coney Acre in Rickling, and Waldgrooms in Great Dunmow - be gifted by the council to a housing association for the construction of affordable homes.
The land will be used to supply affordable housing for rent, helping provide homes for people who need social housing in the district. The Manor Road site will accommodate a short-stay hostel for the homeless, planning permission for which has already been approved.
Six two-bedroom flats are planned for Dunmow while in Rickling, three bungalows will help alleviate housing pressures.
By donating the land free of charge to a housing association, the council gives the sites the best possible chance of attracting grants from the Housing Corporation, enabling the construction of new affordable homes to promptly take place.
Head of housing services Roz Millership said: “The land we are donating is our contribution to the scheme, which will provide housing exclusively for people on the district’s waiting list.
“A planning application for the site at Manor Road in Stansted has already been approved, meaning that construction of a four-unit short-stay residence for the homeless should begin in the next few months.
“A planning application for three bungalows on the land in Rickling has recently been submitted, and plans for the six two-bedroom flats at the Dunmow site are currently being prepared and will be lodged in the near future.”
Council leader Jim Ketteridge said: “This decision is great news for people in the district in need of affordable housing. By contributing the land we are ensuring that homes will be built for the people who need them most, which is particularly important in the current economic climate.
“The short-stay homeless accommodation at Stansted will also be highly beneficial for the district – this is the first such shelter that has been built in Uttlesford, and this decision demonstrates our commitment to helping the people most in need.”
