Issue - meetings

To seek support and a recommendation to Council to amend the 2023/24 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) capital allocation of Housing Development Investment by an additional £1m to be able to respond promptly to opportunities to purchase properties to increase the Council’s housing stock.

Purpose of report

To recommend to Council the amendment of the 2023/2024 Housing Revenue Account (HRA) capital allocation of Housing Development Investment by an additional £1m to be able to respond promptly to opportunities to purchase properties to increase the Council’s housing stock.

Decision

That Cabinet recommended to Council the amendment of the Housing Revenue Account 2023/2024 Capital Programme Housing Development Investment by an additional £1m.

Alternative options considered and rejected

The Council could have decided not to purchase any additional properties. This would not have met the housing needs priority of the Corporate Plan and would not have supported the pipeline of delivering new housing in the District.

Reasons for decision

The decision enabled the increase of the housing stock to meet the needs of South Kesteven’s residents. The Council currently loses around 40 units per year through the ‘right to buy’ scheme.

The £3 million capital programme had already been committed towards two new-build schemes at Swinegate in Grantham and Elizabeth Road in Stamford.

If possible, the Council wanted to develop a hybrid approach of building their own units and also purchasing from larger, existing developments. The additional budget would give the flexibility to do this.

The following points were raised during discussion:

·       The additional £1m of funding was for the period from now for the remainder of the financial year.

·       There was a need for social housing across the district and on a national level.

·       The Council were coming to the end of their Housing Regulatory Compliance period and once out of this period would have more options to increase their housing stock.

·       A number of housing associations who were registered providers of social housing were finding themselves in a difficult position with the increase in interest rates, as they found it harder to purchase and manage properties on larger developments. This funding enabled the Council to take opportunities in the housing market when they arose.

·       The £1 million of funding was taken from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA), and would not affect Council Tax rates.