Affordable housing delivery in South West close to meltdown
9 May 2003

A NEW publication from the National Housing Federation South shows housing associations in the South West face mounting and intractable problems in meeting housing needs.

‘The Evidence', booklet of key housing facts and figures for the South West, all sourced from published official statistics, shows:

• House prices doubling in the last five years, but earnings growing by
  only 23%
• House prices on average now more than seven times incomes
• Teaching and nursing vacancies rising, probably due to housing costs
• Council housing waiting lists and homelessness acceptances growing
  fast
• The use of temporary housing increasing by 70% over the last 4 years
• Land prices doubling in five years and housing associations buying
  less and less land
• The region loses one affordable social home to Right to Buy for every
  new affordable home built
• Local authority home lettings falling by 17% over the last 4 years
• New affordable housing development running at less than one third
  of the Regional Planning Guidance (RPG) targets
• The South West's population growing rapidly with ½ million more
  people expected to be living here by 2016

Geoff Atkinson, Chief Executive of South Somerset Homes, said “Against this background we do have serious concerns about whether the Government's delivery objectives for housing can be met, particularly in the South West, where no increases in public investment beyond inflation are planned and where a key housing grant, which accounted for a third of all affordable housing completions last year, is being cut.

“Trundling along with an affordable social housing programme of less than one third of the minimum affordable homes target in Regional Planning Guidance won't combat the enormous and growing housing needs of the South West. Demand for affordable housing will continue to grow. It's not overdramatic to describe housing delivery in the South West as at crisis point. The figures in The Evidence booklet make this very clear.

“There will be serious economic consequences for the South West if we do not have the affordable homes available to house key public sector workers and people on lower incomes. Companies will struggle to recruit and retain staff and it will be very hard to attract inward investment. We will continue to fall further behind London and the South East.”

Bryony Houlden, Chief Executive of the South West Regional Assembly, quoted in The Evidence, says “The South West has acute problems of housing demand and affordability, which seem to be overlooked at present by national government.”