Members of Horsham Labour Party met with a cross-party group of councillors and council officers last week to discuss the Council’s response to Horsham Labour Party’s housing petition.This petition called for Horsham District Council to deliver a minimum of 40 per cent affordable housing in the development West of Horsham. This would provide homes for local people, in line with the undertaking given in the Council’s Housing Strategy published in Autumn 2008. The petition containing hundreds of signatures was raised in light of the council’s decision, taken less than one year after the strategy was published, to cave in to a developer’s demand to reduce the affordable element to just 20 per cent, on this strategic site.
Andrew Skudder, Labour’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate commented after the meeting:
It is clear from the discussion at this meeting that the Council’s housing strategy is in complete disarray. The Council Leader Robert Nye’s comment at the meeting that he didn’t care what was contained within the Council’s current strategy document still rings in my ears. He really needs to consider his position if he is so happy to dismiss the current Strategy Document.
Affordable housing campaign veteran and Chair of Horsham Labour Party, David Hide stated:
Our petition evidences overwhelming support for our call for the Council to take action to address the severe shortage of affordable housing in the District and reverse the decision to reduce the level of affordability on the West of Horsham site.
The Council’s response to the petition was very disappointing. We had hoped to learn that progress was being made to increase the percentage of affordable homes, but instead came away from the meeting with no confidence that the council were willing to respond to our call or to deliver on their commitments.
The Council offered no clear explanation for the decision to support the reduction in the affordable housing element, instead we heard weak excuses for their persistent failure to significantly address local housing need and vague claims about the impact of the recession on builders. This against a backdrop of rising house prices with homes now at or close to record highs within Horsham.
Housing specialist and Labour’s Campaign Co-ordinator, Carol Hayton said:
The lack of commitment from the council leader was abundantly clear when Cllr. Nye stated during the meeting that he "did not care" what was in the current document. He claimed that the five year strategy, although published less than two years ago, was out of date and under review. No amount of reviewing will review away the level of need.
We were not provided with any evidence of a new strategy to meet that need. We have, therefore, requested from the Council, details of an Action Plan that will deliver the homes needed. We have also requested the District Valuer’s view on the viability of this development as this seems to have a significant influence on Council’s approach.
Ray Chapman, Secretary of Horsham Labour Party, commented:
The Council claims that it has negotiated hard to get the best deal from the developer. But the outcome of those negotiations suggests a significant cave-in that provides the best deal for the developer. What is worse is that the benefit goes to a ‘cash rich’ developer as described by the Chief Executive.
Profits for developers or affordable homes for local residents? I know what I want to see.
It is worth comparing Horsham’s shambolic approach with that of Wakefield Council, a council that clearly does care about the content of its housing strategy and takes a far more serious approach to delivering on behalf of the local community, rather than for big business.
This week’s ‘Inside Housing’ magazine describes how Wakefield Council identified the need for 921 additional affordable homes. The house builder Barratt said that they could only deliver 0 to 5 percent affordable in the current market conditions, despite Wakefield’s requirement for 30 percent.
The Council held firm to its position and as a result the housing giant took them to the High Court. In December Barratt’s lost the challenge. The house-builder has appealed but this will not detract from the depiction of Wakefield as a magnificent example of strength and commitment to delivery in line with the needs of its residents.
Andrew Skudder, further commented:
If Horsham District Council wants to demonstrate that it does care about making affordable housing a key priority, it needs to focus on innovative and bold ways to deliver on its strategy. A range of suggestions have been put to Horsham Council by the Government to date; as far as we are aware none have been taken up. This needs to change if the Tory Council wants to evidence its commitment.
The meeting ended with the Labour Party urging the councillors present to think again, respond to the demand of the signatories of the petition, and vote against any proposal that reduces the level of affordable housing below forty per cent
The meeting on the 9th February was attended by:
- Chief Executive of HDC, Tom Crowley
- Andrew Smith of HDC's Housing department
- Lesley Morgan of HDC's Democratic Services
- Councillor Robert Nye, leader of the council
- Councillor Keith Wilkins, Chair of the council
- Councillor Andrew Baldwin cabinet member for housing and community development
- Councillor Sally Horner (LD Broadbridge Heath)
- County Councillor David Sheldon (LD Denne)
- Andrew Skudder, Labour’s PPC
- David Hide, Chair Horsham LP
- Ray Chapman. Secretary Horsham LP
- Carol Hayton, Campaign Co-ordinator Horsham LP