Facing the housing challenge

Regional leaders today gave a cautious welcome to Government’s announcements on how to respond to the current challenges in the housing market and plans for increasing the supply of new homes in the long term.

Part of the announcements mean that the areas around Leeds and Sheffield could get a share of £100m to make sure that any new housing would have the schools, hospitals and other facilities needed to support homes.

Cllr Peter Box, Chair of the Regional Assembly said: “Making sure people in our region have access to good quality homes in strong communities is a key priority for us all. But those homes need to have schools, hospitals and good transport links. This announcement will allow groups of local authorities, working with other partners, to plan properly to create strong and sustainable communities”

The announcements also include measures to help first time buyers into home ownership, including ‘try before you buy’, and to allow Housing Associations to buy unsold stock from house-builders.

Cllr Kris Hopkins, Chair of the Assembly’s Regional Housing Board and leader of Bradford Council said: “The region faces some serious housing challenges at the moment, and anything that brings fresh thinking to some of the problems we face is to be welcomed. If the proposals for ‘try before you buy’ are workable for Housing Associations in the region, then this could help people to access housing who might currently face problems in accessing mortgage products.”

For more details contact Iain Lovell at the Yorkshire and Humber Assembly, tel 01924 331583, e-mail iain.lovell@yhassembly.gov.uk

Read the Government's statement