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Housing Strategy
for the Area of Housing Mix
Discussion Document

1 Aims The aim of the Housing Strategy is to develop housing provision in the Area designated in 2 (below) to meet its peculiar needs, not only the needs of individual households (that is, affordable housing), but also the needs of the community as a whole (that is, balance in the community [1]). In accordance with the latter, the Strategy has three particular objectives:
# to increase owner-occupation to within 10% of the national norm (currently 70% [2]);
# to increase social renting to within 20% of the national norm (currently 18%);
# to decrease the private rented sector to within 50% of the national norm (currently 12%).

2 Scope The scope of the Housing Strategy is the Area of Housing Mix, as designated in the Revised UDP (2006) (which is centred on Central, South & Far Headingley, but includes also the adjoining neighbourhoods of Woodhouse, Hyde Park, Little Woodhouse, Burley Lodge, Burley, Kirkstall and West Park).
# The community impacts of the predominance of student housing within the Area of Housing Mix are recognised in the RUDP, and addressed by Policy H15 [3].
# The student housing market is recognised as one of several distinct housing markets in Leeds in the city’s Affordable Housing Plan [4].
# The Headingley and Hyde Park Community Areas are recognised by the University of Leeds as dominated by an “extreme student” population, accommodated in what are effectively seasonal second homes [5].

3 Method The method of the Housing Strategy comprises a distinctive agency, distinctive actions, and a distinctive outcome.
3.1 The key agency in the Housing Strategy is a Community Land Trust (CLT), grounded in partnership between the Council, a sympathetic housing association, and a local community agency.
3.2 The Housing Strategy comprises a range of tactical actions, addressing both public and private provision, and old and new provision.
(1) Old public provision: publicly-owned miscellaneous properties are transferred to the CLT, for rent or sale (through shared equity) as affordable housing.
(2) Old private provision:
# empty properties [see LCC’s Empty Property Strategy].
# multiple-occupied properties are subject to Additional HMO Licensing (to identify their numbers, and discourage their proliferation).
# family-occupied properties are helped to stay in family occupation by means of HeadingleyHomes, a joint initiative by Headingley Development Trust and Manning Stainton.
# property conversion from multiple to family occupation is supported by a Multiple Occupation Reclamation Fund (MORF) managed by the CLT.
(3) New private provision (planning gain)
# SPG3 is amended to recognise the Area of Housing Mix as a distinct housing market, with specific needs for affordable housing [6].
# Section 106 arrangements for affordable housing, for developments of 15 units or more, are managed by the CLT.
# Section 106 arrangements for development under 15 units are used to fund MORF, and other measures to meet the objectives.
# multiple occupation is prohibited in all developments (under Section 106).
(4) New public provision (subsidised housing) [to follow].
(5) All development of housing in the designated area is subject to the policy of Housing Mix, as defined in the objectives.
3.3 The overall outcome of the Housing Strategy is a Local Housing Ladder [7], providing steps of affordable housing, from social renting, through sub-market renting and sub-market sales, to low-cost market sales, and full market sales & rent.

Leeds HMO Lobby, 8 February 2007

Notes
[1] The National HMO Lobby defines ‘Balanced Communities’ as those which approximate national demographic norms.
[2] The figures are from DCLG, Housing Statistics Summary, no 26 Survey of English Housing Provisional Results: 2005/06 (2006).
[3] Leeds City Council, Unitary Development Plan, Revised, 2006.
[4] Leeds Housing Partnership, Assessment of Need for Affordable Housing (2003); see Appendix 1: The Housing Markets of Leeds, and Appendix 2: Housing Market Zones. But Headingley is included in the Inner Suburban Areas, which are “characterised by property values lower than the average for the city” (p37).
[5] R Unsworth & J Stillwell (eds) Twenty-First Century Leeds University of Leeds (2004); “The biggest change in the demographic structure of Leeds [1991-2001] was the expansion of the student age population and an increasing intensity of student occupation of the inner northwest of the city” (p47).
[6] Leeds City Council, Revised Supplementary Planning Guidance No3, Affordable Housing Policy Guidance Note (2003), and the current Annex Housing Need Assessment Update (2005).
[7] Leeds Housing Partnership, Making the Housing Ladder Work (in draft).

 


Leeds HMO Lobby
email: hmolobby@hotmail.com website: www.hmolobby.org.uk/leeds