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Major boost for homeless families
Plans unveiled to invest £116m over five years building hundreds of affordable homes
THE hopes of homeless families in temporary accommodation received a major boost this week with the unveiling of long-term plans to build hundreds of new, affordable homes in Westminster.
The Community Build initiative aims to provide more permanent homes for families in temporary accommodation, tackle chronic overcrowding and help first-time buyers onto the housing ladder.
The scheme will see about £116 million invested over the next five years to build new homes on disused sites in the borough.
In total the council aims to build 600 homes through the initiative by 2012.
The plans include emergency measures, the “Temp to Settled” part of the scheme, for 200 homeless families living in temporary accommodation, who currently face being shunted out of their homes at any time. These families will be given the chance to buy a share in a new permanent home.
Housing chief Angela Harvey said: “There is a huge shortage of affordable housing in Westminster.
“The average purchase price for a home in Westminster at the end of last year was £615,000, with first-time-buyer properties costing almost £300,000.
“This means people trying to take their first step on the housing ladder need to be earning around £80,000 – way more than many local people are actually earning.
“The independent Housing Commission report, commissioned by the council, has also estimated there were as many as 20,000 existing households in Westminster which could benefit from shared ownership. This is vital in Westminster.
“Not only will it help give people who are excluded from the housing market the chance of home ownership, it will also free up critically needed social housing as people move up the housing ladder.”
Possible “disused sites on council estates” are under consideration but have yet to be finalised, according to the council.
Brian Johnson, chief executive of CityWest Homes the company managing social housing in the borough, said: “Providing long-term, affordable homes for our residents has always been one of our top priorities. We are delighted to be working with the council on these two important initiatives, which will serve the needs of our residents, their children and even their grandchildren.”
Official projections estimate Westminster’s population will increase from 240,000 in 2005 to 319,000 in 2019 and the city also has an annual affordable housing shortfall of over 5,000 compared with less than 3,000 in 2001.
Initially Westminster will receive £13 million of the north London allocation, allowing it to build 121 new homes over the next two years.
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