North Yorkshire Council
Executive
5 November 2024
Community Housing Fund Framework
Report of the Corporate Director: Community Development
This report contains a confidential Appendix which contains information of the type defined in paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A Local Government Act 1972 (as amended) as it contains information relating to the financial and business affairs of the Council and it is considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.
1.0 PURPOSE OF REPORT
1.1 To update on the Community Housing Fund position and to seek approval to use £1m from the Council Tax premium on second homes to further support the work of the Community Housing Fund in North Yorkshire from April 2025.
1.2 To seek approval for a consolidated North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework to cover allocation of legacy Community Housing Fund resources and any future projects funded from council tax premium from April 2025 (Appendix A).
1.3 To seek delegated authority for the Corporate Director of Community Development to approve allocations from the Community Housing Fund in line with the Community Housing Fund Framework.
2.0 BACKGROUND AND DETAILED PRESENTATION OF SUBSTANTIVE ISSUE
2.1 The Community Housing Fund (CHF) was announced by Government in the Spring 2016 budget. Derived from stamp duty on second homes, £60m was disbursed to 148 local authorities to support community led housing (see Appendix B). This funding was directed specifically to areas across the country with high numbers of second home ownership to bring forward additional, affordable homes for residents priced out of their local communities. The Fund is to be used solely to support the delivery of Community Led Housing; there is no deadline by which these monies must be spent.
2.2 With the original Community Housing Fund almost fully spent, there is limited funding available for Community Groups to deliver affordable housing. The second homes Council Tax premium offers the opportunity to make funding available, in particular in rural and coastal communities where the delivery of affordable housing is challenging. The second homes Council Tax premium is expected to generate up to £12m additional income per annum. The Council is committed to spend these funds on housing initiatives for its residents. Community Housing Fund is just one initiative among a range that the Council is intending to explore and bring forward in due course.
2.3 Advice from Government (formerly Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities now Ministry for Housing Communities and Local Government) confirmed that the remaining Community Housing Fund resources can be used across North Yorkshire; they are not tethered to the former District or Borough geographies linked to the original Community Housing Fund allocations (see confidential Appendix C). We are therefore seeking approval for the remaining Community Housing Fund to be allocated to projects in line with the North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework set out at Appendix A.
3.0 SUPPORTING COMMUNITY LED HOUSING IN NORTH YORKSHIRE LONGER-TERM
3.1 Locally the pipeline of Community Led Housing groups has grown from nine to 24 recorded groups across North Yorkshire, including the National Parks, with the potential to deliver over 120 homes. Research by Capital Economics found that community led housing represents high value for money for public investment, generating £2.70 of public benefit for every £1 of public money spent[1].
3.2 As a result of work undertaken over the past three years by the Community Led Housing Hub, there is now a strong pipeline of Community Led Housing groups and projects across North Yorkshire. However, outside of the Community Housing Fund there is no dedicated Community Led Housing grant resource for these groups to access, and with the closure of the Hub in May 2024, there is no freely available support to groups across the County outside of the council’s housing enabling team.
3.3 Research[2] has confirmed that the biggest gap in funding for Community Led Housing groups is in the revenue grant funding needed to establish a group, work up the scheme and take it to planning. This is especially true in North Yorkshire, where over half of the projects in the pipeline need this kind of revenue support. It is therefore important that the Community Housing Fund remains a resource that can provide both capital and revenue funding to Community Led Housing groups.
3.4 In order to support the Community Led Housing pipeline, we are seeking additional resources from the Council Tax premium on second homes to support the delivery of Community Led Housing in North Yorkshire into the future. Based on the pipeline it is estimated that £1m annually would provide the long-term support required for Community Led Housing projects to continue, to grow the pipeline, and deliver new affordable homes for local people, especially in those localities where land is scarce, and providers are reluctant to deliver new homes.
3.5 The resource required to administer the fund and to support community groups will be included in the £1m Community Led Housing budget.
3.6 Where Community Led Housing groups are already established in one locality, the Council will encourage emerging groups to work together or merge to maximise knowledge sharing and economies of scale.
4. 0 NORTH YORKSHIRE COMMUNITY LED HOUSING FUNDING FRAMEWORK
4.1 All former districts and boroughs in receipt of Community Housing Fund developed policies around eligibility and set maximum grant rates per project; these have been consolidated into a single North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework (see Appendix A), which proposes granting funding only where groups meet the requirements of the Framework and follow the basic principles for a Community Led Housing project.
4.2 The three key stages for funding are:
· Community development Start up (Maximum £10,000 per group)
· Feasibility (Maximum £80,000 per project)
· Development (Maximum 50% total development cost of the scheme)
4.3 To be eligible for funding, organisations would need to meet the requirements of the North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework and follow the basic principles for a Community Led Housing scheme:
· A requirement that the community must be integrally involved throughout the process in key decisions (what, where, for who). They don’t necessarily have to initiate and manage the development process, or build the homes themselves, though some may do so;
· A presumption in favour of community groups that are taking a long-term formal role in ownership, management or stewardship of the land/homes and;
· A requirement that the benefits to the local area and/or specified community must be clearly defined and legally protected in perpetuity.
4.4 Additionally, we will be working with Registered Providers and Homes England during the enabling review to seek their support for Community Led Housing groups and, whilst it is not a requirement for groups to work with a Registered Provider, it is recognised that this can bring several benefits to the process including:
· Development experience;
· Additional Capacity;
· Access to additional funding via the Affordable Homes Programme; and
· Access to specific technical support.
The Council will be working with Community Groups to maximise the opportunities for carbon reduction measures and to meet the future homes standard.
5.0 CONSULTATION UNDERTAKEN AND RESPONSES
5.1 Consultation with Government indicates that the extant Community Housing Fund resources can be deployed across North Yorkshire. Homes England is supportive of Community Led Housing and wish to see the pipeline supported with grant funding; where groups choose to work with a Registered Provider, they can access additional grant from Homes England to support the delivery of new affordable homes subject to availability.
6.0 CONTRIBUTION TO COUNCIL PRIORITIES
6.1 Delivery of Community Led Housing contributes to North Yorkshire Council’s adopted Housing Strategy priorities by:
· Preventing and tackling homelessness;
· Meeting supported housing needs and the needs of specific groups;
· Growing the supply of affordable and available housing;
· Addressing the rural housing crisis; and
· Ensuring new housing supply of all tenures contributes to our net zero ambitions.
The Housing Strategy committed the council to: ‘supporting the Rural Housing Enabler partnership and Community Led Housing groups, to ensure a supply of housing is maintained of the right quality, type and tenure in rural areas;’ and ‘working with key partners to support communities, through projects that will improve their local environment.’
7.0 ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS CONSIDERED
7.1 Community Housing Fund monies are ring fenced to enable Community Led Housing delivery and can be used for no other purpose. There is no other comparable funding available for Community Led Housing groups.
8.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
8.1 There are no financial implications of spending the remaining Government allocated Community Housing Fund resources on Community Led Housing projects. Allocating additional income to the Community Housing Fund from the second homes Council Tax premium of £1m means that this will not be available for alternative housing initiatives.
9.0 LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
9.1 Any expenditure of the North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund will be in accordance with the Council’s Procurement and Contract Procedure Rules, the Subsidy Control Act 2022 and, if relevant, the Public Contracts Regulations 2015.
10.0 EQUALITIES IMPLICATIONS
10.1 A copy of the Equalities Impact assessment is attached to the report (see Appendix D).
12.0 CLIMATE CHANGE IMPLICATIONS
12.1 A copy of the full Climate Change impact assessment is attached to the report (see Appendix E).
13.0 REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS
13.1 Community Housing Fund resources need to be allocated in a fair and transparent way to support the delivery of Community Led Housing projects across North Yorkshire in line with the council’s strategic housing priorities as set out within the Housing Strategy 2024 to 2029.
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14.0
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RECOMMENDATION(S)
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14.1
14.2
14.3 |
The recommendations to the Executive are as follows:
To approve the North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework as set out at Appendix A.
To approve the use of £1m annually from the Council Tax premium on second homes, subject to availability, to further support the work of the Community Housing Fund in North Yorkshire for a period of three years initially.
To delegate authority to the Corporate Director Community Development to approve allocations from the Community Housing Fund in line with the North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework.
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APPENDICES:
Appendix A – North Yorkshire Community Housing Fund Framework
Appendix B – What is Community Led Housing
Appendix C - Exempt information
Appendix D - Equalities Impact Assessment
Appendix E – Climate Change Impact Assessment
BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS:
Delivering the Community Led Housing Pipeline in England, September 2021- Dr Tom Archer and Catherine Harrington.
Housing by Communities, For Communities, September 2020 – Grant Colquhoun, Capital Economics.
Nic Harne
Corporate Director – Community Development
County Hall
Northallerton
(16/10/24)
Report Author – Angela Walmsley, Senior Housing Enabler.
Presenter of Report – Hannah Heinemann, Head of Housing Delivery and Partnerships.
Note: Members are invited to contact the author in advance of the meeting with any detailed queries or questions.
[1] Housing by the community for the community, An assessment of the value for money of community led Housing in England, Grant Colquhoun, Capital Economics. September 2020.
[2] Tom Archer and Catherine Harrington, Delivering the Community led Housing Pipeline in England, September 2021 - New research on delivering the CLH pipeline | Community Land Trust Network (communitylandtrusts.org.uk)