Community Led Housing

Our experience to date

• More Homes More Choice- 4,500 homes- 200 new homes planned- Mixed tenure- Flexible solutions

• Working for Sustainable Communities- Ethically run – corporate environmental ambitions- Charitable status – helping communities “thrive” not

just “survive”

CORPORATE PLAN OBJECTIVES

• National - 228 homes - Mixture of providers (12)- £25 million funding pot - £4.9 million allocated

• Midlands - 107 homes - 3 main partners

• Longhurst Group• Westleigh Developments • Shropshire Housing

• Our Approach- Marches CLT partnership- 31% of national funding - 68 new homes across the Marches- Returning value to communities- Compliments neighbourhood planning- £1,305,600 allocation

ALLOCATION CONTEXT

What is Community Led?

“Communities can collectively own, develop and/or manage their own land and

development”

Barriers ?

• Complexity of development • Availability of funding • Reducing grant per unit • Access to expertise • Risk adverse approaches

Our Offer

• Marches Community Land Trust

- Network of communities

- Access to expertise

- Peer support

- Trusted partner

- Asset strength – borrowing capacity

- Flexible on going stewardship

Strategic Partners

• Local Authority Housing Enablers Planners Councillors

• Town and/or Parish Councils Councillors

• Communities Our customers – new

- existing Our future customers NIMBYS/BANANAS

• Home and Communities Agency

• Shropshire Council – NHB Funding revenue – Incentivising communities with

NHB– Local plan – Enablers

• Herefordshire Council – National leader on

Neighbourhood Planning – Enablers

Our Schemes

• Lyonshall, Herefordshire• Neenton, Shropshire • Church Stretton, Shropshire • Orleton, Herefordshire • Onibury, Shropshire

Lyonshall

“Community Led housing enabled Lyonshall to provide affordable housing on terms that the community wanted. At long last we were able to start a housing project targeted at the community which also had the support of the community” – Paul Avery, Chair of Lyonshall Parish Council

Neenton

“The way SSHA has engaged with our community to deliver affordable housing as an integral part of a major community project that has helped make it happen has been crucial in winning over the doubters” – John Pickup, Chair, Neenton BenCom.

Church Stretton

“Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success”. This quote from Henry Ford sums up what the Ashbrook II Project Board is all about. We came together in the beginning as a group of enthusiastic people from all walks of life who wanted to be involved in producing the best affordable housing project for the community of Church Stretton. We have gone out to seek people’s views, deliberated over architects, builders, site layout, design details and building materials. We have agreed, disagreed and compromised but in the end we have a planned development which encapsulated all our input. I now look forward to it being a success” – Hilary ClaytonSmith – Project Board Member and local architectural quality champion

Orleton

Onibury

“From the first instance, the local community were consulted of the proposed development, this is in the interest of good communications. Our experience is one of an open agenda in public meetings and committees, where all aspects of need, planning and design were discussed, this has been welcomed by all” – Ray Jeavons, Onibury Parish Councillor and Project Board Member

Long Term Stewardship

• Work for 2014 • Legal model agreed ‘Marches CLT’• Community options

– Scrutiny – Engagement in housing management – Engagement in maintenance contracts – Both – Leasehold– Ownership Discussions regarding CLT or equivalent

Learning What an organisation needs?

• An open mind, build trust • A willingness to do more than housing • Good communication • Commitment to the journey • Excellent innovative problem resolution • Community at the heart of its actions • Dedicated staff who understand the ‘more than bricks

and mortar business’

Learning What you need to avoid!

• Over promising • Not recognising time and resource implications • Not joining up housing management and development

teams • Not engaging strategic planning and development

control

Learning Why would you get involved?

• Approached in the right way it delivers:– Better scheme – Better community engagement – Acceptance – Sustainable communities

• Empowers people and communities • There is funding!• It’s fun!

Thank you for listening