Minister was wrong on Stevenage plan
I attended the Chartered Institute of Housing conference this year and having heard Grant Shapps’ speech on ‘wanting to see homes built where people wanted and needed them’, I asked Mr Shapps if there was anything he could do to assist the West of Stevenage development that, many years after the development was first proposed, has yet to go ahead because of objections by the Conservative-controlled county council and neighbouring local council.
His reply was ‘the only reason Stevenage wants the West of Stevenage development is to secure the additional council tax income on the 10,000 homes’.
The conference this year did not allow those posing questions to Mr Shapps to respond to his answers, so I would like to respond through these pages. Our support of the development is not about council tax; it is about addressing the urgent housing need in Stevenage.
Of the proposed overall development of 3,600 homes, only approximately one third will be in the borough of Stevenage.
Despite being the top-performing local authority in the Eastern region on the proportion of affordable housing units completed as a percentage of the total number of new residential homes completed, in Stevenage there are more than 6,000 applicants on our housing register and our most recent housing market assessment shows a need for 581 new affordable homes a year to meet the demand.
The town’s major employers are supportive of housing growth of all tenures, types and sizes to attract and accommodate staff and meet their aspirations.
Stevenage residents who are unlikely to ever be allocated a social rented home in Stevenage have no alternative but to struggle to afford to live in the private rented sector or to move elsewhere, away from family, friends and often employment, in order to find an affordable home.
Councillor Ann Webb, portfolio holder for housing, Stevenage Council
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