Rural Affordable Housing – Rosemullion Homes joins the debate

A Cornish housebuilder has submitted its thoughts on increasing the delivery of affordable housing in rural areas to Truro and St Austell MP, Matthew Taylor.

Roger Carson and Caroline Wheeleker outside some affordable homes built by Rosemullion at their Belvedere development in Truro.

Truro-based Rosemullion Homes made the move comes after Prime Minister Gordon Brown asked Mr Taylor to carry out the Rural Economy and Affordable Housing Review.

The company, which has approximately 150 homes currently in the planning process, of which a significant proportion are affordable, believes that the core issues lie in housing delivery.

“So far, national media coverage has concentrated on Mr Brown’s wish to curb the extent of second home ownership,” said Rosemullion’s planning manager, Caroline Wheeleker.

“But we disagree. The affordability gap is caused by a variety of issues including a tremendous increase in the number of new households being formed, the emergence of the buy to let investor market and comparatively low local wage levels.

“However, one of the biggest factors affecting housing supply is the slow planning process.”

In a covering letter sent to Mr Taylor, Rosemullion laid out the following measures which it believes will increase the delivery of affordable housing:

• Revise national planning guidelines to allow and encourage cross-subsidisation of “Exceptions” rural housing sites with some open market housing
• Ensure that Local Authority Chief Executives are personally accountable for affordable housing delivery in their own districts
• Fast track applications that have high design standards and achieve at least Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3 Accreditation
• Appoint a senior Housing Enabling Officer in each Local Authority to fast-track affordable schemes and trouble-shoot any blockages
• Encourage a much greater spirit of co-operation and partnership working between local authorities and private developers

“Government needs to recognise that the affordable housing so urgently needed will, in the main, be built by private housebuilders,” added Caroline.

“The answer to the problem does not lie in tinkering with the processes of the planning system but in making sure that local authorities adopt a more positive approach and work alongside the private sector to deliver the homes that are needed.”

Rosemullion managing director, Roger Carson, believes that there are some good instances of partnership working between the sectors, but that these need to be increased to respond to the scale of the problem.

“We have a very good example of the benefits of co-operation on a site we are about to start work on at St Breward near Bodmin Moor,” he said.

“Land for the project has been provided by North Cornwall District Council and with further support from Devon & Cornwall Housing Association 10 of the 17 new homes to be built at this location will be affordable”.

Roger believes that this scheme should provide a model for other district councils, local housing associations and local private housebuilders to follow.

“The reason that this site is actually going to be delivered, lies in the very positive co-operation we have received from officers at North Cornwall District Council and the team at Devon & Cornwall Housing,” he added.

“If there were more instances of this sort of co-operation between the public and private sectors, a lot more affordable homes would get built in Cornwall”.

For more information please contact Rosemullion Homes on 01872 223600.

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