Affordable Housing
6. Phasing and Implementation
Site and development costs
| 6.1 | Developers will be expected to take affordable housing, and other requirements into consideration when negotiating the purchase of land for development. The Council will take account of any abnormal site costs associated with development that may justify a reduction in the affordable housing requirement. Developers will be expected to provide details of such costs at the earliest opportunity. Standard development costs such as demolition works, retaining and ground works, landscaping, archaeological investigations, drainage and flood prevention works, will not normally be considered as abnormal site costs. Only in very exceptional circumstances, where there are excessive costs associated with the development and / or other planning objectives that need to be given overriding priority, is it likely that the council will agree to dispense, or reduce the requirement to provide affordable housing. | |
| 6.2 | The City Council does not wish to place unrealistic burdens on development, particularly in respect of regeneration sites, however the availability of housing that people can afford is also an important issue. If it is claimed that the required level of affordable housing is likely to prejudice the viability of a development, then a full financial justification will be required as a basis for negotiation if the requirement is to be lowered. |
Phasing of sites
| 6.3 | For the avoidance of doubt where a site is anticipated to yield in excess of the 20 dwelling threshold, but is to be developed in phases or is a subject of applications for less than 20 dwellings on part of the site, affordable housing will be required to be provided at each phase of the development. It is not acceptable to subdivide or phase a large development in order to avoid the need of providing affordable dwellings by building in phases of 20 dwellings or less. |
Timing of delivery
| 6.4 | The timing of the delivery of affordable accommodation on any development should be the subject of agreement between the developer and the Local Authority. It will not be acceptable for the affordable element to be the last units to be built. The timing of the provision will normally be included within the Section 106 Agreement. |
Location
| 6.5 | Plymouth is a compact city with public transport links throughout the built up area, and a good range of local services and facilities. It is therefore considered that the city as a whole should be seen as a single market when it comes to the provision of affordable housing, and the use of commuted sums. This view is confirmed by the Housing Needs study. |
Eligibility for affordable Housing
| 6.6 | It is important that affordable dwellings provided are made available to those who genuinely can not afford to compete in the open housing market, and are not just seen as bargains for private gain. The potential occupiers of any affordable property provided through the planning system will therefore be nominated by the City Council or RSL. |
Key Workers
| 6.7 | Although mention is often made of key workers with reference to affordable housing, there is no definition of such. It is commonly accepted however that this refers to teachers, police, doctors, nurses firemen etc. These groups are generally earning around or above the average wage for Plymouth, and an examination of property prices, rental levels and local incomes will reveal that someone on average earnings should be in a position to purchase or rent without assistance or subsidy. Therefore it is not considered that Key worker housing will be required as a specific form of accommodation |
Design and layout
| 6.8 | The Council will expect affordable housing units to be treated in the same way as private housing for sale incorporating high standards of design, materials, layout, and landscaping and should respect local character and distinctiveness. RSL schemes should comply with the current Housing Corporation Scheme Development Standards, unless there are site specific reasons that these should not apply. It will not be acceptable to concentrate affordable dwellings on one part of the site, rather they should be dispersed throughout the development. |
Use of planning conditions, and obligations
| 6.9 | Planning conditions and obligations will be used to ensure that affordable housing is delivered in accordance with the planing policy, and this guidance note. Where offsite contributions are secured in lieu of on site provision, the amount in monetary terms will be calculated using the TCI formula as illustrated in Appendix F. This will not be less than that which it would have cost to provide affordable housing on site. As the city is compact with good public transport links and is considered as a single housing market, financial contributions may be used anywhere in the city depending upon needs and opportunities that are applicable at the time. Heads of terms of Model planning obligations are attached as Appendix G. |
Use of Commuted Payments
| 6.10 | Whilst any commuted payments or off site provision will first be looked at to be used in the area of the development site, this will not always be the best use of the available resources. Financial contributions may be pooled with other developer contributions to purchase land or buildings, or used to subsidise RSL activity. The City Council will also seek to channel available finance to the purchase and refurbishment of vacant properties, for use as affordable housing |
Monitoring
| 6.11 | The council will monitor the delivery of affordable housing delivered through the planning system, including the number, type and the mix of dwellings provided. It will publish the information annually through the Housing Strategy process. |
Review
| 6.12 | The Housing Strategy will also be used as the annual method to review the SPG, including the annual updating information on Housing Corporation grant rates and TCIs, together with income and house price details. This should ensure that it is kept up to date and relevant. |