Priority e) Housing: Increase the supply of good quality affordable housing
Affordable housing
The Housing Delivery Programme continues to make progress. In November 2023, Executive approved proposals to deliver 100% affordable housing at the Ordnance Lane development site. Building on the resident consultation, a resubmitted planning application was approved in August 2024 with site preparation now underway with construction due to start in 2025. This revised site plan includes an increase in affordable homes from 85 to 101. The Willow House development site is also progressing with submission of planning applications anticipated in Spring 2025.
Construction continues to progress on two Passivhaus sites, Duncombe Square and Burnholme Green. The Duncombe development site will deliver 34 new homes and Burnholme development site 78 new homes. Both sites are 60% affordable housing.
We've agreed to sell Lowfield Green Plot B for 100% affordable housing for people aged 55 and over. In addition, we've agreed to sell a parcel of land next to the new Clifton Library site for 100% affordable housing.
We are working constructively with the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to secure funding via the Brownfield Housing Fund. We've also recently secured funding for the Lowfield Phase 2 and Ordnance Lane projects with funding of over £3 million.
Sustainable housing
Work has also progressed to improve current social housing via the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund Wave 2 (with funding secured from the UK Government). With this, 95 properties are planned to have energy efficiency retrofit insulation works completed in 2024 to 2025. A further 40 are due energy efficient improvements in the Bell Farm project which is monitored separately.
Innovate UK have awarded us and our partners £3.3 million to develop a Retrofit One-Stop-Shop. The proposal includes two demonstrator homes, based in council houses and working with suppliers to make it easier for householders to know how and what to commission to retrofit their homes.
Grant funding, via the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority’s Net Zero Fund, for Alex Lyon House and Honeysuckle House, have led to upgrading heating and installing renewable generation and energy storage systems to 61 supported housing apartments.
Housing those in need
In November 2023, an additional £1.3 million of grant funding was secured through the Local Authority Housing Fund to support the purchase of an additional 10 homes, 7 homes for Afghan resettlement households and a further 3 homes to contribute towards meeting wider temporary accommodation needs in the city. To date, all homes are either under offer and progressing through the conveyancing process or purchased and in occupation.
Finally, Homeshare York continues to provide an ongoing opportunity for younger and older residents, with a partnership established with Age UK York to provide a stronger connection to potential householders.
What we plan to do over the next three months
- soft launch of the digital platform for the Retrofit One-Stop-Shop
Areas of Positive Performance
Council delivery
The number of our housing voids (property that is untenanted for a period of time) was 77 in August 2024, compared to 102 in 2022 to 2023.
The percentage of repairs completed on first visit was 87.7% in August 2024, compared to 79.7% in 2022 to 2023.
City outcomes
The net additional homes provided was 528 in 2023 to 2024, compared to 459 in 2021 to 2022.
The number of new affordable homes delivered in York was 122 in 2023 to 2024, compared to 109 in 2022 to 2023.
