Working together through Cambridge Investment Partnership (CIP), Cambridge City Council and The Hill Group are progressing plans to redevelop two former council estates in Cambridge.
The proposals form part of their commitment to improving accommodation standards for people living in existing council homes, building additional homes to meet local need across the city, and address wider housing supply issues, such as the need for more large family homes.
Funding to build council homes
Building homes is a costly endeavour, and the council needs to ensure its investment in new council homes doesn’t unduly impact its long-term finances or put delivery of other services at risk. This makes it important that the council seeks additional funding to support the building of its council houses wherever possible. One of the main external sources of funding available to the council is Homes England, which supports developers across the country to build council homes beyond what would already be required through the planning process.
Planning policy generally requires 40% of homes on new developments to be council homes (or ‘affordable homes’ from other social housing providers). However, this minimum requirement can vary depending on the viability of each development.
At both Hanover Court and Princess Court and Ekin Road, independent viability assessments concluded that the costs associated with redeveloping the sites mean there should be no requirement to build council homes. Nevertheless, Cambridge City Council intends to secure funding from Homes England to deliver council homes at each development. If the plans are approved, the council will be able to apply for funding for the majority of the council homes proposed across the two sites.
Cabinet Member for Housing, Cllr Gerri Bird, has reiterated the council’s commitment to building council homes on these developments and securing funding to ensure this happens.
At Hanover Court and Princess Court, funding will allow 72 council homes to be built as part of the 165 new homes proposed (44%). While this would be a reduction of 10 (compared with the 82 existing) council homes, the new homes would all be more spacious and better suited to residents’ needs.
Similarly, at Ekin Road, funding would enable 78 council homes to be built within the 134 total new homes being proposed (58%). This is 13 fewer council homes than currently exist (91), reflecting the council’s decision to prioritise larger family homes to meet high demand and help address overcrowding.
In addition to replacing ageing homes that are not up to the standards tenants deserve, the proposals will provide more spacious layouts, modern homes, with some homes offering additional living spaces and others offering additional bedrooms. The overall number of homes across the two sites will increase from 235 to 299.
The remaining 149 homes will be available for sale, helping to address the overall housing shortage in Cambridge. Importantly, profit generated from these homes will provide the council with an additional source of funding to support its ongoing council house building programme without unduly impacting its long-term finances or putting delivery of services at risk.
Proposals to be considered at Planning Committee
The first site being considered at Planning Committee is Hanover Court and Princess Court off Hills Road in Cambridge. The latest plans, which can be viewed as part of the agenda for the Planning Committee on 24 June, would see two deteriorating residential buildings of 127 homes demolished and 165 new homes built in their place.
The current residential buildings are no longer suitable for council tenants to live in due to a combination of structural concerns, fire safety constraints and wider building performance issues. The council considers that the only way to address the concerns surrounding the council homes here is to redevelop the site. The new homes will not only meet modern structural and fire safety requirements, but would also be designed to modern space standards, with larger living areas, and improved energy efficiency to reduce energy demand compared with the existing buildings.
The second site is Ekin Road in Abbey. Updated plans, published ahead of Planning Committee in July, propose the demolition of 108 ageing homes and the delivery of 134 new homes built in their place.
Built in the 1950s and 1960s, the estate has many of the maintenance and structural issues which can contribute to issues such as damp, condensation and mould which are common to council homes built at the time – where speed and scale were prioritised rather than building high quality homes for 70+ year lifespan. Again, the council considers that the only way to address the concerns surrounding the council homes here is to redevelop the site. As well as using modern building methods to ensure the homes are more comfortable to live in, the development will offer a balanced mix of one- to five-bedroom homes, including the first much-needed five-bedroom council homes for larger families delivered through the partnership, as well as four homes specifically designed for wheelchair users.
Support for current residents
Most residents have already been supported to move from Hanover Court and Princess Court and Ekin Road ahead of the planned development works. The council has a strong track record of supporting tenants through the process of moving out of homes that are no longer fit for purpose, often into new build council homes.
Support for council tenants comprises being given priority access to choosing a suitable like-for-like council home to move into, including brand new council homes, practical help to move, a home-loss payment of around £8,000, plus a £1,250 payment to cover moving expenses.
Meanwhile, homeowners are offered the market rate for their home based on a property valuation by a RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors), plus a statutory compensation payment of 7.5-10%. They are also entitled to reasonable disturbance and assistance with moving costs, including legal fees and Stamp Duty Land Tax.
Cllr Gerri Bird, Cambridge City Council Cabinet Member for Housing and CIP board member said: “Building homes is costly, and as a council serving the whole city it’s right that we seek external funding to support as much of our council house building programme as possible. I want to reassure people that we remain committed to doing everything we can to secure funding for the 72 council homes we want to build at Hanover Court and Princess Court, and the 78 we want to build at Ekin Road.
“We are committed to addressing the quality of our existing council homes, building additional council homes to meet local need, and addressing wider housing supply issues, such as the need for more large family homes.
“Having these plans for Hanover Court and Princess Court submitted for consideration at Planning Committee is a real milestone on a project that is so desperately needed, replacing homes that are no longer suitable for our tenants to live in. Everyone deserves to live in homes that meet modern standards – with spacious living areas that are well ventilated and comfortable to live in, with high energy efficiency to bring down spiralling energy costs.
“I’m equally delighted that plans for Ekin Road are due to be considered by Planning Committee later this summer – which will see the first new five-bedroom council homes that we’ve been able to build through CIP, as well as four much-needed homes specifically designed for wheelchair users.
“We have been one of the top ten council house builders per capita for two of the last three years, and we are not slowing down now. We have built over 1,150 new homes, including 850+ new council homes, built across 24 sites in Cambridge. And our ambition is to build another 1,000 new council homes and 1,000 new sale homes by 2030.”
Tom Hill, Managing Director at The Hill Group, comments: “Reaching this stage in the planning process reflects the close collaboration between Cambridge City Council and The Hill Group through Cambridge Investment Partnership, and the work that has gone into bringing forward proposals for the sites.
“Redevelopment decisions of this nature are never straightforward, particularly on sites with a long history in the community. However, throughout this process, our focus has been on working closely with the council to respond to the challenges presented by the existing buildings while delivering high-quality new homes to meet modern standards and serve future generations.
“As these projects progress, we remain committed to working in partnership with the council and supporting our long-term ambitions to deliver new homes and lasting contributions to the local area.”
Find out more about Cambridge Investment Partnership.
