Guidance for Residential Developers

How can the affordable housing be secured and delivered?

2.1 There are various ways that affordable housing can be provided. The developer could construct dwellings either on the site or, where acceptable to the Council as planning and housing authority, at an agreed alternative location and transfer those dwellings to an affordable housing provider to manage. Alternatively, the developer could work in tandem with an affordable housing provider to provide dwellings either on site or at an alternative agreed location. In exceptional cases, where a commuted sum is accepted in place of on-site provision, it would be in the form of a financial contribution. The contribution required would be equivalent to the social housing grant for the provision of 30% affordable housing plus any additional cost of delivering on an alternative site.

2.2 Where the developer proposes to work in tandem with an affordable housing provider, the Council would expect that this be one of the Council’s existing Registered Social Landlord partners. (Registered Social Landlords (RSL's) are housing associations that own and manage social rented and shared ownership housing). The Council has agreed a Preferred Partner Development Protocol with four RSL partners who are actively developing housing in the District. The RSL partners are Amicus Horizon Limited, Orbit Group limited, Southern Housing Limited and Town and Country Housing Group. (Please contact the Strategic Housing Unit on 01843 577280 for contact details).

2.3 The developer would be expected to discuss with the Council the RSL’s that would be appropriate for the site in question. The Council will expect the RSL partner to be in place before any detailed negotiations take place with the developer on the affordable housing contribution.

Social housing grant

2.4 Social housing grant is public funding, through the Housing Corporation’s National Affordable Housing programme, which is used to subsidise the delivery of affordable housing. “Delivering Affordable Housing” published by Government in November 2006 alongside its planning policy statement PPS3, sets out how the Housing Corporation’s expectation that affordable housing delivered on s106 should be delivered where possible without social housing grant, and where this is not possible only grant bids supported by the local authority will be approved (subject to other conditions).

2.5 It is expected that the developer contribution would enable 30% of the dwellings provided on site to be affordable (taking into account the mix to be provided). This is based upon the developer contribution being equivalent to the social housing grant available for each of the affordable housing units

2.6 Negotiation discussions will begin assuming that affordable housing will be delivered without social housing grant. This is because social housing grant is a finite resource and should only be applied where absolutely necessary. Failure to take this approach will result in fewer affordable homes being delivered in the district. Each scheme will be appraised using a Housing Corporation approved Economic Appraisal Toolkit. Such toolkit will be used to assess where because of special or exceptional circumstances there may be a need for some grant to ensure the financial viability of the scheme.

2.7 Where the developer can clearly demonstrate the need for grant through the economic Appraisal outlined above, the Council will support an application for grant on the condition that the affordable housing units are delivered through one of the Council’s Preferred RSL Development Partners. (See above).

Legal agreements

2.8 Before granting planning permission for residential development on sites eligible for an element of affordable housing under the policy, it will normally be a requirement that the developer enters into a legal agreement in accordance with Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990, relating to the manner in which affordable housing is to be provided. The Council will seek contributions in accordance with circular 5/05, which provides the framework for the imposition of section 106 agreements.

2.9 Agreements relating to affordable housing provision would cover:

The location of affordable housing;
The tenure mix to be provided
The manner in which housing will be made available to households unable to obtain adequate housing through the private market and maintained as affordable housing in the long term;
The type and number of units to be provided;
The manner of transfer of the housing to a registered social landlord (if applicable);
The phasing of the provision of affordable housing on any particular site;
Any specific design requirements relating to the housing to be provided;
Nomination rights and any funding agreements (if applicable).

What type, size and standard of affordable housing will be required?

Level and size

3.1 The Council intends to negotiate for types of affordable housing which will meet local needs. The balance in need between social rented and intermediate and size and type of affordable homes can vary over time. Therefore developers are encouraged to discuss their proposals with the Council’s planning and strategic housing team to ensure the affordable element will help meet local needs based on the latest information available.

3.2 A Thanet Housing Need Survey was carried out in 2002. New information on the level and type of need will be provided through a forthcoming Housing Market Assessment, the conclusions of which will be available in Spring 2008. In the meantime Annex 2 summarises the findings of the 2002 Survey and other sources informing the nature and level of local need.

3.3 There is a requirement for all sizes of affordable housing in the District. As a large proportion of the development in the area has been smaller units, the demand for affordable family accommodation is increasing.

3.4 The size of the affordable units should be proportionate to the size of the market units on site. For example if the site is all three-bedroom houses then the affordable units should be three bedroom houses. In certain circumstances where the site is suitable the council would welcome the opportunity to discuss the opportunity to maximise the number of houses delivered even where the application is for all flats, for example, where a site is delivering one and two bedroom flats and there is an opportunity to use part of the site for houses.

Tenure

3.5 Mixed tenure developments are essential for sustainable communities. A mixed tenure development is one that contains open market sale plus affordable housing. Types of tenure include homes for sale on the open market, for sale via shared ownership and homes to rent at affordable levels.

3.6 The 2002 Needs Survey revealed that primary demand for affordable housing in Thanet is for social rented homes. The Council’s Corporate Plan Policy adopted in April 2007 requires that affordable homes delivered through Section 106 agreements should be a mix of 70% social rent and 30% intermediate or shared ownership. In these circumstances the Council will normally accept no less than 70% of the affordable units to be social rented, with the remaining element to be shared ownership on each site. This is consistent with emerging Regional Policy. This factor will be reviewed in light of the Strategic Housing Market Assessment due to be completed in March 2008. The latest accepted information will be taken into account in deciding how elements of affordable housing can best meet local need.

Client group

3.7 It is not the role of this guidance to outline the many policy implications that may apply to development sites, and for this the Local plan should be consulted. However, it is worth noting that policy H8 of that Plan indicates that 15% of homes on sites of 10 or more dwellings should be designed as lifetime homes and wheelchair housing. The Council would expect this percentage to be reflected pro rata in any affordable housing element.

Area-specific considerations

3.8 In certain parts of the district, such as Cliftonville West and Margate Central wards the Council is seeking to maximise the opportunity to provide affordable family sized homes in order to address the fact that the majority of units on those wards are single units. In this particular area the Council has an adopted policy to resist further accommodation in the form of 1 bed flats and bed-sits. Housing sites within these wards that cannot deliver family homes will be specifically considered for off-site provision where an alternative site is available or for a commuted sum to be used to deliver affordable homes on alternative sites. Area based circumstances may arise and vary from time to time, and early discussion on potential sites is advised with the Council’s planning and strategic housing team.

Sustainable communities protocol

3.9 The development needs to be consistent with the Sustainable Communities Policy, which will be proposed to the Council for adoption in due course.

3.10 The Council is committed to promoting balanced sustainable communities and wishes to ensure that development is consistent with the Sustainable Communities Protocol which has been developed by the Kent Housing Group

3.11 The purpose of the Sustainable Communities Protocol is to ensure that future housing developments within Kent meet the objective of creating long lasting sustainable communities. The Kent Housing Group (KHG), of which Thanet District Council is a member, recognises a sustainable community as a place where people want to live and work both now and in the future. To support this further the protocol highlights key factors in achieving the desired outcome;

To take account of local housing need and aspiration
To establish and maintain a mixed community
To establish and maintain an economically active community
To establish and maintain links to existing communities

3.12 The document can be inspected by contacting the Strategic Housing Units on 01843 577280 and housing officers will be happy to offer informal advice about the implications for specific sites.

Sustainable homes and mitigating climate change

3.13 The “Code for Sustainable Homes” issued by the Government in 2006, aims to drive a step-change in sustainable home building practice. There is now an overwhelming body of scientific evidence showing that climate change is a serious and urgent issue. In 2004, more than a quarter of the UK’s carbon dioxide emissions – a major cause of climate change – came from energy we use to heat, light and run our homes. So it is vital to ensure that homes are built in a way that minimises the use of energy and reduces these harmful emissions. One of the major benefits to social housing providers will be that homes built to Code standard will have lower running costs through greater energy and water efficiency than homes not built to the Code standard, so helping to reduce fuel poverty.

3.14 The Code is intended as a single national standard to guide industry in the design and construction of sustainable homes. It is a means of driving continuous improvement, greater innovation and exemplary achievement in sustainable home building. There are six levels to the code, and at present the Council would expect new affordable housing to meet Level 3.