Report of the Strategic Director (Development)

This report provides a summary update of the progress made in implementation the activities set out in the Residential Action Plan over the period 2016 to date.  It provides a forward look to the challenges and external factors that pose a risk to the Council’s ability to deliver against its residential growth ambitions, whilst also summarising the current and emerging workstreams and opportunities to contribute to the delivery of the Residential Growth Strategy.

The Committee considered a report of the Strategic Director (Development), which provided a summary update of the progress made in implementation the activities set out in the Residential Action Plan over the period 2016 to date.

The Director of Housing and Residential Growth referred to the main points and themes within the report which included:-

·                     In March 2016 the Executive endorsed the Manchester Residential Growth Strategy which set a minimum target of 25,000 new homes to be delivered within the city between April 2016 and March 2025. In December 2018 the Executive Member for Housing and Regeneration put forward a report, endorsed by the Economy Scrutiny Committee and Executive, that revised this target to 32,000 (including 20% affordable housing);

·                     The Residential Growth Strategy proposed a set of priorities to support the city’s sustained economic growth and ensure that there are affordably priced houses and apartments for sale and rent, which would underpin the economic growth objectives of the city and meet the needs of all households;

·                     Details of the progress made in delivering residential growth since 2016;

·                     The Residential Growth Action Plan, taking into account:-

·                The impact of Brexit;

·                Delivering an appropriate mix of property types and tenures;

·                Land supply and availability of Public Sector funding;

·                The draft Greater Manchester Spatial Framework and Manchester Local Plan; and

·                    Progress of key activities underway together with actions that would be taken forward during 2019

Some of the key points that arose from the Committees discussions were:-

·                     What involvement has the Council had to date in the development of off site housing construction;

·                     What guidance was there for developers in relation to room sizes in new build properties;

·                     How optimistic was the Council that it would receive sufficient funding through the Government’s Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF);

·                     What balance of housing was the Council aiming for in relation to Council Tax bands;

·                     Was the Council considering the recently published report of Shelter that recommended an additional 3 million home across the country to address homelessness and the implications that this may have for Manchester;

·                     Could Officers provide further details on how it was envisaged that future partnership working arrangements would work in respect of the Council’s role to influence and govern;

·                     What was the Council doing to ensure that it continued to provide owner occupation properties;

·                     Were Right to Buy Properties entering the private sector rental market becoming a problem;

·                     Did the option for the Council to repurchase properties that had been sold as Right to Buy apply to just Council housing stock or did it also include Council properties which were managed by other organisations and what was the viability of this option;

·                     When would progress be reported on the development of the Housing Affordability Zones;

·                     What consideration had been given alongside the strategy for the need of appropriate social infrastructure to support the occupation of these additional properties; and

·                     Consideration should also be given to the hidden demand in the city centre for older people to downsize.

The Director of Housing and Residential Growth advised that off site manufacturing of housing is essential to deliver the scale of housing development required across the country.  However, for this area to develop, there would be a need for organisations such as the Council to back offsite housing, though not at an initial cost to the Council. It was reported that at present, most of the businesses within this field where located along the M1 corridor in Yorkshire.  The Strategic Director (Development) added that the proposal to develop 200,000 homes across Greater Manchester, demonstrated the ambition of the region and should attract these types of companies to establish bases of operation within the North West.

The Committee was informed that the Executive had previously approved the Council’s residential quality guidance which covered the size and space required for rooms within different types of developments. This was in accordance with national conditions.

The Committee was advised that the Council was working with Homes England to secure at least £50million of HIF investment.  A bid would be submitted to Government on 1 March 2019 and a decision would be expected to be made in the Summer.  It was reported however, that 80% of the HIF would be allocated to London and the South East, and as such, the Council would continue to lobby Government for more appropriate distribution of funding.

The Strategic Director (Development) commented that Manchester’s profile of Council Tax banding across the city was skewed in comparison to other Greater Manchester areas, and although its profile had changed over the last 10 to 15 years, this in the main had resulted in a growth of property band C properties.  He advised that assessments of properties being built were undertaken as part of Council Tax forecasting and agreed to provide information on this to the Committee.

The Strategic Director (Development) advised that in terms of partnership working, this was something that could be built into the Committees work programme for next year, to allow Members to gain a greater understanding and scrutinise the effectiveness and governance arrangements of such relationships.  He also commented that it was the Council’s ambition to measure the numbers of properties available for owner occupation properties, but this had challenges particularly within the city centre where investors, having acquired homes for sale, had then rented the properties and in some instances for Air BnB.

The Director of Housing and Residential Growth reported that the Council had the ability to limit the sale of Right to Buy properties to individuals that were not eligible and could take legal action if necessary where this occurred.  He also commented that the Council was exploring the potential for the buyback of Right to Buy properties previously owned by the Council. He also advised that the Council would consider the report and proposals by Shelter in connection to addressing homelessness and how this may impact the city’s housing affordability strategy.

Officers acknowledged the comments in relation to the progress that had been made with the Housing Affordability Zones and informed the Committee that an update would be provided shortly to Members.  It was also commented that it was recognised that there was a need for appropriate social infrastructure in those areas where additional housing was proposed at scale. To this effect, Officers were working alongside NHS partners and Education colleagues in terms of planning for these developments, especially for proposals within the city centre.

Decision

The Committee:-

(1)          Notes the progress of key activities underway together with actions that will be taken forward during 2019;

(2)          Requests that the Committee’s views are taken into account in developing the Action Plan and notes that it will be brought back to the Scrutiny Committee and Executive later this year, once the impact of Brexit is more clearly understood and a draft plan for Delivering Manchester’s Affordability Strategy is in place; and

(3)          Agrees to look at look at partnership working in more detail as part of next years Work Programme.