Housing plans unveiled for next five years
Test Valley Borough Council has unveiled its plans to tackle homelessness and provide affordable housing across the borough for the next five years
Next Wednesday, the authority’s cabinet members will consider the borough’s new overarching Housing Strategy 2020-2025, along with a new Preventing Homelessness & Rough Sleeping Strategy 2020 to 2023. The strategies set out how the council will improve access and ensure the quality of existing housing, prevent and relieve homelessness, and meet the needs of vulnerable people including a growing proportion of older people in the local population.
Following the 2019 Corporate Plan, the new housing-related strategies have prioritised four main areas. As well as setting out how the council will continue to deliver new homes that people can afford, improve access to and the quality of existing housing, the strategy also sets out how the council and its partners will meet the needs of an ageing population and how it will continue to proactively prevent and relieve all forms of homelessness.
The council is aiming to deliver 1,000 affordable homes over the five-year period of the Housing Strategy, and to work with local communities to deliver rural affordable housing. In 2019/20, the council exceeded its affordable housing delivery target by 37 per cent, enabling 273 affordable homes against a target of 200. It has also exceeded its affordable housing delivery target by 20 per cent over the past six years.
Housing and environmental health portfolio holder, councillor Phil Bundy, said: “The council’s Housing Strategy represents an important strategic document for the council and we have set out ambitious plans. Most people would agree that decent and affordable homes contribute immeasurably to health and wellbeing and the council is committed to doing everything it can to provide the right housing solutions for our communities. Our message remains simple in that nobody who presents themselves as homeless will leave our offices without the offer of accommodation.
“We will continue to work hard to deliver the homes our borough needs and to tackle homelessness effectively.”
Anyone concerned about their housing situation can speak to the Housing Options team on 01264 368000.