Purpose

The report seeks to formalise the
Council’s agreement to a request from Accent Housing (a
registered provider of social housing) to submit a DPA waiver
request regarding Land east of Surfleet Road, Pinchbeck. This
allows Accent Housing to access affordable housing grant from Homes
England, enabling them to provide shared ownership homes on the
site.
This report has been produced in accordance with the agreed
procedure for such requests (as captured in the Portfolio Holder -
Housing and Health report published 4 September 2020).

Decision

That an application be made to
Homes England on behalf of Accent Housing to apply a
waiver to the ‘Designated Protected Area’ status that
applies to the locality.
 
The
report seeks to formalise the Council’s agreement to a
request from Accent Housing (a registered provider of social
housing) to submit a DPA waiver request in respect of Land east of
Surfleet Road, Pinchbeck. This allows
Accent Housing to access affordable housing grant from Homes
England, enabling them to provide shared ownership homes on the
site.
 
This action would empower
Accent Housing to advertise the properties using Homes England's
standard lease terms, effectively removing any restrictive
conditions on ‘staircasing’ i.e. homeowners will be
able to acquire up to 100% of the property. This is as opposed to
staircasing being ‘capped’ at 80%. Applying the DPA
waiver removes this cap, whilst also allowing the housing
association to access grants to provide the homes

Reasons for the decision

·        
There is strong evidence for the need for affordable
homes in South Holland, and shared ownership is a tenure that plays
a demonstrable role in supporting households into home ownership in
the area. Granting the waiver allows Accent Housing to utilize the
Homes England allocated grant of £1,320,000, which will
support investment in South Holland and the delivery of affordable
homes.

·        
It is rare for owners of shared ownership housing to
‘staircase’ to 100% in Pinchbeck (and indeed across the
district as a whole). Therefore, there is limited evidence of the
need to use regulation to restrict staircasing in Pinchbeck, as
homes tend to remain in supply as shared ownership housing on
subsequent sales.

·        
To support and encourage the provision of new
affordable home ownership products in the district. The Homes
England grant funding can only be utilized on the units if the DPA
waiver is granted. The funding will also be reused, at the point of
the shared owners purchasing additional shares, to deliver
affordable homes in the future.

·        
To allow these homes to be sold on the same lease
terms as other shared ownership homes in Pinchbeck. The S106
agreement for the site allows the purchaser to buy 100% of the
property.  Therefore, a waiver is
necessary to align with the S106 agreement and to allow the homes
to be sold on the same terms as other shared ownership homes
Pinchbeck.

·        
Given the ongoing supply of shared ownership
housing, it is reasonable to allow purchasers of these homes to
acquire them on a standard lease, as this should improve mortgage
availability for prospective buyers.

Alternative options considered

Option One: Take no
action, which would result in no application
being made to Homes England, preventing Accent Housing from
accessing the grant funding to bring the share ownership units
forward.
Option two: The council
declines the request from Accent Housing and chooses not to seek a
waiver from Homes England which would have the same effect as
above