The council has a significant need on its Housing Register for one-bedroom units. This project delivered four one-bedroom units, two of which are fully adapted in Stamford which is a challenging area for the council to increase its housing stock due to the high cost of both properties and land.
At a glance
Priority area addressed: to increase the supply of affordable housing across the district including the provision of fully adapted properties.
Budget: £665,000 fully funded from right to buy receipts.
Timeframe for completion: January to August 2024.
The Council has a significant need on its Housing Register for one-bedroom units. This project delivered four one-bedroom units, two of which are fully adapted in Stamford which is a challenging area for the council to increase its housing stock due to the high cost of both properties and land. The units are highly sustainable which was a key focus for the project as this supports reducing energy costs for tenants.
Executive summary
Increasing the supply of affordable housing in South Kesteven is a key priority for the council. The council completed a new build development project in Stamford as it had identified that this was the most cost-effective option available to increase the supply of affordable housing in this area.
The project delivered four one-bedroom units which supported meeting the needs of the 250 people on the housing register requiring one bedroom properties. The properties are rated EPC B as a key focus of delivery was highly sustainable properties to reduce fuel costs for tenants.
Challenge and context
South Kesteven is rural district which covers 365 square miles. The council’s vision is to be ‘A thriving district to live in, work and visit’. The district boasts enviable north-south connectivity and is strategically located alongside the A1 and the East Coast mainline, with arrival in London Kings Cross in less than 70 minutes by train.
Combined with superb schools, attractive surroundings, a relatively lower cost of living compared to elsewhere in Britain and a low crime rate – South Kesteven is one of the safest areas in Lincolnshire. This makes the district an attractive destination for those seeking to settle and raise a family.
The new approved Corporate Plan 2024-27 developed under the new political administration prioritises the development of affordable housing, and a new housing development team who reports to the Director of Housing and Projects has been established.
The town of Stamford has 17th and 18th century stone buildings, older timber-framed buildings and five medieval parish churches. It has regularly been in the top five places to live in the country due to links into London making it a desirable, but unaffordable place to live for many of our residents.
Stamford is an affluent area but it has some small pockets of deprivation and there are a large number of applicants on the housing register who want to live in this area. Stamford was therefore identified as a priority area for affordable housing developments.
What we did
The council has a hybrid approach to increasing its housing stock, it develops its own land, purchases affordable housing from developers and acquires properties on the open market. The council has limited land in Stamford and the cost of property in Stamford means that it is cost prohibitive to acquire affordable housing from developers.
However, during an assessment of garage sites across the district a former garage site in Stamford had been identified as a potential development site. Plans had been developed and planning permission granted for a block of four one-bedroom units but this site had not been progressed due to COVID-19.
The decision was made to progress with developing the site as in July 2023 there were 250 people on the housing register requiring one bedroom properties demonstrating significant demand for this type of property and the council also had capital receipts which could be used to fully fund the development which supported the financial viability of the scheme.
A procurement exercise was undertaken by the council and a contract awarded to D. Brown Builders for £665,000.
During design discussions with the construction team the Housing Department queried whether the two downstairs units could be fully adapted with wet rooms, level access throughout, access directly into the garden areas, to meet the needs of applicants on the Council’s housing register. D. Brown Builders were able to accommodate this within the existing budget with some minor amendments to the designs which were all approved by the Local Planning Authority.
Work commenced in January 2024 and the four units were completed in August 2024 with residents moving in immediately to the apartments with a positive project message of delivery on time and budget for Members.
The difference
The scheme generates a positive financial return to the Council. Although each unit cost around £165,000 to build, available one bedroom apartments to acquire in the Stamford area are either focussed on retirement age or town centre at £200,000 plus with no parking. The units at Elizabeth Road have all an allocated car parking space and provision for EV charging at each bay.
The units are extremely sustainable with solar panels on the roof and insultation resulting in EPC B levels so utility costs for our tenants are low. A key focus of the project was developing highly sustainable properties as this supports reducing energy costs for tenants.
The scheme has also regenerated the area as demonstrated in the attached photographs, a demolished garage site has been replaced with four modern one-bedroom units. The surrounding residents provided positive feedback regarding the minimal disturbance that was experienced during the development.
Lessons learned
There was one lesson learnt from the development, the highway was just outside of the red line boundary and the kerbs required dropping to ensure that they were full accessible for the tenants in the new development. These works required approval which meant that they were completed after the handover of the scheme. To prevent this happening again roads/pavements outside of developments are included in project briefs to ensure that access to new build schemes is considered at design stage.
There has been a noticeable increase in the number of requests for adapted properties and there is a lack of provision on most new build developments due to the increased size of properties such as bungalows to meet the space requirements. The new build team now ensure that adapted properties are included in all Council development schemes where feasible to meet the needs of residents on our housing register.
The Council is also in the process of building 20 one-bedroom units in Grantham and have acquired 12 one-bedroom units in Grantham on the open market to further meet the need for one-bedroom properties on the Housing Register.
Contact
Debbie Roberts, Head of Corporate Projects