In this first stage of consultation on the next London Housing Strategy we are seeking your views on issues relating to:
- Building new sustainable communities;
- Improving existing homes and communities; and
-
Setting priorities.
Under each of these headings we pose some questions.
The issues and questions raised are not intended to be a comprehensive list of everything that needs to be considered in developing the next strategy. If there are other issues that you wish to raise, please feel free to do so.
You do not need to respond to all the questions. However, it would help our analysis if you used the questions as headings to your answers.
We would also be grateful if your response is kept as brief as possible. It might not be possible for us to consider lengthy research reports or papers written for other purposes. While we are happy to take responses in hard copy, we would prefer comments to be sent by email.
You should be aware that we propose to publish all responses to this consultation on the London Housing Strategy pages of the GOL website www.go-london.gov.uk unless specifically requested otherwise. In the case of electronic responses, general confidentiality disclaimers that often appear at the end of emails will be disregarded for the purposes of publishing responses unless an explicit request is made in the body of the response.
We shall shortly be putting on the GOL website more detailed information about the process and timetable for developing the strategy.
If there are other more general points that you want to raise about the London Housing Strategy, please take this opportunity to so.
Responses by email should be sent to: lhsconsultation.gol@go-regions.gsi.gov.uk
Hard copy responses should be sent to London Housing Strategy 2005 Consultation, c/o Robin Lawrence, Government Office for London, 8th Floor, Riverwalk House, 157-161 Millbank, London SW1P 4RR.
The deadline for responses is Friday 16 July 2004
BACKROUND ON THE LONDON HOUSING BOARD
The London Housing Board was established in March 2003 following the publication of the Government's Sustainable Communities Plan. The Board is responsible for producing a regional housing strategy and advising Ministers on the allocation of housing capital investment in London.
The membership of the Board is:
Liz Meek, Chair – Regional Director, Government Office for London
Corinne Lyons, Head of Housing and Thames Gateway, Government Office for London
Anthony Mayer, Chief Executive, Greater London Authority
Neale Coleman, Senior Policy Advisor, Greater London Authority
Mark Kleinman, Head of Housing & Homelessness, Greater London Authority
Martin Pilgrim, Chief Executive, Association of London Government
Genevieve Macklin, Head of Housing, Association of London Government Chris Wood, Director of Housing, London Borough of Newham
Manny Lewis, Chief Executive, London Development Agency
John Lewis, Director Strategic Joint Ventures, English Partnerships
Steven Douglas, Director of Investment and Regeneration, Housing Corporation London Region
The Board produced the London Housing Strategy 2003 in August 2003. The Strategy can be found below.
Further information on the London Housing Board, including Board papers, minutes of meetings, etc can also be found on the GOL website.
1. Building new sustainable communities
Economic and demographic growth has outpaced housing supply in London. Over 63,000 households in London are living in temporary accommodation - the highest figure ever documented, and 87,000 households in social housing are overcrowded. While increased public investment has led to an increase in the supply of affordable homes in the last year or two, the provision of new private homes has remained pretty static for many years. Projections for London’s population suggest an increase of 336,000 households by 2016. There is an urgent need for more and better-designed homes, including affordable homes, with the necessary transport and other infrastructure, to support sustainable communities across the capital.
The Government’s Sustainable Communities Plan (February 2003) called for "a step change in housing supply to tackle the housing shortage”. This was reiterated in the Barker Review‘s call for a major increase in housing supply.
The London Housing Strategy (August 2003) sets a target of 23,000 new homes per annum of which 10,000 should be affordable. The Mayor’s London Plan (February 2004) sets a baseline target of 23,000 additional homes per annum and an aspirational annual target of 30,000 homes. The Plan sets a target of 50% of all new homes to be affordable, within which 35% should be social rented and 15% intermediate housing. Even with an increase in housing of this order it will take many years to clear the backlog of demand in London.
The Government is seeking to promote sustainable communities, defined as places where people want to live and will continue to live. One of the key features of a sustainable community is “a well-integrated mix of decent homes of different types and tenures to support a range of household sizes, ages and incomes” (Communities Plan).
How can we provide more housing?
Q1.1 How do we maximise the potential for new supply across London, including the growth areas?
Q1.2 What more can local authorities do to increase the supply of new housing?
Q1.3 How can we bring London's 100,000 empty homes back into use?
Q1.4 How should we best target available public subsidy to maximise the increase in the supply of housing?
Where in London should new housing be developed?
Q1.5 Where do we want new housing to be developed if we want to maximise new supply?
Q1.6 To what extent should we be taking a sub-regional approach to new housing development?
What type of new housing do we want?
Q1.7 How do we ensure that all new housing developments contribute to building sustainable communities in an area, in particular through providing mixed tenure?
Q1.8 What mix of size of homes do we need?
Q1.9 How do we provide for those who are not eligible for social housing but who cannot afford to rent or buy on the open market?
Q1.10 How can we make higher density developments work?
Q1.11 How do we create new housing developments where people want to live?
Q1.12 What is needed to create a sense of community and place in areas of new development?
Q1.13 How do we make sure that new supply reflects the needs of London's diverse communities?
Q1.14 How should we make provision for supported housing for people with special needs?
Can the housing sector deliver a step change?
Q1.15 How can we get more developers involved in the London housing market?
Q1.16 How do we ensure that housing development is not constrained for example by skills shortages?
Q1.17 To what extent should we be using modern methods of construction to speed up the supply of housing?
Q1.18 In what other ways can the housing sector speed up delivery of more homes?
Please let us know if there are other issues that you think are important in increasing the supply of housing and building sustainable communities. Please tell us how these issues should be addressed in the London Housing Strategy.
2. Improving existing homes and communities
The Government has set a target to bring all social housing up to Decent Homes standard by 2010. It has also set a target to reduce the proportion of non-decent private sector homes containing vulnerable households.
Too many households in London currently live in homes that are in poor condition. London’s council housing stock is generally in a poorer condition than housing in the country as a whole. Borough estimates show that in April 2003, 6% of homes in London were classified as unfit, including 4.4% of social housing.
Estimates from the 2001 English House Condition Survey suggest that over 1.1 million homes in London do not meet the decent homes standard, representing 36% of London’s homes. In both the public and private sector this is above the national average.
London has an uneven balance of housing provision. There are a number of large, predominately single tenure areas occupied mainly by poorer households. Much of inner-London's social housing is in high demand areas where only those on high incomes can afford to buy or rent privately and those with intermediate incomes are excluded. Social housing tenants in London are less mobile than those living in the rest of the country and their choices are limited. Nearly 124,000 tenants would be prepared to move from their immediate locality if different opportunities were available.
How do we improve homes?
Q2.1 How can we make sure those in social housing have decent homes to live in?
Q2.2 How can we improve conditions in the Private Rented Sector?
Q2.3 How should poor quality owner-occupied housing be improved?
Q2.4 To what extent should we aim to improve homes beyond the current Decent Homes standard?
Q2.5 What are the most effective ways of funding improvements to existing homes?
How can we make existing communities more sustainable?
Q2.6 How should we involve local people in making their communities more sustainable?
Q2.7 How do we meet the needs of homeless families, vulnerable people, key workers and overcrowded households?
Q2.8 How can investment in housing promote greater equality in London? Q2.9 Are there housing issues that are specific to black and ethnic minority communities, to women and to people with a disability?
Q2.10 How can we ensure that supported housing is available for those that need it, in the places they need it?
Q2.11 What could be done to achieve more mobility in social housing?
Q2.12 How can we increase choice for prospective and existing social housing tenants about where they live?
Q2.13 How can investment in housing help address wider quality of life issues such as crime, anti-social behaviour, health, etc.?
Q2.14 To what extent should we be taking a local, sub-regional or pan-London approach to improving existing communities?
Q2.15 How do we ensure that solutions are cost-effective?
Please let us know if there are other issues that you think are important in improving London's homes. Please tell us how these issues could be addressed in the London Housing Strategy.
3. Setting priorities
With limited resources it will not be possible to meet everyone's expectations for the London Housing Strategy. Clearly, hard choices will have to be made on where investment will be directed.
An important part of the process of developing the strategy will be determining the key objectives for the strategy, recognising the trade–offs, specifying the policies and the resources that would be required and setting trajectories showing how each objective will be achieved. This process will enable an informed discussion about setting the priorities and maximising resources. More information on how the London Housing Board is developing the Strategy will be published on the GOL website.
As a first step however, we would welcome initial views on the overall priorities for the Strategy. In particular we would welcome views on the following questions:
Q3.1 Given limited resources, what should be the balance between new housing, improving existing homes and other housing priorities?
Q3.2 What priority should be given to wider neighbourhood regeneration and how should this be funded?
Q3.3 Would we get best results by 2016 if different phases of the strategy emphasised different priorities? For example, should we concentrate first on developing more homes or improving existing homes?
Q3.4 Should there be different priorities at the local, sub-regional and pan-London level and if so, how should they be reflected in the Strategy?
If you feel there are other objectives that should be given priority we would like to hear about them.
