2024 Cooperative Case Studies
- May 2024
- Lead Member Non Member
- Categories Housing
Chichester DC (CDC) has been developing its support for CLH over the past year. It sees CLH as a way of delivering homes for specific local needs which very few registered providers now deliver. Affordable homes developed will be affordable in perpetuity and secured through a s.106 agreement. As CDC develops a new housing strategy and reviews its Local Plan it will include policies and measures supportive of CLH.
CDC employs a dedicated rural enabler and has been promoting the benefits of CLH extensively to parish councils and communities. A mapping exercise led to 26 initial expressions of interest, with eight committed groups now moving forward. CDC also offers grant funding for land acquisition and has allocated capital funding for a revolving loans pot for CLTs and RPs. A survey of parishes and community groups will identify the barriers to CLH and identify how best to support groups.
CDC is using its allocation from DCLG’s Community Housing Fund to develop additional housing enabling and planning support, providing early stage support to new groups, feasibility and technical support up to planning permission stage and grants toward land purchase.
CDC is setting up a triage and support service, referring interested groups to Locality, a national network of community-led organisations. Locality will provide the group with a bespoke support package to move the project to the detailed feasibility stage. CDC will provide further technical support to gain planning permission and help deliver the housing.
The Council will set up a CLH Chichester District Forum for to share information, facilitate peer to peer support and run workshops.
