The only way for Essex

Essex is facing that all too familiar problem – a severe lack of affordable homes compounded by a shortage of cash to provide the housing required – but despite the challenges the south of the county has ambitious plans for growth. Michelle McKenna reports

South Essex – the part which is geographically closest to London – falls under the Thames Gateway regeneration and growth area.

As the UK ’s largest economic development programme, stretching for 40 miles along the Thames Estuary, it aims to maximise the potential of the Thames Gateway to provide London with the space to grow.

This growth will, of course, impact South Essex and the Thames Gateway South Essex (TGSE) Partnership was founded in 2002 with a committment to help deliver 55,000 new jobs and 43,800 new homes to the region by 2021. It will also play a significant role in the lead up to the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Tasked with drawing up a strategy for the delivery of these homes is the TGSE Housing Group. “For the housing group we have a fairly simple vision which is to deliver quality housing that contributes to sustainable communities and a balanced housing market,” explains strategy co-ordinator Alastair Pollock. The area has got a growing population, which is expanding naturally and also from a steady flow of migration from London particularly in the boroughs of Thurrock, Basildon and Southend-on-Sea.

There is a pressing need for more homes – affordable homes in particular – in the South Essex sub region as highlighted by a Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA), which in Pollock’s words presented “quite a bleak picture in terms of the need.”

“It is basically saying we have got quite a lot of need and to meet that need we would have to deliver an unrealistically high percentage of affordable housing i.e. 78 per cent,” says Pollock. “We are lucky if we get 35 per cent in the current market so affordability as you would expect is the big issue still – it hasn’t gone away.”

The long-term objective of the TGSE Housing Group is to enhance housing choice, quality and mix in the sub region and it aims to facilitate housing development to meet the anticipated rise in overall housing requirement through a comprehensive approach to managing housing supply, particularly in relation to affordable housing.

Work is underway on several sites at the moment with plenty more in the pipeline and the HCA has provided £7.6 million funding to provide approximately 163 new homes in the sub-region for this financial year.

Projects are being enabled in Basildon, Castle Point, Southend and Thurrock with funding from the National Affordable Housing Programme (NAHP), and in total will provide homes for approximately 591 people on the housing needs list.

All bids were assessed for quality, strategic fit, value for money and deliverability Naisha Polaine, head of area for the HCA in the East of England said: “This is positive news for both local residents and our partners. The £7.6 million over the next three years will enable new homes to be built which in turn will address the local housing needs of South Essex.”

And while housing will play a huge role in the growth of the region it is impossible to build new homes without the infrastructure to support them as Pollock explains: “We all know that delivery of housing growth is tied into developing an infrastructure to make it sustainable.”

There are various key projects taking place in South Essex at the moment and construction started in April 2010 on a £63.5 million upgrade to the Sadler’s Farm junction and the key A13/A130 strategic routes which serve the TGSE growth area.

The scheme, which is forecast for completion on March 2012, will involve a new link road from the A13 (London) to the A130 (Chelmsford), which will take traffic away from the junction in a bid to relieve the bottle neck. Capacity will be increased on A13 and A130 through widening the roads from the junction to Pitsea flyover and Rayleigh Spur roundabout. There will also be improvements to the junction itself and side roads.

And while building new homes and infrastructure will be key to the region’s growth, providing more homes is not just about new build. As well as looking at improving the region’s current housing stock the TGSE Housing Group has also launched an empty homes scheme, and is working with Pathmeads Housing Associatio to refurbish and bring empty properties back into use. Owners of void properties can apply for a grant/loan to renovate their property and agree terms with Pathmeads and their Council to recover the loan through regular repayments when a tenant has been placed in the property.

Rab Fallon, chair of the Thames Gateway South Essex Strategic Housing Officer’s Group said: “The sub regional Empty Homes Scheme is a good opportunity for empty property owners to access funding for refurbishments and secure a regular rental income. Not only does this help property owners but it will also improve the choices of families waiting for housing and will provide a long-term contribution to the region’s housing needs.”

There are no doubt many changes to come for South Essex but in an ever volatile climate the region’s plans need to be constantly re-asssed and the Housing Group is currently refreshing its strategy for 2012-15.

A new TGSE Housing Strategy is being prepared, which will investigate the opportunities arising out of the Localism Bill and following consultation in September, it will be available later in the year.

As Pollock explains: “We are currently refreshing our strategy for 2012 -15 period which is ongoing at the moment and we are looking at new opportunities coming up in Localism Bill to see how we can continue to deliver quality housing in our area with substantially less grant money so it is a real challenge.”