Issue - meetings

The Cabinet is requested to consider the agenda report and make the following resolution:

That delegated authority be given to the Director of Housing and Communities, following consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, to spend the Custom and Self Build New Burdens Grant set out in para 3.1 of the agenda report.

RESOLVED

That delegated authority be given to the Director of Housing and Communities, following consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing Services, to spend the Custom and Self-Build New Burdens Grant set out in para 3.1 of the agenda report.

The Cabinet received and considered the agenda report.

This item was presented by Mrs J Kilby (Cabinet Member for Housing Services).

Mrs L Grange (Divisional Manager Housing) was in attendance for this matter.

Mrs Kilby made the following points in presenting the report:

·       New Burdens funding totalling £95,850 would have been received from the government by 2020 to cover the costs of additional resources required to set up and maintain a custom and self-build register and to ensure sufficient permissioned and serviced land was made available to satisfy demand.

·       The Housing Delivery team set up the register two years ago and in 2018 a two-part register was introduced: part 1 was restricted to those with a local connection and those in part 2 did not count towards the assessment of local demand.

·       The demand for custom and self-build needed to be carefully monitored and policy developed to ensure that CDC met its statutory duties.

·       There were a number of pressures being faced by the Housing Service for which resources were required: the introduction of the Homeless Reduction Act 2018; the implementation of a new IT system; the extension of the Disabled Facilities Grant scheme; the potential development of Freeland Close (agenda item 6); research and policy work associated with a new Housing Strategy, a full review of the Allocations Scheme and alternative means of delivering affordable homes; preparing responses to the many government consultations; and preparing bids for funding from government.

·       It was proposed, therefore, that the new burdens grant should be used to provide additional staffing resources to deal with this extra work.

Decision

The Cabinet voted unanimously to make the resolution set out below.    

RESOLVED

That delegated authority be given to the Director of Housing and Communities, following consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing Services, to spend the Custom and Self-Build New Burdens Grant set out in para 3.1 of the agenda report.