Member Article

Liverpool sets out three-year housing vision

Liverpool City Council has outlined plans for a three-year strategy for housing, jobs and prosperity for local people.

The plan includes building on progress already made through the £130m Housing Delivery Plan, and continuing with the Empty Homes programme.

The Council also said it will ensure the housing programme drives the economy forward and landlords will help to improve the quality of privately rented properties, while the impact of Government welfare reforms will be managed.

Homelessness will also be tackled as part of the scheme, with a plan for bringing rough sleepers off the street.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, said: “Improving our housing stock is one of my top priorities. I promised to build 5,000 new homes and bring a further 1,000 back into use by 2016 and we are making fantastic progress.

“But there’s still much more to do if we are to fulfil our aims of giving everyone in Liverpool access to a decent home, in a decent neighbourhood.

“This is an ambitious strategy, which will support my priorities by addressing a wide spectrum of housing needs.

“It will enable us to strike the right balance between building new homes and refurbishment and help us clamp down on irresponsible landlords who allow their properties to rot.

“The strategy will also enable us to better target support for our most vulnerable residents, including those affected by the Government’s welfare reforms. And it will help us ensure housing delivery boosts our economy by creating jobs for local people.”

Mayor Joe Anderson’s target of delivering 5,000 new homes and 1,000 refurbished homes to the city will be supported by the Liverpool Housing Strategy, which also highlights the importance of the Council’s role in driving these projects forward.

Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, Councillor Ann O’Byrne, commented: “Our vision for Liverpool is to deliver a good mixture of high quality homes, across the city, that fully meets the needs of all current and future residents. This strategy will help us achieve those aims.

“We are facing real economic challenges, with the withdrawal by the Government of some of our key funding streams.

“But we are not shying away from the challenges, nor lowering our ambitions for housing in this city. Continued investment in housing will drive up the quality of people’s lives, support the wider regeneration of our city, create jobs and boost business.

“Working with partners we are making real progress in delivering the housing this city needs and it’s fantastic to see so many major schemes on site, across the city. This strategy will help us build on this work and provide the way forward for the on-going transformation of housing in this city.”

Current schemes through the Liverpool Housing Strategy include a £1 homes pilot scheme and a £3 million mortgage scheme with Lloyds Banking Group, which is seeing the council help dozens of local families into their first homes by offering loan ‘top-ups’.

The Mayor has also launched a search for an organisation to become Liverpool’s official Housing Partner, to help deliver 1,500 new and 1,000 refurbished properties for the city.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Miranda Dobson .