I recently visited the Land Society and was so impressed by their proposals to help towards increasing sustainable rural housing.You will find below a description by the Land Society of their exciting project.
This project is designed to help solve the problem of local rural residents who are unable to afford the high property prices in their South Devon villages by enabling local people to find their own affordable land and build their own high-quality homes.
The Project includes;
- A one-year evening course at a local college; all the skills required to build your own eco-home
- a simple but advanced self-build eco-house design (Code 5) adaptable to family, local and site conditions
- a monthly 'just-in-time' supply of the required natural low-carbon materials, locally-sourced where possible
- a Community Land Trust (CLT) structure offering access to affordable land, with shared equity and homes-for-locals, affordable in perpetuity
- applicants trained to help find their own local potential development sites for small numbers of village homes
- future planning under the new Community Right to Build due late 2011 (51% village approval), or a community supported Planning Application
- Meets local housing needs as identified by each Parish Council or community
- Re-skilling of participants, and creating strong community ties.
To be eligible, local applicants must meet local-needs housing criteria, basically;
- children of local, long-time residents,
- have pre-school children, or children in local schools,
- work locally, especially in core/low paid services, e.g; education, healthcare, agriculture
- people who the community decides will help regenerate the local rural economy
Preference will be for a number of small sites spread around each community to minimise local impact and so the community can quickly assimilate these new developments.
Primarily self-build homes, to include a one-year training course and professional help. The Project includes cost of a practical training course for 2 people per house, one evening per week, initially at South Devon College to include 20 hours of on-site inspections and tuition, a manager to manage materials supply and help work flow, and a Quantity Surveyor to sign off of each stage of the work to satisfy insurance and mortgage/funding requirements and release next materials delivery.
Simple passive-solar eco-home design primarily using local materials, such as; gabion foundations, straw bale walls, rammed earth thermal mass floor and chimney, solar conservatory, lime/clay plaster, shingle roof, etc. Supplies of locally-sourced materials will be delivered as required for each phase of construction on a just-in-time basis. Designs will be adapted by a local Architect for community and residents requirements.
The cost of land, materials, training course and legal/planning will typically be about £85k, with a deposit of £5 -10k, then balance payable quarterly in stages from a pre-arranged mortgage. In addition the self-building work is valued at between £40-50,000, which becomes part of their equity in the property (or provides funds to complete the home if required). Members will typically own 60% equity in a home valued at about £225 - 300,000, and the balance will remain in the Land Society or CLT to enable further social investment. The mortgage repayments for a 2 bedroom house will typically be around £460 per month* and the self builders will have a substantial equity stake of about 20% from their contribution of labour.
* Based on an £85,000 repayment mortgage over 25 years at 6% interest rate.
We'll offer a 'shopping list' of additions such as solar panels & wind turbine, greenhouses, workshops, orchard, play equipment, landscaping etc for each community.
A key part of the Project is that each member and their family, friends and co-workers help to find possible local development sites by canvassing local opinion and becoming local advocates to aid a positive planning outcome, either under the Community Right to Build (due later 2011) or a community-supported Planning Application. Members should help create strong personal, family and community ties as well as learning new skills.
College Courses and Program of development
We have worked with South Devon College (SDC), to develop this 3-hours-per-weekday evening, one evening per week, 12-month course, teaching the skills each month for the next month's build. Work on site will be checked and signed off at each completed stage, with professionals to sign off stages of work and approve the release of funds.
Future Project Development
We are working on this project as a replicable business model with the aim of 'social franchising' the training course, house conceptual design and support to other colleges and communities.
Financial Arrangements
We are working with specialist mortgage providers for participants.
Contact: Donal Lang, Director, The Land Society CIC, dcharleslang@gmail.com
PLANNING POLICY
Dr Michael Howarth recently contacted me on the implications of the draft National Planning Policy Framework for Kingsbridge and here you can read his thoughtful response to the consultation.
"The new draft National Planning Policy Framework aims to encourage economic growth and to increase the supply of housing. Kingsbridge has been let down by the present planning system in two respects. Firstly the system has failed to identify adequate employment land to meet the needs of successful and expanding businesses in the Town. Secondly it has failed to prioritise the use of so-called 'brownfield' land, and instead houses are to be built on new greenfield sites on the edge of Town adjacent to Trebblepark and on West Alvington Hill. The question is whether the proposed new planning framework will make matters better or worse.
The need to encourage business growth is a strong theme in new framework and in this regard it is to be welcomed. Inspectors will presumably be inclined to give greater weight to the delivery of adequate employment land. The recent examination of Kingsbridge's employment land proposals by inspectors was a farce, as it was biased in favour of the objectors. The objectors were given free reign to voice there concerns, while the proponents of the proposals were afforded no such opportunity. It was a denial of natural justice apart from anything else. This needs to change.
The plans to build new houses on greenfield sites have caused a great deal of concern in the Town. Developers prefer greenfield sites because they are easier and more profitable to develop. Councils connive with this because they are able to demand a higher proportion of affordable housing and other planning gains. The alternative in Kingsbridge was to give priority to the development of the run-down Lower Union Road area close to the centre of the Town. Studies commissioned by the Town Council have shown that the redevelopment of Lower Union Road could accommodate an additional 50 new dwellings without any loss of employment space. The problem is that Lower Union Road would be expensive to redevelop because of some contamination issues which would need to be addressed first, and difficult to achieve because of multiple ownership of the site.
However is it sustainable (to use the current jargon) to build houses in the countryside and leave a run down area in the centre of the Town? Absolutely not, because the concept of sustainability is that we leave the place in better shape for the next generation, or at least not worse, than is presently the case. It is nothing other than short-termism to develop greenfield sites while there are still brownfield sites available. The new planning framework is deficient because it removes any obligation to build on brownfield sites. In the terminology of the new National Planning Policy Framework there should be a presumption AGAINST development in the countryside until all available brownfield sites have been used."
If you would like to put your views forward on the draft National Planning Policy Framework, please click the link
