Update - I have had a response from Cllr Winstanley - also from Cllr Grajewski - see the end....
There is a house in Bishopstoke where each neighbouring house has been empty for some time. This isn't good for residents of the house in the middle - empty homes can attract problems (and why I'm not saying where these houses are). It also isn't good for the community as it is one way in which housing supply is limited. In Eastleigh, the total number of empties has gone up from 951 in 2014 to 988 in October 2015. The number of long term empty properties (empty for over 6 months) has gone from 255 to 311 over the same period. The Eastleigh number is not high compared to other authorities - but that is still 988 opportunities for homes. And 988 may be only a fraction of the total empty homes in the borough - if a home has furniture in it, it may be classified as a second home, not empty, even if nobody has lived there for years. Council tax rates are higher for empty homes than for second homes so there is a strong incentive for the owner to leave furniture in place. The majority of Eastleigh's are in private ownership. There are many reasons why properties become empty - and it is not easy to resolve. This is why many councils have an empty homes function allocated to an officer - either as part or all of their duties. Councils have some rights to temporarily take over an empty property. Often, these officers will work with property owners and local housing associations to try and get the home back into use. Eastleigh Borough Council's policy expired in 2014. I asked Cllr Anne Winstanley, as my borough councillor, on 5th September, what the approach is - is there an officer currently working on empty homes for example. Cllr Winstanley has now replied (see update section). I am hoping that this does not reflect a lack of interest from Cllr Winstanley or from the Borough. So many Councillors expressed how keen they were to meet housing demand (EBC meeting 21st July), surely this issue is high on their agenda? There is no live policy which makes me doubt this. When there is so much demand for housing, it seems incongruous that the Council may not be working to get at least some of those 311 long term empty properties turned back into homes. And let's not forget the Local Plan. With over 600 homes expected to be needed every year, how can an increase of 56 long term empties per year be ignored? An effective strategy to get the numbers down should have been included - and yet no mention of empty homes so far. Update 30th September Cllr Winstanley has replied - and apologised for the delay in doing so. She acknowledges that the strategy is out of date but outlines comprehensively what the council is doing. She hasn't answered my query about officers being allocated - so I've asked again on that. She says that the new strategy is close to being able to be launched and will reflect new powers ref council tax rates for empty properties. I also contacted Cllr Grajewski when I wasn't sure that Cllr Winstanley would be responding. She did some research and also reported that a new strategy is due. Really glad that EBC have not forgotten this topic. I would still like to have seen a ramping up of action in this area mentioned in the Local Plan documents - dealing with an increase in empty homes should surely form part of the plan for housing in the Eastleigh.
2 Comments
Johanna Walker
9/30/2016 04:58:42 am
http://www.emptyhomesdoctor.org.uk This social enterprise was developed to answer this exact challenge in Leeds - perhaps they would have some suggestions as to how to begin to deal with this.
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Christine Ackland
9/30/2016 10:04:45 am
988 opportunities for more homes so why on earth are EBC agreeing to all these new homes being built on virgin ground? I can see that there needs to be some new builds but if there's a chance that the number of new builds could be reduced then they should be looking into all possibilities.Even half this number would save a couple of our green fields.... It's a total disgrace.
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Against Destructive DevelopmentFormed this year by Stoke Residents Association working with other local community groups, this campaign is taking action against destructive development, focusing on Bishopstoke, Fair Oak, Colden Common and Upham. Archives
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