Melton Council sets out plans to help hundreds of people on housing waiting list

Plans have been set out to provide more homes for Melton borough residents with nearly 800 currently on the council’s waiting list.
Melton Borough Council newsMelton Borough Council news
Melton Borough Council news

The Affordable Housing Development Plan 2022-2026 seeks to solve the major shortage of affordable properties in the area.

There are nearly 25,000 households in the borough at present and only around one-fifth of these are rental homes.

The borough council has a stock of 1,782 houses and flats but not enough to home everyone – there are currently 781 applications on the council’s housing register, with 14 of these people requiring wheelchair access.

One of the key objectives of the plan is for the council to build new properties on land which they own, including garage blocks.

A report in the plan states: “There are currently approximately 400 garages on various sites throughout the borough.

"Many garages are vacant and falling into disrepair.

"Some sites have the potential to be redeveloped to provide new council housing.

“Garage sites will be treated as a priority for new housing development.”

The council will also consider converting existing redundant buildings it owns into housing, although priority will be given for community use if that is identified.

Another aim is to look at buying housing already built by private developers to rent out to tenants – the report explains: “It would be reasonable to acquire some homes which are already built.

“It would be better to acquire new build homes rather than older ones as they are more energy efficient and will have less maintenance issues.”

Members of the scrutiny committee will discuss the plan on Tuesday.

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