Decision details

Intermediate Tenure at Bridgefield House (College Car Park)

Decision Maker: Head of Crawley Homes

Decision status: Recommendations Approved

Is Key decision?: No

Is subject to call in?: No

Purpose:

When considering the tenure options for Bridgefield House in November 2017 cabinet were mindful of immediate pressures to spend the RTB 1-4-1 monies. but provided for future changes with the following decision:

delegated authority to the Head of Crawley Homes, the Head of Finance, Revenues & Benefits and the Head of Legal & Democratic Services, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Housing, to negotiate and agree the detailed terms of the Conditional Purchase Agreement and acquisition, and to consider the available tenure options as deemed necessary for financial or strategic reasons.

The 1-4-1 monies are in a more secure position and therefore the decision has been taken to include intermediate tenures within Bridgefield House with the usual planning requirement of a 70/30 % split of affordable rent and intermediate tenure.

Intermediate tenure will be on a flexible approach of shared ownership through shared equity to assist as many people through a low cost ownership option as possible. The details of the approach to be agreed with the Cabinet Member for Housing.

Decision:

The Head of Crawley Homes, in consultation with the Head of Corporate Finance, Head of Legal, Democracy and HR, and the Cabinet Member for Housing, agreed that the best approach for creating a more balanced community within Bridgefield House, and for releasing Right-to-Buy 1-4-1 money for alternative projects, was to include Intermediate Tenure (shared ownership/equity) within the scheme, and that the tenures will be split by floors with the top three floors across both cores being allocated for Intermediate Tenure, as these upper floors have higher market values, which will maximise the capital return back to the Housing Revenue Account while improving the overall balance of tenures within the scheme to address local housing needs.

Alternative options considered:

Option 1 - No change from original decision.
Option 2 - Include greater percentage of intermediate tenure
Option 3 - Utilise usual planning requirement for sustainable communities and provide a 70/30 % split ofa affordable rent and intermediate tenure. *

Publication date: 15/07/2019

Date of decision: 12/07/2019