Make flats affordable, Notting Hill Housing Trust is told

Published: 12 March 2010
by PETER GRUNER

A HOUSING association has been attacked for behaving like a big developer in planning to build a large “unsightly” complex – which would have dwarfed Islington’s Union Chapel – with only half the homes affordable.

The seven-storey scheme was thrown out last Thursday at a meeting of Islington Council’s west area planning committee.

Speaking this week, Labour councillor Paul Convery, chairman of the committee, complained that Notting Hill Housing Trust, a registered social landlord, offered a “poorly thought out” development of the former Ford car showroom site in Canonbury Road, where there were plans to build 134 flats.

More than 120 objectors, including representatives of the borough’s main conservation groups, attended last week’s meeting. More than 600 letters of objection were received by the council.

The committee decided that the proposed building was too high and would have fitted badly into the adjoining conservation area. It would have dwarfed the Union Chapel, and nearby homes would have suffered significant loss of light.

Councillors were particularly angry that just 49 per cent of the homes would be affordable and only 60 per cent of those would be socially rented. The trust told the council it was “a misconception” that, because a site was being developed by a registered social landlord rather than a private developer, “it could or should in­clude a higher proportion of affordable homes”.

Cllr Convery said: “The primary purpose of a social landlord is to provide a high proportion of affordable homes, preferably socially rented ones.”

He added: “After all, registered social landlords enjoy considerable advantages over private developers. They have exclusive access to grants and subsidy from the government; they have a special partnership status with local authorities; they pay no corporation tax and get business rate rebates because they are charities; they are exempt from many of the EU ‘state-aid’ rules; they can borrow capital more cheaply than private developers; and they have no shareholders demanding profits and dividends.

“It is therefore staggering that Notting Hill Housing Trust claims to be in exactly the same position as a private developer.”

Cllr Convery said he would prefer to see a scheme which was 100 per cent affordable, containing various types of properties, including part-rent and part-buy.

 A trust spokeswoman said: “We’re disappointed that on this occasion the planning committee didn’t take the opportunity to support this much-needed development. 

“The overall mix of tenures and size of homes is calculated to make sure the development is financially deliverable. This was verified by the expert the council employed.  

“Offering a higher number of larger homes will reduce the proportion of affordable housing. Plus, the range of tenures offers greater choice to more local people. Only people on the council waiting list can access affordable rent, but anyone earning between £18,000 and £60,000 can apply for shared ownership. The homes for private sale will be competitively priced too. 

“With so many Londoners unable to get the housing they really need, we’re trying to help as many people as possible by offering as much choice as possible.”